YouSaid · the spoken record

Haris Silajdzic

lines on the record
21
first
2008-09-24
most recent
2010-09-24
sittings or episodes
2
sources
un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

  1. “There is no doubt in my mind that Bosnia and Herzegovina and our entire region will maintain stability and achieve prosperity in the coming years, thus fulfilling the dreams and desires of every one of our citizens.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  2. “They can no longer count on the mighty armies of Slobodan Miloševic because those armies were defeated through our heroic struggle. They do count on, as they say, favourable geopolitical circumstances. But they fail to take one thing into account, as Miloševic did. Bosnia will be defended. They will, however, continue obstructing progress in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and they will continue destabilizing the region. They found inspiration in the inadequate response of the international community, whose patience they have been testing for the past 15 years. So, our collective resolve to prevent the escalation and opening of fresh wounds in Bosnia and Herzegovina is being tested again. We must not fail this time. This dangerous adventurism aside, I believe and I know that the train of progress cannot and will not be stopped.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  3. “After hundreds of thousands of non-Serb civilians were killed and expelled from one part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, they are now publicly calling for the 10-55103 22 secession of that part. They hope and dream, as they say, that the world will somehow recognize that entity as an independent State. Instead of feeling shame, these disciples of Miloševic, Karadžic and Ratko Mladic are now ready to come and ask the international community to reward the genocide in Srebrenica, Prijedor, Zvornik, Sarajevo, Mostar and other sites of horrific crimes for which Karadžic is now being tried at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in the Hague. What a monument to inhumanity that would be! Of course, they will not succeed.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  4. “Like everywhere else, the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina desire peace, stability and prosperity, as well as a better future for themselves and their children. There is great potential for development, and opportunities are there to be seized. Yes, there are reasons for optimism, but there are reasons for concern too. Our progress is hindered by the remnants of those who still believe in the completion of the political project that brought catastrophe not only to Bosnia and Herzegovina, but to the whole region. In short, they think that the world has forgotten the atrocities committed against the civilian population, the concentration camps, the rape camps and the genocide.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  5. “As is the case in other societies, our greatest resource is our youth, educated in our country and abroad, and ready to take over once our economy is able to absorb their skills and talents. I am confident that, in the coming years, employment opportunities will grow in proportion to the development of the vast untapped resources of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Defence reform is commonly seen as one of our greatest post-Dayton successes because it resulted in unified, modern armed forces. Here again, we have to express our appreciation to our friends and allies whose assistance made this achievement possible. In a short amount of time, our armed forces have managed to earn the trust and respect of the United Nations through their participation in peacekeeping missions.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  6. “We have undertaken studies and invited international investors to participate in developing these resources. Once completed, these projects will be the driving engine of our economy, enabling us to make progress in other areas, such as health care and social services. We continue to develop our infrastructure and agricultural resources, but not at a desirable pace. Although generally improved, our education system remains in some aspects hostage to divisive political influences. On the other hand, our rising trade activities have resulted in improving our relations with the countries in the region, and great opportunities can be unlocked through more intensive and more confident regional cooperation.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  7. “Systematic obstructions were the cause of failure of return programmes, and they are still an obstacle to those who want to return. Those who made it back to their homes are often confronted with blockade walls or with outright violations of basic rights. That makes the restoration of our pluralist society the single most difficult task ahead of us. But hope remains that the upcoming constitutional changes will lay a foundation for the new generation to be able to bridge the divides. No matter what, we will continue to revive the pluralist character and tolerant spirit of our society because we strongly believe that cultural pluralism is humankind’s most precious treasure. A healthy economy can be a powerful tool for achieving that goal. Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country rich in water and other energy-generating resources.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  8. “That support demonstrated that the Assembly holds Bosnia and Herzegovina in high esteem, and we are proud of that. As a member of the Security Council, we are doing our best to meet the Assembly’s expectations and honour its trust. Thanks to the generous assistance of many Governments represented here, Bosnia and Herzegovina completed the main process of reconstruction relatively quickly, particularly in the light of the level of devastation. But the rebuilding of our devastated society has proved to be much more difficult. From 1992 to 1995, an age-old, genuinely multicultural society in Bosnia and Herzegovina was brutally and intentionally torn apart by force. Half of the population of Bosnia and Herzegovina had to leave their homes in order to save their lives. Some 1,300,000 of them remain outside Bosnia and Herzegovina.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  9. “It is an honour to address the General Assembly at its sixty-fifth session. Allow me to express my gratitude to Mr. Ali Abdussalam Treki for having ably presided over this body during the past year and to congratulate Mr. Joseph Deiss on being elected the new President of the General Assembly. Fifteen years ago, the Dayton Peace Agreement ended the aggression in and brought peace to Bosnia and Herzegovina. My country has come a long way since then, and I feel obliged to thank the Governments, organizations and individuals who assisted us in travelling down this road. When we asked the General Assembly to support us in becoming a member of the Security Council, it honoured us with almost unanimous support, for which we offer our thanks.”

    2010-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 65 (2010)

  10. “We have not forgotten the help we received from many of the countries represented here today, a number of whose soldiers, diplomats, aid workers and journalists died in Bosnia and Herzegovina while working to end the aggression, bring peace and ease the suffering, or to make sure that the rest of the world knew about it. For that we thank them once again, and renew our sympathy to their families. An even greater number of countries have assisted us in rebuilding our society after the aggression, and we extend our heartfelt gratitude for that as well. Bosnia and Herzegovina still needs help in this regard, and we hope that we can work together in order to ensure permanent peace and stability in my country, the region and the world.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  11. “To those who now seek to legitimize the systemic violations of the Dayton Peace Agreement, we all must say: make no mistake, genocide will not be rewarded. That is the responsibility of this Organization. Rewarding genocide would send a dangerous message throughout the world, and would surely undermine the chances of peace and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the region. Seekers of justice are not the enemies of peace. They are the guardians of peace. As the Secretary- General said today, justice is the pillar of peace and stability. That is what this statement is all about. Certainly, there are those in Bosnia and Herzegovina who would not agree, but they are surely not the victims of genocide.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  12. “Just as we should not have been forced to smuggle arms into our own country to defend ourselves, we should not be forced now to smuggle basic human rights, justice and democracy into Bosnia and Herzegovina. Without righting this wrong can we genuinely celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this December? Moreover, can we celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of the adoption of the Convention on the 5 08-51606 Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide if the first and only Judgment of the International Court of Justice on the crime of genocide remains in the Court’s archives? Now is the time to right these wrongs. We are about to start work on the new Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the outcome of that process will answer many of these questions.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  13. “Instead, in the words of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, its main provisions have been a victim of: “a systemic, continuing and deliberate practice of the public authorities of Republika Srpska with the goal of preventing the so-called minority returns, either through direct participation in violent incidents or through the abdication of responsibility to protect the people from ... violent attacks due solely to their ethnic background”. Dayton never intended such ethnic apartheid to take root in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is not the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, but the violation of its core principles, that led to this result. It would be a grave mistake to recognize this result as lawful and legitimate. It is the responsibility of this Organization to make it right.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  14. “The message to the would-be perpetrators of crimes in the name of a twisted ideology should be crystal-clear: do not even think about it; your terror will not pay off. That should be the message. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, we had the opportunity to make that true by a consistent implementation of the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the aggression, stopped the genocide, and brought peace. These were its major accomplishments, and their value cannot be overemphasized. The Dayton Peace Agreement, however, was also intended to reverse the effects of genocide and ethnic cleansing. It had all the necessary elements to do so.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  15. “In short, do these principles allow for the arrest of Karadzic and the simultaneous preservation of the results of his project? In fact, just today The Hague Tribunal announced a revised indictment against Karadzic that charges him with genocide and crimes against humanity, against both Bosnians and Croats in 27 municipalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This process will further implicate the Milosevic regime in the planning and commission of those crimes. We cannot bring back the dead, but we can give dignity and justice to the survivors. What we say today is aimed not at the past, but at the future, and not only for Bosnia and Herzegovina. We owe it to not only the victims and survivors, but humanity as a whole.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  16. “The International Law Commission’s articles on State responsibility for internationally wrongful acts, adopted in resolution 56/83 of 12 December 2001, mandate that “No State shall recognize as lawful a situation created by a serious breach [of a peremptory norm of general international law]”, which clearly includes the crime of genocide and crimes against humanity, “nor render aid or assistance in maintaining that situation” (article 41). If those principles had been applied, would the institutions identified by the International Court of Justice as perpetrators of genocide still exist? Would vast portions of a country remain ethnically clean? Would over a million refugees and displaced persons remain outside their homes?”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  17. “Srebrenica crystallized a truth understood only too late by the United Nations and the world at large: that Bosnia was as much a moral cause as a military conflict. The tragedy of Srebrenica will haunt our history forever.” (A/54/549, para. 503) We do not want the United Nations to be haunted. This Organization’s credibility is too important to the world to carry the burden of this failure. Errors can be committed, but errors must not be repeated. We want the United Nations to right the wrongs. In fact, international law mandates that this must be done.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  18. “were committed with the specific intent to destroy in 08-51606 4 part the group of the Muslims of Bosnia and Herzegovina as such; and accordingly … these were acts of genocide, committed by members of the [Army of Republika Srpska] in and around Srebrenica from about 13 July 1995.” (para. 297) Through its acts and omissions, the United Nations, by its own admission, bears part of the responsibility for the crimes committed at Srebrenica. In fact, the Secretary-General’s 1999 report on Srebrenica unequivocally states: “Through error, misjudgement and an inability to recognize the scope of the evil confronting us, we failed to do our part to help save the people of Srebrenica from the Serb campaign of mass murder ...”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  19. “The intent of the perpetrators of this genocide was to forever destroy the unique multi-ethnic fabric of Bosnia and Herzegovina through mass slaughter, rape, torture, abuse, expulsion and plunder. In spite of this, defenders of our country conducted themselves honourably, as demonstrated by the acquittal by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia of most of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s military leadership. All this culminated in Srebrenica in July 1995. The International Court of Justice — the court of this Organization — ruled in its Judgment of 26 February 2007 that “the Bosnian Serbs devised and implemented a plan to execute as many as possible of the military aged Bosnian Muslim men present in the enclave” (para. 292) and that “the acts committed at Srebrenica ...”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  20. “Some in the international community insisted on maintaining the arms embargo imposed by the Security Council in 1991, thus adding to the obviously overwhelming military advantage of Milosevic’s regime, which was bent on destroying Bosnia and Herzegovina and its people. They justified this course by claiming that lifting the arms embargo meant adding oil to the fire. The result was that the fire was quelled with the blood of the innocent. According to International Committee of the Red Cross data, 200,000 people — 12,000 of them children — were killed, up to 50,000 women were raped, and 2.2 million people were forced to flee their homes. This was a veritable genocide and sociocide.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)

  21. “It is an honour to address the General Assembly at its sixty-third session. Allow me to express my gratitude to Mr. Srgjan Kerim, who ably presided over the Assembly during the preceding year, and to congratulate you, Father Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, the new President of the General Assembly. I also thank you, Sir, for an inspiring appeal for respect for basic, universal ethical values. The first time I stood at this rostrum was in May 1992, as the Foreign Minister of a newly independent Bosnia and Herzegovina. At that time, I recounted the unspeakable atrocities that were unfolding in my country. I also warned that, if not stopped, such atrocities would only get worse. In fact, I merely asked that Bosnia and Herzegovina be accorded the right to defend itself, the right guaranteed by the Charter. We know what has happened since.”

    2008-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 63 (2008)