BOSNIA - SREBRENICA MEMORIAL TRANSITION COULD

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 SARAJEVO 000234 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR (DICARLO),EUR/SCE (FOOKS/STINCHCOMB) E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/05/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL BK SUBJECT: BOSNIA - SREBRENICA MEMORIAL TRANSITION COULD SPARK POLITICAL BATTLE REF: 07 SARAJEVO 1249 Classified By: Michael J. Murphy. Reasons 1.4 (b),(d). ¶1. (C) Summary: Bosnian politicians seem poised to appropriate the Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial and Cemetery to advance ethnic political interests. Serb politicians may be gearing up to oppose state oversight of an institution in the RS as an extension of the campaign to limit state competencies. Bosniak leaders are aware that residual sensitivities over Srebrenica can be manipulated for political purposes. Last June, Former High Representative Christian Schwarz-Schilling used the Bonn Powers to impose legislation establishing the Memorial as a state-level institution with a Governing Board appointed by the Council of Ministers. However, little has been done to implement the law and complete the transition of Memorial management from international to domestic control. We are concerned about the length of time it has taken the Council of Ministers to appoint the Governing Board and have raised the issue with Prime Minister Nikola Spiric. Further delays could aggravate latent tensions over Srebrenica, potentially sparking another political confrontation just as we approach the anniversary of the February, 2007 International Court of Justice (ICJ) verdict on genocide in Srebrenica. End Summary. Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial and Cemetery - Background -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) The Foundation for the "Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial and Cemetery for the Victims of the 1995 Genocide" (hereinafter "Center") was established by a decision issued by former High Representative Petrisch in May 2001. The Foundation consists of an Executive Board, currently chaired by the High Representative, whose members include the BiH Islamic community, Mr. Beriz Belkic, Deputy Speaker of BiH Parliament, BiH Minister of Human Rights and Refugees, the U.S. Ambassador, and the International Commission for Missing Persons. This Board manages the Foundation, with advice from an Advisory Working Group comprised of family member representatives including members of the Mothers of Srebrenica associations, the Mayor of Srebrenica, and the Tuzla Mufti, who represents the Islamic community. In August 2002, the U.S. contributed USD 1 million to the construction of a memorial and cemetery for the remains of more than eight thousand men and boys killed in the July 1995 Srebrenica genocide. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton opened the Potocari Cemetery and Memorial on September 20, 2003. Each year on July 11, thousands of people travel to Potocari to commemorate the genocide during a memorial service and burial held at the cemetery. To date, 2,906 identified Srebrenica victims have been buried at the Potocari Cemetery. HighRep Enacts Law Bringing Center Under State Authority -------------- -------------- ¶3. (C) In the wake of the February 26, 2007 ICJ verdict that genocide took place in and around Srebrenica in July, 1995, Bosniak political leaders, most notably Bosniak member of the Tri-Presidency Haris Silajdzic, fomented a political crisis by supporting a movement advocating Srebrenica's secession from the Republika Srpska (RS). As part of a broader effort to deflate the political crisis over the ICJ verdict, on June 25, 2007, outgoing High Representative Christian Schwarz-Schilling used his Bonn Powers to enact the Law on the Center for the Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial and Cemetery for the Victims of the 1995 Genocide. The law placed the Center under state-level jurisdiction, and established a state institution, which was intended to assume the responsibilities of the Srebrenica-Potocari Memorial Foundation. Under Article 9 of the law, the Center is to be managed by a Governing Board, responsible to and appointed by, the Council of Ministers. The seven-member board will be appointed for a four-year term and will have the responsibility of managing all aspects of the Center's administration, including funding. Once the Council of Ministers makes its final appointments to the Governing Board, the Foundation Executive Board, including the U.S. seat, will dissolve. Delays Suggest that Center Could Become a Political Football -------------- -------------- ¶4. (C) Since June, the process of transferring the Center to state jurisdiction has been completed with the exception of SARAJEVO 00000234 002 OF 003 the critical final step of appointing the Governing Board. Although there has been positive progress made on other fronts, including a recently passed 700,000 KM (approximately $540,000) earmark for the Center in the state budget, PM Spiric has failed to fulfill his responsibility to name appointees to the Board. House of Representatives Speaker Beriz Belkic (SBiH) told us that he has discussed the appointments with PM Spiric and that both Spiric and RS Prime Minister Milorad Dodik are aware of the issue. There is growing concern that the delay over the Board appointments is part of a coordinated Alliance of Social Democrats (SNSD) effort originating with Dodik himself. ¶5. (C) There is also growing concern that additional delay will aggravate latent tensions about the Center and its place in the state. In recent weeks Dodik has ratcheted up his rhetorical attacks on the state and state competencies. In this context there is the potential for Serb politicians to create roadblocks by demanding a court decision on the Center's legal status within the RS, linking the Center to a parallel memorial at the Jasenovac concentration camp or by nominating controversial Serb candidates for the Governing Board. Speaker Belkic believes a compromise solution is possible, but we have also been told that the Mothers of Srebrenica Associations will vehemently object to any appointment of a Bosnian Serb official to the Governing Board. (Note: Approval of the Mothers, or any other members of the Advisory Board, is not a requirement under the Law. The Council of Ministers has the sole appointment authority, but the Mothers could rally Bosniak political support for their view. End Note.) ¶6. (SBU) In a January 31 meeting of the Srebrenica Executive Board, we recommended that the seven-member Governing Board not be linked to ethnic quotas, but should consist of candidates nominated by and representative of the following institutions: BiH Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees; BiH Commission on National Monuments; BiH Parliamentary Committee for Human Rights, Rights of Children, Youth, Immigration, Refugees, Asylum and Ethnic Representation; RS Government; Federation Government; BiH Missing Persons Institute; and one representative of the current Executive Board to provide continuity and institutional knowledge of the Center and its activities. Our aim with the last recommendation is to secure a position on the Board for Belkic who, despite being a member of Silajdzic's party, is passionately committed to the Board's mission and to preventing the board from becoming a political football. Embassy Engages to Steer Transition Back on Track -------------- -------------- ¶7. (C) The Ambassador and High Representative Miroslav Lajcak sent a joint letter to PM Spiric expressing concern over the lengthy delay in appointing the Governing Board and urging him to resolve the Board at the earliest possibility. (Note: OHR was initially reluctant to send the letter, but agreed at our urging. End Note.) In separate meetings during the week of January 28, the Ambassador encouraged Spiric and Dodik to nominate reasonable candidates who are committed to reconciliation and the mission of Center. The Ambassador also told Spiric that, as we have done in the past, the USG is ready to publicly recognize RS efforts to constructively address issues related to Srebrenica. Comment -------------- ¶8. (C) In the run up to the first anniversary of the February 26, 2007 ICJ verdict, it will be important to diffuse any potential political confrontations over Srebrenica by, among other things, achieving full implementation of the Center legislation. The ICJ verdict anniversary, combined with a Kosovo CDI and the March assumption of the rotating Presidency Chairmanship by Haris Silajdzic, could provide the elements necessary to spark another debate over Srebrenica and the Potocari Memorial Center. If the appointment process is further delayed by obstructionism from Banja Luka, and OHR maintains its current hands-off approach, we are concerned that Bosniaks may again develop a public perception that the international community is not prepared to take the steps necessary to recognize Srebrenica genocide. We will continue to urge Bosnian Serb politicians to focus on making the Center a viable institution and will proactively address reasonable Serb concerns about its transfer to the State. End Comment. SARAJEVO 00000234 003 OF 003 ENGLISH