“The massacre of more than 8,000 innocent men and boys in Srebrenica; an act of genocide on European soil only fifty years after the end of World War II, was a lesson to us all in what can happen when hatred and evil are allowed to go unchecked. I want to offer my deepest sympathy to all those who lost a husband, son, brother or father as a result of those appalling crimes in the summer of 1995.
The bereaved are now rebuilding their lives with courage and poignant dignity, and their unshakeable determination has helped bring many of the perpetrators to justice. But we will not rest until all those responsible are held to account. This is a time when the entire international community must reaffirm its conviction that events such as this can never be allowed to happen again and that they must never be denied.
I hope that through justice and reconciliation the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina can heal old wounds and look to a brighter future, one where all its political leaders cooperate in a spirit of compromise, where NATO and EU membership becomes a reality, and where its citizens can enjoy security and prosperity.”
