Ready for Memory Wars: The Case of the HOS Memorial Plaque in Croatia

This paper focuses on Croatia and the use of hate speech and controversial symbols for the maintenance of symbolic boundaries, the reinforcement of a one-sided version of the past, and the mobilization of voters. The presence and use of the Ustaša salutation, “Ready for the Homeland” (Za dom spremni – ZDS) is a consistent example of those tendencies. In recent years, the salutation has become increasingly intertwined with the legacies of World War Two and the 1990s Croatian War of Independence, while simultaneously reflecting the rise of nationalism and radical-right parties and movements in Croatia as well as abroad. The paper presents insights into the ways ZDS is used to reify national identity, while centering around some of the main actors perpetuating this dynamic, such as politicians and war veterans. Accordingly, it focuses primarily on the case of the memorial plaque erected in 2016 by former members of the Croatian Defence Forces paramilitary unit, which included the ZDS salutation. At one point threatening to topple the government, the case demonstrates how the salute is used to maintain the dominant narrative of the Homeland War.

BBC list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world for 2023

Among them, in the Politics & Advocacy category, are Rukshana Kapali, Nepal, Sonia Guajajara, Brazil, Monica McWilliams, UK, Summia Tora, Afghanistan, Sepideh Rashnu, Iran, Neema Namadamu, Democratic Republic of Congo, Bella Galhos, East Timor,Rina Gonoi, Japan, Maryam Al-Khawaja, Bahrain/Denmark, Christiana Figueres, Costa Rica, Tamar Museridze, Georgia, Iryna Stavchuk, Ukraine, Nataša Kandić, Serbia, Yael Braudo-Bahat, Israel, Michelle Obama, US, Shamsa Araweelo, Somalia/UK, Bernadette Smith, Turtle Island / Canada, Renita Holmes, US, Dehenna Davison, UK, Yasmina Benslimane, Morocco, Xu Zaozao, China, Alicia Cahuiya, Ecuador, Najla Mohamed-Lamin, Western Sahara, Sofia Kosacheva, Russia, Ulanda Mtamba, Malawi, Amal Clooney, UK/Lebanon and Gloria Steinem, US.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-02d9060e-15dc-426c-bfe0-86a6437e5234

International Conference on Digital Archives of Civil Society Organizations

The Humanitarian Law Center in cooperation with the Global Initiative for Justice, Truth and Reconciliation consortium is organizing a three-day international conference titled “Enhancing Sustainability of Civil Society Organizations for Digital Archiving”. The aim of this event is to support civil society organizations from around the world in developing their digital archives dedicated to systematic and mass violations of human rights.

The conference will be held from November 1st to 3rd, 2023, in Belgrade, with the participation of experts and representatives of organizations documenting human rights violations from more than 15 countries, including Argentina, Ukraine, Indonesia, Spain, Croatia, Sri Lanka and others. The diversity of participants and the social and political contexts in which these organizations engage in documenting and digital archiving of human rights violations will provide a variety of perspectives and enrich the discussions.

(srpski) Online okrugli stol: Rat i mir 1990-ih – obrazovanje, pamćenje i mladi u Hrvatskoj

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(srpski) Poziv za studente: Međunarodna konferencija “30 godina od osnivanja MKSJ, naslijeđe i trenutni izazovi”

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(srpski) Haški tribunal nam ne dozvoljava da zaboravimo – Povodom 30 godina od osnivanja Međunarodnog krivičnog suda za ratne zločine

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ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE EVENT: Report Launch: Material reparations in proceedings for damages – the practice of courts in Serbia 2021-2022

On Monday, 24 April 2023, Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) is going to present its report on “Material reparations in proceedings for damages – the practice of courts in Serbia 2021-2022 “ (the Report). The presentation will be held in the large hall of Media Centre Belgrade (Terazije 3, II floor), beginning at 12.30.

The report analyses the course of ongoing court proceedings during the years 2021 and 2022. However, since most procedures have lasted for more than two years, the Report also provides a short overview of the procedures before 2021, to facilitate the tracking.

The Report is divided into two parts. The first part of the Report analyses the individual cases currently adjudicated by the Serbian courts, while the second part renders the main problems identified by HLC during its efforts as the key ones which prevent the victims from exercising their rights to reparations before domestic courts.

Media and Revisionism about the 1990s’ Wars in Serbia

Following the regime change in 2012, the new authoritarian regime under the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) put memory politics high on its political agenda. The revisionist history of the 90s’ wars now constitutes the primary source of its political legitimization. At the same time, the new government established a firm grip over media, leaving a few independent outlets still critical of the new memory politics. A majority of mainstream media operate in symbiosis with the regime, actively contributing to the new revisionist narrative. These narratives are further supported and accelerated in tabloid and alternative media, offering an even more radicalized version of the past. In such a mediascape, actors working on critical memory are limited to a few independent media outlets. At the same time, they are under constant threat from the regime and tabloids alike.

Discussion: Media and Revisionism about the 1990s Wars in Serbia

On Monday, 10 April 2023, at 6pm, in CROCODILE’s Centre (43 Karađorđeva St, Belgrade), Humanitarian Law Center is organising a discussion on the topic of Media and Revisionism about the 1990s Wars in Serbia.

At the discussion, the eponymous report will be presented, an analysis of historical revisionism of the wars in the nineties in Serbian media from 2000 to date, by author Katarina Ristić, researcher of the Leipzig University.

In the first period, until 2012, media challenged the war facts primarily following the model of “the spiral of silence”, charging the discoveries of the crimes with a deafening noise in public. After 2012, with the new government in office, revisionist narratives have been on the rise, consolidated within media controlled by the state and mushrooming tabloid press. The review also highlights that the new, revisionist history, predominant in the second period, builds on the heroic heroic remembrance of the Serbian army, which is tapped as the source of Serbian pride. This, the idea of Serbian victims is revived, discarding any accountability for crimes.

The fifteenth HLC Dossier on the unpunished crimes of the Serbian Volunteer Guard

On Thursday, 23 March 2023, Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) launched its fifteenth dossier on potential war crime perpetrators during the wars in former Yugoslavia,  The “Serbian Volunteer Guard“ Dossier presents the facts on the creation, structure and characteristics of actions conducted by the Serbian Volunteer Guard (SVG/the Guard), as well as its participation in the crimes perpetrated during the armed conflicts in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The Dossier is based on the military and police documents admitted by the International Criminal Court for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT), as well as on the ascertained facts, statements and testimonials, including those of former Guard members as well as media packages and witness statements collected by HLC’s researchers. During the research, HLC identified 189 SVG members who were under the command of Željko Ražnatović Arkan, whose names are among the annexes to this Dossier.