A permanent memorial, the Flower of Srebrenica, has been unveiled in the gardens of the UN headquarters in New York on the East River. The Flower of Srebrenica memorial was opened on the grounds of the UN headquarters in New York. Culture and education
In the garden of the UN headquarters in New York on the East River, a permanent memorial, “The Flower of Srebrenica,” was opened, dedicated to one of the most tragic pages of the modern history of Europe. The sculpture was donated to the UN earlier this year by Bosnia and Herzegovina to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.
War in the Balkans
The war that followed the collapse of Yugoslavia claimed more than one hundred thousand lives in Bosnia and Herzegovina, mostly Muslim Bosniaks, from 1992 to 1995, and forced more than two million more people from their homes. People were detained and placed in concentration camps, thousands of Bosnian women were systematically raped – the list of atrocities committed at that time is endless, but Srebrenica became the most horrific page of that war. Bosnian Serb armies captured the city of Srebrenica, previously declared a UN “safe zone”, and brutally killed about eight thousand men and teenagers there. The UN was unable to prevent this genocide – a small and poorly armed contingent of Dutch peacekeepers was unable to resist the Bosnian Serb troops. The largest massacre in Europe since the Holocaust occurred. Another 20 thousand people were expelled from their city.
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The International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia have recognized the massacre of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica, which was committed by the Republika Srpska army, as an act of genocide.
“We also recognize the bitter truth, which must be spoken openly,” noted UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, opening the ensemble. – The United Nations failed to protect the people of Srebrenica. That is why this memorial is installed here, on this territory, in this garden. It is symbolic that the flower of Srebrenica took root at the UN headquarters. It is silent, but powerful in its power and a constant reminder of the responsibility we bear to those we failed to protect.”
Bosnia and Herzegovina donated a memorial to the UN as part of the UN Srebrenica Genocide Awareness Program. “The permanent memorial is an integral part of this program, which is intended to encourage visitors to reflect on what happened and honor the memory of the victims,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a briefing.