Summary: Serbian government supports RECOM initiative to investigate war crimes in the former Yugoslavia

Belgrade, 6 July 2015: Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić has met with representatives of the RECOM Coalition, an initiative
advocating the establishment of an intergovernmental commission –
the Regional Commission to Establish all the Facts about War Crimes
(RECOM) – which will investigate war crimes and other serious human
rights violations committed in the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 2001. The RECOM Coalition was co-founded by SRT grantee the
Humanitarian Law Center.

The Prime Minister acknowledged the importance of determining the
number of victims of war crimes in order to achieve reconciliation in the Western Balkans, and announced that the government would support the formation of RECOM. The extrajudicial body will investigate all allegations of war crimes and other gross human rights violations in connection with the conflict in the former Yugoslavia.

The Coordinator of the RECOM Coalition, Nataša Kandić, explained
that the establishment of RECOM served the interests of all
post-Yugoslav societies and their political agendas, not just those
of the victims – but most of all served the interests of future
generations.

Kandić said, “RECOM has the potential to contribute directly to
the creation of a new culture of respect for all the people who lost
their lives or disappeared during the wars in the former Yugoslavia.
With the support of all the states of the former Yugoslavia and their government, the Initiative will establish the names of each victim, rather than just their numbers, and collect data on specific detention sites, instead of haggling over the number of prisons or camps on each side – and will be using these facts for educational purposes, and to put in place safeguards against the repetition of crimes.”

Press release from the Humanitarian Law Center’s website:
>http://www.hlc-rdc.org/?p=29561&lang=de [3]