Virtual events to mark 25th anniversary of Srebrenica genocide

A series of virtual events will be held to mark the 25th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.

More than 8,000 Muslim men and boys were murdered by Bosnian Serb armed forces in July 1995.

With the coronavirus pandemic halting any face-to-face commemorations, virtual events marking the massacre include a podcast series, a TV documentary and Twitter timeline.

The Srebrenica Stories podcast series features past charity delegates and those who lived or worked in Bosnia during the war, while Scottish portrait painter Iain Campbell will discuss his experiences visiting the area in a BBC documentary on Sunday.

A real-life timeline of events told through the experiences of one Bosniak teenager will also be hosted on Twitter, recounting the fateful days where she was separated from her brother.

Ahead of the anniversary, the Archives of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina named the Very Rev Dr Lorna Hood, chairwoman of Remembering Srebrenica Scotland, as the recipient of its Kulin Ban’s Charter Award.

Dr Hood, a former moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, said: “It is an honour to be recognised by the Archives of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina on behalf of the charity’s work to remember the Srebrenica genocide.

“Since our launch in 2015, we have brought communities together across Scotland, taken dozens of delegates to Bosnia to learn lessons from survivors, and developed an educational resource for use in Scottish schools.

“This year marks the 25th anniversary of the genocide but there are still families searching for the bodies of their loved ones and there is still denial about the atrocities which took place.

“In Scotland, we will be marking the anniversary with a series of virtual events and hope to spread the lesson from Srebrenica that no society is invulnerable to prejudice and intolerance.”