New Mechanism President, Judge Graciela Gatti Santana participates in Twenty-Seventh Commemoration of the Srebrenica Genocide

The President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (Mechanism), Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, today concluded her visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) where she participated in a series of events marking the Twenty-Seventh Commemoration of the Genocide in Srebrenica.

Yesterday, 11 July, the President took part in the official Commemoration ceremony held at the Srebrenica Memorial Center in Potočari, BiH, along with a number of other high-level international and national dignitaries. In her remarks delivered at the ceremony, President Gatti Santana noted that: “the name ‘Srebrenica’ carries such weight, and is so significant, that it is known by people around the world. It evokes a full spectrum of memories and emotions that can bring one from the depths of despair, through to real belief in the human spirit and hope for the future.”

President Gatti Santana further highlighted the Mechanism’s role in safeguarding the precious legacy of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), underscoring the importance of sharing knowledge about what happened during the 1990s conflicts in the region. In this context, she stated that: “After all, if we forget the past, we are doomed to repeat it.”  Following the ceremony, the President paid her respects to the victims of the Genocide in Srebrenica by laying a flower in their honour.

While in BiH, President Gatti Santana also delivered closing remarks at the “Srebrenica Heroines” international conference, which was held on 10 July at the Srebrenica Memorial Center. This was the first conference of its kind, dedicated to honouring the women survivors of the Genocide in Srebrenica.

Today in Sarajevo, President Gatti Santana took part in a Diplomatic Briefing hosted by the United Nations Resident Coordinator in BiH, Ms Ingrid Macdonald. The President provided an update on the Mechanism’s current activities and priorities to members of the diplomatic community accredited to BiH and representatives of international organisations. During the afternoon, she paid a visit to the Information Centre on the ICTY, which is housed in the Sarajevo City Hall.

The President also met with a number of high-level officials, representatives of victims’ groups and others while in BiH.

This was President Gatti Santana’s first visit to the region of the former Yugoslavia since assuming office as Mechanism President on 1 July 2022.