Bosnia and Hercegovina – “The verdict of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in Hague, that Serbia was not responsible for the genocide in Croatia did not leave me indifferent. On the contrary, this judgment worries me, not because it was unexpected, but because of the reasons they stated, that because a country by that name did not officially exist until 1992 it cannot be held responsible for serious crimes, “said Dr. Mustafa Ceric, Reis-ul-ulema Emeritus and Chairman of the Bosniak World Congress after the verdict in the case of the mutual lawsuits of the Croatian and Serbian genocide.
Namely, Serbia in a written response to the complaint, alleged that it officially existed as a country since April 27, 1992, and the Court considers that prior to that date Serbia is not bound by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
“This explanation of the International Court of Justice on the basis of this legal logic should be a concern for all of humanity, especially us in the Balkans, because who can guarantee that Serbia or any other Balkan state will not do the same thing that Serbia has already done – first wreck the existing state, then commit crimes against humanity in the other, emerging countries, then change the name of your country and then the International Court of Justice shamelessly excuses crimes by claiming that the new state was created after these crimes, and that it was not a signatory to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and the Court will not punish them, though the whole world knows that they committed crimes against innocent people, “said Dr. Ceric and added:
“This is terrible and frightening. This is a great shame for international law. Such legal and moral logic is of grim conscience of mankind. That's why I'm concerned and I wonder where mankind is headed to? Where international law is headed to? “.
“I am sure that today the German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel is overjoyed in his grave because today his idea of the necessity and justification of violence for the purpose of establishing and preserving the state was justified, while his colleague Immanuel Kant is on the other hand, turning in his grave because international law that serves as a moral imperative for the establishment of peace and security in the world, has lost its meaning and its legal and moral character “, said Dr. Ceric.
But, he said, Croatia can still be satisfied that their claim, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2006, put the world's conscience to the test and once again demonstrates the moral crisis of humanity today.
“On the other hand, Serbia has no reason to be satisfied, since no court, not even this one, and the International Court of Justice in Hague, cannot rid them of the guilt, because there are living people who remember, who will never agree to oblivion. A living person can forgive, but never forget, “pointed out Dr. Ceric.
