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{{Backwardscopy |title=Srebrenica massacre|url= http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/srebrenica_massacre.html |year=2006|id=37744722|comments=This website copied this article in early 2006. A key is the [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=37017363 insertion of this section]; in the last sentence, "In contrast, Srebrenica genocide..." was later changed to "For example, Srebrenica genocide..." [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=37025788#Srebrenica_Genocide_Denial_and_Revisionism_Explained a few hours] later. This is what appears on the site in question. Also that site's article on the [http://www.martinfrost.ws/htmlfiles/holocaust.html Holocaust] was much similar to [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Holocaust&oldid=45579578 ours] at the time.--[[User:NortyNort|NortyNort]] <small>[[User talk:NortyNort|(Holla)]]</small> 08:54, 1 June 2011 (UTC)}}
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|date2=25 April 2021|destination2=Srebrenica genocide|result2=[[WP:SNOW]] close as ''not moved''|link2=Talk:Srebrenica massacre/Archive 22#Requested move 25 April 2021
|date3=2 June 2024 |destination3=Srebrenica genocide|result3=''no consensus'' |link3=Special:Permalink/1236636043#Requested move 2 June 2024
|date4=26 July 2024 Move Review |destination4=Srebrenica genocide |result4=''decision endorsed'' |link4=Wikipedia:Move review/Log/2024 July#Srebrenica massacre
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== The genocide was the genocide ==
 
[https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1236862378 recently an IP replaced the description in the opening line] that the event was a [[genocidal massacre]] with the event being a genocide. The IP , probably correctly says "I read all the sources, it says only genocide". I reverted this good faith edit. [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=next&oldid=1237058901 Another editor restored the IPs edit] and I have just restored the long term version.
{| class="messagebox standard-talk"
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| style="padding-right: 10px;" | [[Image:Nuvola apps important.svg|48px|Temporary injunction]]
|| This article and other articles related to [[Kosovo]] are subject to a temporary injunction in the [[Wikipedia:Requests for arbitration/Kosovo|Kosovo arbitration case]]. Parties named in the case may be banned from editing it by any uninvolved administrator for disruptive edits. This does not curtail normal administrator powers to deal with disruption. This notice may be removed by any editor when the case is closed.
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Firstly, the IP is correct that the sources used don't say 'genocidal massacre', however they also don't say that the event was a genocide. What they say is that people were found guilty of genocide because of their actions iro the event. In fact the ICTY ruling used as a main source specifically refers to the event as "The massacre at Srebrenica". The name of an event is not automatically the same as the name of a crime committed at that event.
 
If I recall correctly, the 'genocidal massacre' description was added some time ago by someone seeking to 'beef up' the 'genocide' element, therefore they added sources which endorsed the word 'genocide', they probably felt it unnecessary to provide sources which endorsed 'massacre'.
== Naser Oric is not Bosniak hero ==
 
I am not especially wedded to the long-term text, but I see no problems with it. I do not believe it is SYNTH to claim that a massacre at which it was ruled genocide occurred is a 'genocidal massacre'. We could easily find sources that refer to the event as a massacre or find some new form of words to describe the event, but "The genocide was the genocide" is both clumsy English and a fairly crude way to bypass the recent failed move discussion IMO. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 06:46, 28 July 2024 (UTC)
I have inserted this important statement in both [[Naser Oric]] and [[Srebrenica Massacre]] article:
 
:It seems to me that you were paid from Serbia and they say there that it was some kind of crime, not genocide, not recognizing the international court of justice and the UN resolution. As far as I'm concerned, write that everything was made up there, because when you lie, you should lie properly, not minimize it like you do.[[Special:Contributions/193.31.30.70|193.31.30.70]] ([[User talk:193.31.30.70|talk]]) 08:40, 28 July 2024 (UTC)
''During Serb genocidal attack on U.N.'s "Safe Heaven", Oric shamefully abandoned Srebrenica and left his people fend for themselves.''
:You are not being consistent. You argued that it is not correct to identify a genocide executed by military forces as a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Srebrenica_massacre#Attack_type_=_Military_assault_?? military assault] because none of the sources which all discussed at length that the genocide was an assault executed by military forces, but never used the exact term ''military assault''.
:Further, when you say that {{tq|[Sources] also don't say that the event was a genocide.}} '''Of course they do!''' [https://www.icty.org/x/cases/popovic/acjug/en/150130_summary.pdf] Perhaps you are having trouble rendering the pdf file, but the very source in question identifies the event as a genocide. Why do you choose to ignore some sources, but not others? There is no need for editors to shop around and {{tq|easily find sources that refer to the event as a massacre}} just because [[WP:IDONTLIKEIT|you don't like the ICJ, or (as in the above move request) apparently don't like the UN either]]. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 16:15, 28 July 2024 (UTC)
:Note also: the sentence is not {{tq|"The genocide was the genocide"}}, but {{tq|"The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide..."}}. In the opening sentence as currently formulated, {{tq|"also known as the Srebrenica genocide"}} is a [[non-restrictive appositive]]. With non-restrictive appositives, the essential meaning of the sentence should not change if the appositive were removed. By leaving the sentence as currently formulated, this holds true. However, if the non-restrictive appositive is removed from the sentence as you've suggested, {{tq|The Srebrenica massacre was the July 1995 [[genocidal massacre]]...}} which leads to an article about academics discussing genocide which are "lesser in scale" and even "partial genocide". None of the sources compare the Srebrenica as being any lesser than other genocides, and one of the sources Wikipedia uses elsewhere [https://web.archive.org/web/20170103224426/https://books.google.com/books?id=IwQa3JwHtiIC&pg=PA81&dq=%22Bosnian+Genocide%22&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=2008&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&as_brr=0&cd=5#v=onepage&q=%22Bosnian%20Genocide%22&f=false], as I read it, states the opposite – I would charactercize it as saying that the Srebrenica genocide is a holon of the greater Bosnian genocide. In other words, your claim the sentence is grammatically invalid is predicated on mischaracterizing the sentence(!), and changes the meaning of the sentence with consequence to the reader. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 16:36, 28 July 2024 (UTC)
::I didn't say it was grammatically flawed, I said it was clumsy English, which it is. We usually avoid opening sentences of the "'''The killing of Mary Smith''' was the 1999 killing of Mary Ann Smith …", kind ''(they are trite and communicate little)''. I am open to suggestions for rephrasing if people object strongly to the "genocidal massacre" construction. The effective sentence is still "the genocide was the genocide", apart from being clumsy English, it is 'taking a stand' on to the correct name/term to describe the event, contrary to the naming agreement and contrary to the actual source used.
::The fact that the GM link leads to 'lesser' crimes is irrelevant. The purpose of such ,a link is to say what a GM is ''(though the meaning is fairly self evident)'', not to establish how serious/trivial Srebrenica was. A link is always removable.
::I'd advise you to stop bringing up previous edit disagreements, it simply creates the impression that you are making [[WP:POINT]] edits instead of addressing the immediate topic. However, addressing your 'attack' question. No source describes the massacre ''itself'' as 'an attack' ''(no one disputes the adjective 'military' nor that the massacre was preceded by an action to seize Srebrenica - the fall, which could be called an attack)'' , so the adjective is apt but the noun very dubious, especially when put into 'pole position' for 'attack type'.
::However no one ''(apart from the IP perhaps)'' disputes that the event was a massacre, nor that it was ruled to be genocide, nor that both terms are often used, to describe the event. The ICTY judgement ''(rejecting the appeal against a number of genocide convictions)'', which is currently used as the source, actually has a whole chapter entitled "The massacre at Srebrenica" to describe the 'killing spree'. Why they do this is pure surmisal, but possibly they are employing the recognisable name, or possibly they are following a convention of distinguishing between an event and the crime that was committed at that event or some other reason. Whatever their reason, they do it and no serious person could think that a rejection of an appeal would be seeking to minimise or downplay the gravity of the offence. They call the killings 'the massacre', but endorse the verdict that those killings constitute 'genocide'.
::Thus, both 'massacre' and 'genocide' are almost indisputable as to both what happened, and as to the name used. ''Personally'', I have no problem in merging the adjective and the noun, since both are extensively sourced and/or sourcable, but if editors object, we can find some other form of words for the opening sentence, which seeks to characterise/summarise what the massacre was.
::What happened at Srebrenica is - almost equally - characterised as a 'massacre' ''(an emotive term similar to 'bloodbath', 'rampage', 'slaughter')'' and as a 'genocide' (a legal term, largely defined by intent), to endorse only one of those terms in the opening sentence is not supported by the very sources currently used, and is not neutral IMO. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 09:53, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:::It is not a [[WP:POINT]] edit, it is attempting to make sense of and work with an editor who claims to be solely beholden to sources but then seems to work on a system of logic other than that ''(and one which is imcompatible with how Wikipedia work)''.
:::Please stop mischaracterizing what the sentence "effective[ly] is to "the genocide was the genocide", because your statement is incorrect. It has already explained to you how a non-restructive appositive works, and if you do not understand you are welcome to read the article which explains how it works.
:::You should clarify your claim that the source does not identify the event documented in this article as a genocide. It is difficult – nearly impossible – to work with someone if it is not possible to agree on a common reality. Does this require RfC? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 14:56, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:Regardless of the details of that particular sentence, I agree that the amount of repetition of the word "genocide" in the lead section of this article seems excessive. The article about [[The Holocaust]] uses the word 'genocide' just once in its lead section. The [[Darfur genocide]] article uses it twice (one of which is the opening sentence's repetition of the article's title). The [[Armenian genocide]] article uses it four times (again, one of which is in the opening sentence's repetition of the title). This article uses the word ''nine times'' in its lead section. It's repetitive to a degree that gives the reader the impression that it's trying to do more than summarize the facts of the matter. It is not necessary or desirable to make the same point over and over. —⁠ ⁠[[User:BarrelProof|BarrelProof]] ([[User talk:BarrelProof|talk]]) 02:05, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:: Yes BarrelProof but in the most important part, "what is it", it was changed with the obvious intention of diminishing the genocide that was brought by the ICTY court or UN. It was changed a month ago [[https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1228142379]] and it is not a stable version as Pincrete says, it was written genocide for years as sources say, so this was changed a month ago.[[Special:Contributions/66.59.199.220|66.59.199.220]] ([[User talk:66.59.199.220|talk]]) 03:26, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:::I have questions about why Pincrete has chosen to revert this but Pincrete will (rightfully) protest if you say ''why'' he is changing it. But I do think at this point he is obliged to answer if he wishes to continue to participate in conversations here and edit articles here. This is nothing to do with his accusations that I see myself as a "Grand Inquisitor" but pushing back against the opposite – I feel like he is behaving in a bullying manner with this article, and he constantly refuses to have conversations by some manner or another – either playing victim, or else suggesting that conversations necessarily must be escalated to [[WP:ANI]]. He is as obliged to have conversations to build consensus as anyone else.
:::So the question is – why does Pincrete state a source that is reliable and relevant to the article that identifies the event documented in this article as a genocide, as saying a genocide did not occur? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 06:09, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:::Yes, I apologise for misremembering who and when the text was changed, it was as you correctly say changed about a month ago by Tom B, while he was 'pruning' the article. The previous long-term text was actually ''"was the genocidal killing"''. Are you saying you want that text restored rather than "genocidal massacre"? I have no objection if that is the case, though 'G M' seems much beefier if less explicit. 'GM' is no less sourced than 'GK', both are dependent on elaborating on the meaning of 'massacre'.
:::You would have no need to elaborate on why I changed something if you simply asked me.
:::No one could possibly claim in good faith that I have ever questioned whether a genocide occurred, particularly not in the present discussion or that I said that the sources used ''(an ICTY judgement for God's sake, rejecting the appeal against the verdict of genocide)'' are saying that a genocide did not occur. They are using the term 'massacre' to describe the event at which 'genocide' occurred. Much as a court decided that multiple murder occurred at [[My Lai massacre|My Lai]] or 'crimes against humanity' occurred at multiple locations in WWII. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 10:23, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
::::Regarding your comment that {{tq|No one could possibly claim in good faith that I have ever questioned whether a genocide occurred,}} – above [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1237121080], you wrote that {{tq|"the IP is correct that the sources used don't say 'genocidal massacre', however '''they also don't say that the event was a genocide'''".}} [emphasis mine] I find it difficult – if not impossible – to understand what possible basis you would have for making this statement, and you have offered no clarification thus far. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 15:01, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::Full quote: {{TQ|They also don't say that the event was a genocide. What they say is that people were found guilty of genocide because of their actions iro the event. In fact the ICTY ruling used as a main source specifically refers to the event as "The massacre at Srebrenica".}} Thus the ICTY ruling makes a distinction between how it names the event ''(massacre)'' and the crime that occurred there ''(genocide)''.
:::::So I repeat {{TQ|No one could possibly claim in good faith that I have ever questioned whether a genocide occurred}}. They could of course selectively edit the quote in order to intentionally misrepresent the comment to another editor, and then double-down by not even bothering to re-read when challenged about it but that would be such a boring, bad-faith, trolling, pathetic thing to do wouldn't it? [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:21, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::::Three things;
::::::# [[WP:NPA]]. '''@[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]], if you cannot participate in conversations and building consensus for editing articles in contentious topic areas, maybe you're not suited to participate in conversations and building consensus for editing articles in contentious topic areas.'''
::::::# I object very strongly to your offer to editors – {{tq|Are you saying you want that text restored rather than "genocidal massacre"? I have no objection if that is the case, though 'G M' seems much beefier if less explicit.}} – as if Wikipedia is about what we might ''want'' an article to say. That is not how Wikipedia works and you are crossing lines when you try and strike deals with editors that violate [[WP:NPOV]] by selectively interpreting, misreading, and/or ignoring sources.
::::::# You are not really clarifying how on earth the sources in this article do not affirm a genocide occurred. I don't know why you're struggling to read the texts, but you clearly are. Perhaps the ICTY rulings are too difficult for you. You might find the NYT article easier to read and understand. You might also refer to any of the other sources used throughout the article which state in no ambiguous terms that the event documented in this article was a genocide.
::::::[[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 05:31, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::::{{TQ|You are not really clarifying how on earth the sources in this article do not affirm a genocide occurred}} Errr that's because the very source used <u>confirms</u> that the crime of genocide occurred at the Srebrenica massacre. Who disputes that? Not me. How often do I need to say that? How on earth could a source rejecting an appeal against several 'guilty of genocide' or 'complicity in genocide' verdicts possibly be construed as anything other than an confirmation that the crime was committed at Srebrenica? But also, since that source refers to the actual killings as '''The massacre at Srebrenica','' it is also an endorsement of the COMMONNAME of the event at which those killings/crimes occurred.
:::::::But it isn't the job of an opening sentence to simply repeat the article title ''(or in this instance, the proposal is to repeat an endorsement of the alternative title only)''. The job is to say what happened, what the page is about. To that extent I think that '''the genocidal killing of more than etc…' '' - which is the long term stable version is actually the clearest and most explicit definition of the subject. But if anyone else has a proposal that better defines the topic ''(without clumsy, pointless repetition of the title or alt title)'', then let's hear it.
:::::::I'm neutral about the adjective 'genocidal' in that sentence. As BarrelProof says above, we already mention the 'G-word' many times more often than any comparable article, but I would neither argue for its removal nor against such removal. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 16:59, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::: Pincrete everything in history was written on this article up to the decision of the ICTY court on Srebrenica and the UN Resolution, and for you it is not valid. It is only required to write what is written in the sources. You work on purpose [[https://www.legalmorning.com/whitewashing-ethically-correct-misinformation-on-wikipedia/]]whitewashing.[[Special:Contributions/216.189.150.121|216.189.150.121]] ([[User talk:216.189.150.121|talk]]) 12:02, 29 July 2024 (UTC)
:@[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] regarding this [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1237608368&oldid=1237605610 diff];
:# Wikipedia does not allow for a consensus to be formed which overrides the use of reliable sources
:# The grammar claim is false and has already been debunked
:I encourage you to pursue formal venues such as RfC or other methods of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Dispute_resolution_requests dispute resolution]. You do not have a unique mandate to override site policy or ignore participating in conversations to build consensus to edit. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 16:38, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::[[USER:122141510|122141510]] When there is a dispute, we revert to the long term stable version until the dispute is resolved.
::Are you actually arguing that the sources used don't endorse that ''" The SM/SG was the July 1995 genocidal killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in and around the town of Srebrenica, during the Bosnian War".'' Which part of that sentence isn't fully endorsed by the sources?
::Clearly you did not even read the text or edit reason before hitting the revert button. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 17:10, 30 July 2024 (UTC) ''btw, I've never claimed that it was bad grammar, I've said it's pointless, trite, repetitious English which fails to define the subject simply and clearly.''[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 17:13, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::No one should be reverting to any version of an article to include statements which are unsupported by sources, regardless of any other policy. You are also required by decorum to participate in conversations to build consensus to edit. I get instead the impression you are ignoring any conversation you don't like. You included in your rationale to revert the document a claim of 'dreadful English', which I've already taken time to [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Talk:Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=1237198647 explain to you]. In fact, your reversion is creating a grammatically inferior version – when the non-restrictive apositive is removed, you are in effect asserting that the article should state that ''"the massacre was the massacre"''. Including that rationale when it's already been explained to you is ridiculous.
:::You're now also switching which version of the statement you assert is the 'long term stable version'. It doesn't make much sense to assert multiple possibilities for what the 'long term stable version' is. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 17:18, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::So which part of the long term stable version isn't supported by the very sources used? Were 8,000 + males not killed? Was it not deemed to be a genocide? Is the date wrong?
::::Good clear English is sometimes a matter of judgement, not dictat, but simply repeating the alternative title in the opening sentence seems pretty much the definition of pointless-ness to me. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 17:29, 30 July 2024 (UTC) ''ps'' Since you quote extensively from it, you obviously read my post in which I apolgised for forgetting the recent change made by Tom B, and thus mis-remembering what the long-term stable version actually was. But whichever version it was, it certainly wasn't the edit you and the IP are edit-warring back into the article. However all three versions are almost equally supported by the sources used. ICTY actually calls the event the M at S! So are they saying a massacre didn't occur that they spend a whole chapter outlining? Are they saying than 8000+ males weren't killed in that massacre. We have already established ''(I hope)'' that they ''aren't'' saying that genocide didn't occur there. You are being extremely selective in what you are prepared to admit the sources endorse.[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 17:47, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::Once again, the way you prioritize information is not logically consistent. Your questions do not lend to what we're disputing. We often talk past each other and run into conflict in this way, so, as I've suggested to you before, you ought to stick to the direct topic and questions at hand and avoid abstractions. I don't know which 'long term stable' you think you're referring to – you've indicated two versions of the sentence as the 'long term stable', which I just said is already inherently self-contradicting.
:::::Sources support the statement that {{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide...}}.
:::::You also might consider limited license to ignore opportunities to avoid dictat here. As I've suggested before, when editing articles in contentious topic areas, similar to how [[WP:BLP]] is handled, editors should err towards making edits which can be rationalized and defended using policy and guidelines, and not a matter of judgment. Your difficulty in contributing to this conversation, respectfully, I take as evidence to this end. Other editors can't read your mind and figure out what you think is a long term stable, and other editors can't make heads or tails of why you might feel so passionately about avoiding a risk of [[WP:OR]] or [[WP:SYNTH]] in [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Srebrenica_massacre#Attack_type_=_Military_assault_?? some areas] but not [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Srebrenica_massacre#The_genocide_was_the_genocide others].
:::::You continue to agree the event was a genocide ''(and, more importantly, agree that sources identify the event as a genocide)'', but then you object very strongly to the statement
:::::{{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide}}
:::::and argue in favor of ''either''
:::::{{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal massacre...}}
:::::{{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal killing...}}
:::::which again, seems more like a matter for an RfC than anything else. I don't appreciate why you think these sentences are better – you haven't answered directly, and continue to assert something about grammar, syntax, or bad English, while giving yourself ''unique'' license to determine what is or isn't bad English based on your own judgment and ignore the judgment of others, even though in my case I took time to explain to you the grammatical and syntactical concerns. You countered with an implication that it's a matter of judgement. Implicitly, by your action, it's a judgment you're qualified to and others aren't – not really how consensus works! [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 17:48, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::::{{TQ|So which part of the long term stable version isn't supported by the very sources used? Were 8,000 + males not killed? Was it not deemed to be a genocide? Is the date wrong?}} I have never mentioned either grammar or syntax, you keep repeating the same claim, just as you repeatedly claimed that I somehow denied a genocide by citing the ''VERY ICTY DOCUMENT'' that disallowed the appeal against the genocide verdicts & sentences.
::::::Of course genocide happened there, Of course it was a massacre, Of course men were killed, but attempting to limit to only one of those - ignoring that the very sources used are explicit about all three is very NPOV. It is difficult to see it as other than a bad faith to circumvent the ''(failed)'' name move while at the same time failing to define the subject and, tritely, repeating the alternative title as though it were the only way to describe the event. The "genocide was the genocide" is the effective sentence, or possibly the "massacre was the genocide, either communicates almost nothing IMO.
::::::We already mention 'genocide' many times more often than the [[Holocaust]] article. Doesn't that say anything? [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 18:31, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::::{{tq|The "genocide was the genocide" is the effective sentence.}} Do we need to RfC everything? I've already explained to you how you're incorrect here, and it is your diff rationale and previous comments which continue to bring up 'bad English' or otherwise. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 19:18, 30 July 2024 (UTC
:::::::{{TQ|So which part of the long term stable version isn't supported by the very sources used? Were 8,000 + males not killed? Was it not deemed to be a genocide? Is the date wrong?}} Third time of asking and still deadly silence. The latest excuse for reverting is shown to be either consciously dishonest or at least inadvertently inaccurate. The sources more than adequately endorse the long-term version ''(but they don't actually say the "Srebrenica massacre was the genocide", they say genocide happened at the massacre if we are determined to be ever-so pedantic)''. {{TQ|Do we need to RfC everything?}} Well you do if you can't get consensus for your desired change from either of the stable versions. It isn't me that insists that only one version of the opening sentence or only one article name is valid ''(and anathema on anyone who doesn't salute that version)''. Repeating the alternative title to define the article is pointless, muddled and appears to be a fairly pathetic attempt to circumvent the rejection of the failed move discussion. It also makes the following sentences pretty clumsy. {{TQ|I've already explained to you how you're incorrect}} I'm sorry, but as it doesn't seem to be obvious to you, I disagree. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 20:30, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::::::{{tq|Third time of asking and still deadly silence.}} It is clearly not constructive for you and I to write entire essays back and forth at each other. I've explained why we are almost certainly better off tackling issues one at a time. We should start easy and remain on the assertion you made that the opening sentence has 'bad English' – it is one which is relatively benign and non-controversial. You also clearly feel strongly enough about it to continually assert your judgment as superior to mine, and have expressed disagreement.
::::::::I've explained to you what a non-retsrictive appositive is and how it should be considered.
::::::::Is it not obvious to you what a non-restrictive appositive is?
::::::::Are you unable to identify the non-restrictive appositive in the opening sentence?
::::::::What ''exactly'' do you disagree with?
::::::::I'll also bring up you have not been consistent with how you raise this issue. You objected to the formulation;
::::::::{{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide...}} and claimed [incorrectly] that this could be reduced to 'the genocide was the genocide'. You actually would've been more in your rights to object to the formulation {{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal massacre...}} because by way of removing the non-restrictive appositive, the sentence is effectively reduced to 'the massacre was the genocidal massacre'. I believe your edits were in effect doing the exact opposite – you were making the sentence 'bad English' by way of introducing a tautology. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 21:07, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::{{TQ|So which part of the long term stable version isn't supported by the very sources used? Were 8,000 + males not killed? Was it not deemed to be a genocide? Is the date wrong?}} Still no answer nor any reason why we don't adopt normal practice of going back to the long-term stable version until a new consensus is reached. The failure to do so is further proof of bad faith AFAI am concerned. Citing the sources used as a revert justification is simply false, they endorse all three above elements fully. If a better 'defining' sentence can be arrived at, Hurrah! but the revert to the IP's edit was unjustified edit-warring which actually ignored the content of the sources used. The IP clearly didn't read the sources, but you have and must know that your edit reason was simply false, whether consciously or because of careless reading I don't know and frankly don't care. Professions of good faith are simply hot-air when deeds contradict normal practice.
:::::::::The only tautology I have accepted ''(but not particularly endorsed)'' is the use of the word 'genocidal' before 'killing' in the long-term version. I understand why people want it there, though as [[USER:BarrelProof|BarrelProof]] points out, we already use the 'G-word' many times more often than other comparable articles. I agree that 'genocidal massacre' is far from perfect, it was TomB who made that edit, not me, but it is preferable to 'your' proposed text IMO.
:::::::::Your proposed text defines nothing. How does one justify simply repeating the alternative title as the 'defining' sentence? doing so clearly implies that the alternative title is correct, the actual title wrong. The proposed defining sentence reads like a huge PoV comment on the actual article title. Beyond that intrusive PoV 'comment' on the title, it communicates nothing apart from what some editors think we ''ought'' to call the event regardless of what the sources ''have'' and ''do'' call it, even the sources we actually use. How many times do we need to clumsily repeat the word 'genocide' to make the point? [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 22:55, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::{{tq|Professions of good faith are simply hot-air when deeds contradict normal practice.}} Quite. I see no reason to go down your argumentative and contentious train of thought. Your last several edits on this talk page have in effect accused me of being illiterate but you cannot, or refuse, process a conversation in a stepwise manner. Please refer to my prior questions. I haven't proposed any text yet. I don't believe we've gotten to that point yet. My impression is that the issue of grammar or 'bad English' should be resolved before I can offer anything. You can submit an RfC if you like but trolling me is not going to get me to relent. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:00, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::I've submitted an RfC in lieu, and instead of edit warring. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:24, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
The recent article history sure looks like [[WP:edit warring|edit warring]] at first glance. —⁠ ⁠[[User:BarrelProof|BarrelProof]] ([[User talk:BarrelProof|talk]]) 23:09, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
 
:I feel I am effectively being harassed, bullied, and intimidated. Efforts on my part to cool the conversation down are rebuffed or otherwise ignored, sometimes even in favor of calling me illiterate. In effect, Pincrete is arguing he is not obliged to reach any consensus with other editors. I feel like it is simply a tactic to either wear me out or tire me out. I have limited interest in relenting. It is my intent that I can attempt to have navigate the conversation towards productive consensus formation like adults, and it is my understanding that this is within the parameters and expectations of how this project works. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:31, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 20:20, 27 August 2006 (UTC)
::<u>You</u> have accused <u>me</u> repeatedly of denying that genocide occurred, and repeatedly said that I say a source claims that a genocide did not occur - when it clearly doesn't say that and which I clearly haven't said. ''(I say the source ''(the ICTY judgement) ''calls the killings 'The massacre at Srebrenica' and the crime committed it calls 'genocide').'' I do not apolgise for saying that anyone stupid or crude-thinking enough to be unable to understand the distinction between what the source calls the actual killings and the crime it endorses the 'guilty verdict' for, probably has no business editing this article. You have also accused me of being a Serb apologist ''(and come onto my talk page to assert that this isn't a personal attack and to assert your right to repeat it)''.
::If this is your idea of YOU being {{TQ|harassed, bullied, and intimidated}}, I don't know what to say. I have clearly forcefully complained about, what I think is clear, intentional misreading of another editor's comments and clear, intentional misrepresenting of sources, but I have tried to correct errors without resorting to personal attacks. But by failing to address the question {{TQ|So which part of the long term stable version isn't supported by the very sources used? Were 8,000 + males not killed? Was it not deemed to be a genocide? Is the date wrong?}} while claiming that [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1237608368 your revert was motivated by a lack of sources], you strongly suggest that you didn't even bother to read the text you were reverting from. ''(You actually say "The source explicitly identifies it as a genocide, not massacre. … your claim that sources claim the event was not a genocide is not credible" '' However ''a) ''the source explicitly refers to "The massacre at Srebrenica" to describe the killing but ''b) ''this is irrelevant since 'my' text doesn't even use the word 'massacre' ''c) ''Neither I, nor any editor on this article, nor any source we use (outside the 'Denial' section perhaps) has ever suggested that the crime of genocide was not committed at Srebrenica. <u>A claim that has never been made</u> by me, the sources, or anyone, cannot possibly be either credible nor not credible.)
::If this were a single accidental misreading, a correction, and an apolgy would be sufficient, but it isn't. It's a stubborn refusal to acknowledge a number of factual mistakes following repeated correction and a doubling down of the initial error, which is inherently bad-faith.
::Real life calls, but I will continue later and give you ample opportunity to remedy these errors by deeds, not words if you are sincere about the wish to 'turn down' the heat on discussion . [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 08:12, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
:::I have no obligation to acknowledge your posts. If you insist on continuing to interact with me I will request an interaction ban. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 00:10, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::::Note to admins: I have no obligation to acknowledge their posts at this time, given what they have said in this conversation. All their conversation is hypocritical bad-faith argument which is entirely predicated by an attempt to harass and wear me out rather than ever attempt to form any sort of consensus. You [admins] are culpable here, as collectively sat on your hands and allowed this user to harass me and own this article in the manner by which they have. I've asked for intervention multiple times and have received nothing. All ANI does is give this user the impression they can continue to do what they do – argue with editors, push the limits of edit-warring without explicitly violating rules so they can continue to do it. You've allowed this user to [[WP:GAMETHESYSTEM]]. I will be cooperative with any action pursued after the fact but if there is pushback along the lines that it is on me to escalate, the answer is that I tried. If the answer is that I didn't escalate correctly, that's unreasonable onus. I have gone out of my way to try and cooperate with this user and they have simply continued to abuse me in a manner which is outrageous and simply unacceptable. It is ''not'' on editors to tolerate abuse unless they're familiar with all the tools and loopholes senior editors are more familiar with, and it is not acceptable for admins to ignore bias being pushed in an abusive manner in the manner I've been forced to accept here. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 02:47, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::[[USER:122141510]], {{TQ|I have no obligation to acknowledge their posts at this time}}, that is quite correct, however you do have an obligation to retract the claim that you have made 5 or 6 times recently that I have either denied that genocide occurred at Srebrenica or that I have said a source makes that claim. Recent example above: {{TQ|So the question is – why does Pincrete state a source that is reliable and relevant to the article that identifies the event documented in this article as a genocide, <u>as saying a genocide did not occur</u>?}}. <small>underlining mine</small>
:::::Of course the source is relevant ''(an ICTY judgement and news report of that judgement disallowing an appeal against guilty verdicts on charges of genocide)'', of course it endorses that genocide occurred at Srebrenica since it confirms the 'guilty' verdicts, but it actually identifies the event which is the article subject as "The Massacre at Srebrenica" and devotes a sustantial chapter to detailing that 'massacre'. The ICTY judgement effectively distinguishes between an event, the actual 'killing spree', by calling it "the massacre" and the crime committed there, ie 'genocide'.
:::::<u>Nowhere</u> do I make the ''(frankly absurd, self-contradicting)'' claim that the guilty verdict says {{TQ|a genocide did not occur}}. I have corrected you on this several times and yet you 'doubled down' by repeating this claim rather than retract, apologise and strike the claim. To misread once is human, to repeat the misreading repeatedly looks like much worse than carelessness. Thus, I do not now apologise for saying above {{TQ|anyone stupid or crude-thinking enough to be unable to understand the distinction between what the source calls the actual killings and the crime it endorses the 'guilty verdict' for, probably has no business editing this article}}. But I don't believe you are either stupid or crude thinking, I believe that you consider it your right to make [[WP:NPA|personal attacks]], (as part of a [[WP:BATTLEGROUND|battle ground]] approach to editing) as you have directly said on my article talk when called upon to stop a previous return to speculating on talk as to which of your fellow editors were "Serb revisionists".
:::::In the context of the Srebrenica massacre, saying someone denies the genocide, or claims that sources say that, is an overt personal attack. It questions their intelligence, competence and neutrality apart from deeply offensive in itself. I ask you to clearly concede that I have NEVER made any such claims nor said that sources make such claims and strike each of the repetitions of this that you have recently made. If you do not do so, I will be interpreting it as confirmation that you consider it your right to intentionally misrepresent editors' views, and will report you.
:::::I don't ask you to strike comments about me or other editors being Serb revisionists/apologists or similar, since you would be striking comments almost all the way back to your arrival on this page and most of them, although they leave a rancid smell, are actually too silly for words. But if such idle speculations are made again on talk, I will be reporting you. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 07:30, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::It's a case of mixing up [[Hanlon's razor]]. I suppose I gave you more credit than you deserved – you're functionally illiterate. You cannot even wrap your head around basic English syntax and grammar – how is possible to ''disagree'' with a non-restrictive appositive? Your posts here are ridiculous. And now you want to bully, harass, and intimidate others into accepting your lack of understanding of what a genocide is? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 21:38, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::The tone here has gotten bad enough that I'll be filing this dispute at [[WP:ANI]] unless I see a quick improvement. —⁠ ⁠[[User:BarrelProof|BarrelProof]] ([[User talk:BarrelProof|talk]]) 22:05, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::If there won't be any direct intervention from you or any other administrator without an ANI being filed, then it should be filed. Pincrete is already undermining the RfC which was expressly submitted for the purpose of formally soliciting opinions from anyone else, rather than him and I continuing to bicker, and not yet another talk page section in which he might attack me in. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 22:13, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::Please see [[WP:ANI#Edit warring and accusations of bad faith about Srebrenica massacre]]. (FYI, I am not an administrator.) —⁠ ⁠[[User:BarrelProof|BarrelProof]] ([[User talk:BarrelProof|talk]]) 23:39, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
 
==RfC: Should the first sentence contain either the term 'genocidal killing' or 'genocidal massacre'?==
:1. I thought he was specifically ordered to leave by the central government.
{{Archive top|result=SNOW close as proposed in section immediately below due to proposer having left WP. ''Non-admin close by involved editor'' [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:11, 7 August 2024 (UTC) }}
:2. Although that information is notable, stating it in that way is hardly POV.
Should the first sentence contain the term 'genocidal killing' and/or 'genocidal massacre'? The article as a whole is in some ways separated from events preceding and following, which confounds the chronology somewhat. Nonetheless, for the period of time as has been defined ''(which isn't exactly idiosyncratic)'' events from July 11-31 1995, as conventionally understood as the "Srebrenica genocide" and/or "Srebrenica massacre", are neither limited to 'genocidal killing' or 'genocidal massacre'. This is reflected in the article and sources, which document, for example, the rape of women and children, and continued deportation/forcible relocation of citizens of Srebrenica.
:[[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 23:52, 27 August 2006 (UTC)
 
Neither the phrases "genocidal killing" nor "genocidal massacre" are expressly used in the sources linked as support for the phrase, which has been added and removed in various edit wars for the past several days – the terms are potentially [[WP:OR]], and certainly non-exhaustive. However, they are typically understood as excluding the aforementioned additional actions which are recognized as part of the Srebrenica genocide, such as when in other contexts the terms "genocidal killings and rape", "genocide and rape", imply different things. See also the article [[genocidal rape]] and the concerns which it brings up.
'''Bosniak''' , in the ICTY judgement "prosecutor vs Oric", it states: "In the spring of 1995, the Accused was summoned to Tuzla." Therefore, he was not in Srebrenica during the attack which this article describes. Furthermore, and just as importantly, using the word "shamefully" is highly subjective and judgemental and calls into question the objectivity of the article. It ought to be left to the reader to decide what is shameful. What appears best is including the statement from ICTY regarding the Oric conviction since it summarizes well and all agree on it. What do you think? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 00:01, 28 August 2006 (UTC)
 
I submit that it's simply easier and more concise to go with the formulation {{tq|The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide...}} Of course, the entire sentence has formulation issues – it goes on to say {{tq|of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in and around the town of Srebrenica, during the Bosnian War}}, but as it currently exists, and in the hopes of putting an end to an edit war and making some progress in conversation, it seems necessary to take it a step at a time. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:24, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
Oric and his staff were '''ordered''' to abandon Srebrenica. It's not like if they hijacked this helicopter or something. During the massacre he also reportedly disobeyed orders and led a group of volunteers to reach the column from the Bosnian lines. [http://www.diacritica.com/sobaka/2002/srebrenica.html]
 
*'''I support terms massacre and genocide''' per terms used in sources. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 23:30, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
*:Regarding '''massacre''' – I would understand "Srebrenica massacre", in effect ''colloquially'', including killing, rape, and relocation as has been documented in this article. What about "massacre" on its own? Would a formulation like {{tq|The Srebrenica massacre [...] was the massacre}} include or omit the additional actions? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:39, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::Could you reformulate that. I didn't understand. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 23:47, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
::::If you say "Srebrenica massacre", then I understand it as currently meaning everything that's in the article – the killing of citizens of Srebrenica, ''and'' rape of citizens of Srebrenica, ''and'' forced deportation of citizens of Srebrenica.
::::If you just say "massacre", then I understand that as '''only''' talking about the killing. The dictionary definition of massacre is, per [https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/massacre Wikitionary], {{tq|The killing of a considerable number ''(usually limited to people)'' where little or no resistance can be made, with indiscriminate violence, without necessity, and/or contrary to civilized norms.}}
::::If there is no dispute with these definitions, then saying ''"the Srebrenica massacre was the massacre..."'' is technically incorrect, because it doesn't include the rape or deportations. My question was a more open-ended attempt to see if I'm correct without a simple "do you agree"? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 23:56, 30 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::Yes, The Srebrenica Massacre with capital 'S' and 'M' is the name of the event which includes everything described in the article. The event was a genocide. Term massacre with lowercase 'm' is a general term with the meaning described in any dictionary. The Srebrenica Massacre was not merely a massacre. It was also a genocide and it includes other crimes then just a massacre, plus an intent to destroy the group. This is all written in the article named 'The Srebrenica Massacre'. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 00:18, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
 
{{ctop|ChatGPT is irrelevant. Please read [[WP:Reliable Sources]] and [[WP:Secondary]] for what sourcing is expected on Wikipedia, even on discussions. [[User:Soni|Soni]] ([[User talk:Soni|talk]]) 04:24, 31 July 2024 (UTC)}}
'''Bosniaks' reply - I am not anti-Oric, but let's put things into perspective''' - First of all, no matter who ordered Oric to leave Srebrenica, you need to understand that what he did was wrong. If he was a true leader, he would have never left his soldiers and people to fend for themselves. I am not anti-Oric or anything, as I hope you understand that I am Bosniak and I love my people. Secondly, Oric did a great job in defending Srebrenica for years before he left; our forces almost had no weapons to defend themselves plus they lacked food and basic medical supplies etc, but they did it, they succeeded to keep Srebrenica free from Mladic's genocidal barbarians for 3 years. However, when Oric left Srebrenica, chain of command collapsed, U.N. refused to return weapons to people of Srebrenica, and Serbs slaughtered over 8,000 people in the worst massacre since the WWII. Although U.N. failed miserably, they did succeed in negotiating forcible transfer of women and small children, and these lives were saved. Older children, ages 13-18 were NOT saved, because genocidal Mladic viewed them as capable of carying guns. Had U.N. not been there, one of two things could have happened: 1) bloodthirsty Mladic would most likely slaughter women and small children too, and/or 2) Srebrenica would never fall under Serb control (remember, Gorazde was in exactly the same situation, except they refused to hand down their weapons to UN, and Gorazde did survive). Oric was wrong to leave Srebrenica - period. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 06:43, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
:'''Comment from submitter'''. For those suspecting this is a reaction to the move request failing, in some regards it effectively is. This RfC is informed from consulting with ChatGPT 4 '''(legacy model)'''. I asked the following questions;
:'''1.''' does the term 'srebrenica genocide' necessarily include the killing AND rape AND deportation? does the term 'srebrenica masssacre' necessarily exclude any of these?
:{{Collapse|title=GPT 4 response to Q1|float=center|
:The term "Srebrenica Genocide" typically refers to a series of events that occurred in July 1995 during the Bosnian War, specifically targeting the Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) population of Srebrenica. This term generally encompasses the mass killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys, as well as acts of rape, and the forced deportation of Bosniak women, children, and elderly. Thus, the use of "genocide" acknowledges not only the mass killings but also the systematic nature of the atrocities intended to destroy, in part, a national, ethnical, or religious group, as such.
:On the other hand, "Srebrenica Massacre" typically refers more specifically to the mass killing aspect of these events. It focuses on the execution-style killings that occurred, which are the most documented and recognized elements of the atrocities. This term does not explicitly exclude the consideration of rape and deportation but is generally less comprehensive in scope regarding the full range of crimes committed during the genocide.
:Both terms are heavily loaded and carry significant historical, legal, and emotional weight, reflecting different aspects of the same events. The use of either term can imply different emphases in discussion or analysis, with "genocide" addressing the broader, systematic attempt to destroy a group and "massacre" focusing more on the act of mass killing.
:}}
:'''2.''' colloquially, would the term 'srebrenica massacre' be understood as including the additional, because it is so often used interchangeably with 'srebrenica genocide'?
:{{Collapse|title=GPT 4 response to Q2|float=center|
:Colloquially, when people refer to the "Srebrenica Massacre," they often are aware of the broader context of the events that occurred, including the associated acts of rape and deportation, especially because the terms "Srebrenica Massacre" and "Srebrenica Genocide" are frequently used interchangeably in various discussions and media. This interchangeability means that even though "massacre" primarily connotes the killings, the general public might still understand it to imply the broader atrocities due to the widespread knowledge of the event's comprehensive brutality.
:However, the understanding can vary depending on the individual's depth of knowledge about the events, the context in which the term is used, and the specificity required by the discussion or narrative. For those more familiar with the historical and legal distinctions, "massacre" might be seen as more specific to the killings, while "genocide" would explicitly include the wider range of crimes.
:}}
:In particular, {{tq|For those more familiar with the historical and legal distinctions, "massacre" might be seen as more specific to the killings, while "genocide" would explicitly include the wider range of crimes.}} is generally my understanding. The event is colloquially referred to as 'Srebrenica massacre' but is technically incorrect – but it's at least in contention for [[WP:COMMONNAME]], so it stands as the title of the article for now. Doubling down on that by defining the event in and of itself as either a massacre or a genocidal killing omits the additional actions. It's the {{tq|For those more familiar with the historical and legal distinctions,}} that might actually be the more pertinent question to answer – who do we expect to read this article? what level of familiarity do we expect? – but given one of the first sources linked is a 19 page appeal judgement summary from the ICTY, I assume we're necessarily expecting some heightened level of familiarity. Ergo, the first sentence of the article is formulated incorrectly. No? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 00:23, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
{{cbot}}
:That's all well and fine but human curation of information generated by ChatGPT to clarify understanding and direction of conversation in a highly contentious topic is not a flagrant abuse, and I wasn't going to frame the conversation as being necessarily beholden to the information. {{reply to|Soni}} with respect, not the most helpful contribution here. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 04:36, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
::If you can use ChatGPT to generate this information, you should be able to find sources to support your arguments, directly or otherwise. All GPT does, human curated or not, is regurgitate the same information from Wikipedia and other sources, but without the ever important attribution.
::Personally, I think this RFC itself should also be closed, simply because of [[WP:STICK]]. There was an RM, then an ongoing Move review. You do not need an RFC on effectively the same broad question before that MR itself is closed. I recommend [[WP:3O]] or [[WP:DRN]] (and as a last resort [[WP:ANI]]) to resolve all questions at-large instead of a lengthy RFCs (or similar) on every sub-decision of this article. [[User:Soni|Soni]] ([[User talk:Soni|talk]]) 04:44, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
:::I am not opposed to that. I am simply not interested in another edit war and round of harassment from Pincrete. [[Wikipedia:Dispute resolution requests]] did not clearly delineate the best option about how I might save myself another week of arguing with that editor. If RFC is not the best method by which to ''request input on a specific content issue from a broad number of uninvolved users'' then I've probably picked the wrong mechanism. But that an uninvolved editor can jump to censure any mention of ChatGPT before contributing to the RfC, or intervening in the above endless argument, or the ongoing edit war ''(of which myself and Pincrete are not the only parties, hence my assumption [[WP:3O]] was not the best choice)'', is unimpressive. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 04:54, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
::::You are right on 3O, apologies. As for the rest of it, I did weigh in, saying "This should have been closed because I think the Move Review is too connected to the question being asked". The overall discussion is nearly 54K words (or 2 tomats), expecting every editor to contribute after reading it all is a bit of a timesink. The first thing I read was an irrelevant argument that should be struck, so I hatted it. Editors can and should do that even regardless of how much they involve themselves in the rest of discussion. [[User:Soni|Soni]] ([[User talk:Soni|talk]]) 05:07, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
:::::Editors are endorsing a move which does not even have an effective rationale – I mentioned I empathise and appreciate that anyone trying to close that review should be thanked for having the time, patience, and willing to put themselves up to criticism. Regardless, it seems to me that the move review is looking to endorse the closed move request as it exists. As such the article needs to be addressed with its current title, and part of that is that the opening sentence is being edited in a way that doesn't agree with the current title and in a manner that I am confused by, and the rationale given by the editor makes no sense. Given the fierce, volume-long defense and subsequent ad hominem attacks on me for arguing the opposing, I'm inclined to think there must be something behind that fury, hence the benefit of the doubt and attempting to solicit additional opinions. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 05:39, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
::::You could {{TQ|save <s>my</s> yourself self another week of arguing with that editor ''(me)''}} by simply closing this 'fake RfC', reverting to the version that was stable for several years before you and the IP edit-warred in the present version, then start a discussion on talk. You could begin by explaining why you think describing the event as ''[[genocide|genocidal killing]] ''is not supported by sources. If a consensus of editors agree with 'your' text, it would of course stay. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 14:38, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::{{tq|You could begin by explaining why you think describing the event as genocidal killing is not supported by sources.}} I did in the RfC. Are you unable or unwilling to read it? [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 21:44, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::Simply for clarification, do you mean that the term is not supported by sources because that specific phrase is not used by those currently used? [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 04:32, 2 August 2024 (UTC)
'''Comment''' The RfC isn't remotely neutrally phrased nor are all three of the options recently discussed actually offered by the proposer in a concise and neutral manner. A valid RfC might ask ''what should the opening sentence be?'' or identify the three opening sentences recently used in the article - with an option to suggest a 4th. By excluding from the discussion the most recent opening sentence ''(inserted by an IP in the last few days and edit-warred into place by the proposer, only a few hours before starting this RfC)'', the proposer is simply inviting participants to reject two previous versions and thus implicitly endorse his favoured one, or enshrine it in 'stable' position, despite it never having received even tacit approval by any editor other than himself. '''Snow close''' as pointless, while the move review is ongoing. '''Not neutrally phrased''', and not actually representing all the options under discussion and content which is disputed.[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 08:41, 31 July 2024 (UTC)
 
:Note: this editor is party to the edit war, ''despite'' their implication otherwise. They have rejected any opportunity to constructively participate in consensus-building conversations in multiple conversations ongoing on this talk page. The RfC is hopefully an attempt to proceed with constructive edits to the article. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 00:12, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
== Kravica: village or military base? ==
::I don't see how I imply that I am not a party to this dispute, but ask anyone with the stomach to do so, to read [[Talk:Srebrenica_massacre#The_genocide_was_the_genocide|The genocide was the genocide]] the section above to judge for themselves who they believe to be attempting to {{TQ|constructively participate in consensus-building conversations}}.
::I have clearly stated that I am open to any suggestions as to what the opening sentence should be, but certainly believe that [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1237621991 this version] which had the tacit approval of all editors for several years, until only a few weeks ago, should be the version used pending a new consensus. It is the convention, that we use the stable version until a new agreement is reached, unless pressing reasons exclude it. That version opens: ''"The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal killing of more than 8,000 etc"''. There are no 'pressing objections' to that text that I can see.
::The version currently in place which has never received even tacit approval from any editor apart from an IP [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1237608368 who first inserted it] a few days ago and the proposer of this RfC, who [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=prev&oldid=1236862378 edit-warred it into place only hours] before opening this RfC, and which is even excluded from discussion in this RfC, opens:''The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocide of more than 8,000 etc''.
::The proposer of this RfC is also one of the main participants of a recent ''(failed)'' move proposal which aimed to retitle the article as '''Srebrenica genocide''' they are also the proposer of a current move review aiming to overturn the outcome of the move discussion. I find it difficult to see this RfC as anything other than a bad faith attempt to circumvent the outcome of that failed move proposal by simply repeating the alternative title ''(Srebrenica genocide)'' as the opening, defining, sentence.
::Ample sources exist that describe the event as a 'massacre', as a 'genocide' and describe 'killings'. That they don't use them in particular combinations is immaterial IMO, since the meaning remains the same. The ones presently used in the article almost certainly endorse all three words, the only question is which we want to use, in which order to most fully, clearly and neutrally describe the event. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 08:13, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::Please refer to the following diffs for editor's involvement in edit war; [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1236933777&oldid=1236862378 1], [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1237117361&oldid=1237058901 2], [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1237226532&oldid=1237164365 3], [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1237605610&oldid=1237511405 4], [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&diff=1237621991&oldid=1237608368 5]. Note that in these editor asserts ''two different versions'' of the opening sentence as the "stable long term version", which is by definition impossible. Note also that editor continues to assert that he "find[s] it difficult to see the RfC as anything other than a bad faith attempt", but in the previous conversation they link to, have threatened to report me for pointing out that the overall character of their edits to this article are consequential as they lessen or otherwise diminish the definition of what a massacre is, as opposed to genocide. '''They continue to consistently disrupt conversation on this talk page, and are effectively undermining this RfC by continuing to write walls of text that serve to discourage or otherwise overwhelm editors from being able to participate. This allows a lack of consensus to ever form, which suits them fine, as they've clearly indicated in past conversation on this talk page a strong preference for the status quo.''' [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 21:36, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
 
Killing more than 5000 unarmed people can hardly be "just a massacre". When someone kill a dozen people, it is dubbed as a massacre. Like [[Belgrade school shooting]]. As far as I know some verdicts given by the Court of Hague include the term "genocide". The Court said it was a genocide. So why are we even discussing about which term would be most appropriate? [[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 11:39, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
I believe it is misleading to describe the January 8 attack on Kravica as an attack on a "military base" and I believe it is misleading to call it an attack on just a random village since it obviously had many soldiers in it (35 VRS soldiers were killed and 36 VRS soldiers were wounded in the battle) and it was militarily significant. ''Still, the attack was not on a military base''. A military base has lookout towers, a defined perimeter, only soldiers, etc. Just having artillery nearby does not make a ___location a military base. Furthermore, none of the source materials supporting this article refer to Kravica as a military base. So how about if we come up with wording that communicates the military significance of Kravica, shows that there was a large number of VRS soldiers there, but does not inaccurately describe the attack as on a military base. That misleads the reader. See wikipedia's definition of a military base. One needs to stretch that definition rather far to make it apply to Kravica and by doing so almost every village in the Srebrenica area on both sides of the conflict would be a military base. Not true. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_base [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 00:01, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
 
:Nobody AFAIK has ever said'' "<u>just</u> a massacre"'', certainly not in any discussion here. But it is simply a fact that sources use both terms with a slight preference for 'massacre' and not infrequently they describe the actual 'killings' as a massacre and the crime as genocide. Even the UN and ICTY in their official pronouncements have done that. This isn't strange, [[My Lai massacre|in other massacre]]s the crime committed was murder. The terms are not mutually exclusive anymore than 'poisoning' and 'killing' are. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 12:35, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
-> You could call it 'millitary ___location' or 'Serb ___location of military significance', etc. It's obvious that the village was significant because Serb soldiers were stationed there and were attacking Srebrenica. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:57, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
::Pincrete is not familiar with definition of term genocide. See below. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 22:01, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
 
What is the issue then? Why don't you just come up with a solution that would work for all sides? Did you know that official Serbia has been desperately struggling to make the event look more like an accident than an organized killing of dozen of hundred handcuffed men. Therefore it prefers the term "massacre" over "genocide" for the simple reason that the first one sounds less tragic than the later.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 13:06, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
'''Bosniak''' , what do you think if the article does not say "military base" and does not say "village" but rather simply "Kravica" with a description of its geographical significance
and the number of soldiers killed and wounded and the number of civilians killed. The number of soldiers present and the geographical significance speaks for itself. How about something like this:
 
You can write in the first sentence that this massacre had genocidal intentions, that is the goal of eradicating the Muslims from the region. Perpetrators succeeded in his regards. Twenty nine years after the only trace of Muslims in that region left are mass graveyards.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 13:15, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:"By September 1992, Bosniak forces from Srebrenica had linked up with those in Žepa, a Bosniak-held town to the south of Srebrenica. By gaining control of Kravica during a battle on January 8, 1993, Bosniak forces expanded the enclave further to include the previously isolated Bosniak-held enclave of Cerska located to the west of Srebrenica. During the January 8 battle for Kravica which occurred on Serbian Orthodox Christmas Day, 35 Serb soldiers were killed, 36 Serb soldiers were wounded, and 11 civilians were killed. [16] By mid-January 1993, the Srebrenica enclave reached its peak size of 900 square kilometres, although it was never linked to the main area of Bosnian government-held territory in the west and remained a vulnerable island amid Serb-controlled territory [17]
 
:The boat has sailed on what we call the article, a recent move request failed. It's called the Srebrenica Massacre because that is the term most often used by sources and has been for a long time. The first words for the few last years have been'' "The '''Srebrenica massacre''', also known as the '''Srebrenica genocide''',was the July 1995 [[genocide|genocidal]] killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in and around the town of Srebrenica, during the Bosnian War." ''I personally think that long term version addresses your 'intent' concern. BTW, apparently we use the word 'genocide' more often than any articles about similar events, so it can hardly be argued that we are 'downplaying' that word. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 14:19, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:Over the next few months, however, the reorganized Serb military launched a large-scale offensive"
 
'''Comment'''. The RfC is limited to the first sentence, but the entire opening section would benefit from identifying the event correctly from the first sentence. It would reduce the need to clarify what is actually understood by the title of the event, which includes genocidal rape and forced deportation. Those opening sentences which formulate defining the event only as a massacre or a genocidal killing necessarily excluding these additional details and diminishes the event. It is no wonder past editors have felt obliged to reiterate the fact the event was a genocide in the full sense of the term, as the opening sentence has previously made this unclear. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 15:43, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::One thing that needs to be done at some point is establishing consistent terminology for the article. I prefer not using "Serb" but rather either VRS or Bosnian Serb. I also prefer Bosnian government held territory as opposed to Bosniak-held territory. I also do not like seeing Bosnian and Bosniak used interchangeably. I understand that in parts of Bosnia -- the Srebrenica area between Serbs and Bosniaks, and in central Bosnia between Croats and Bosniaks -- it was essentially an ethnic conflict, however in other parts and overall I perceive the conflict as the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina defending itself against Serbia's attempt to expand its borders to cover large swaths of Croatia and Bosnia, against the greater Serbia project. But that is a discussion for another day. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 18:45, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
 
:How exactly does using the word 'genocide' communicate that rape and forced deportation occurred in a way that massacre excludes? Both of these things happened at Srebrenica of course and under certain circumstances "acts of extreme violence, such as [[rape]] and [[torture]], are recognized as falling under the first prohibited act" ''(killing members of the group)''. Thus rape can be genocidal in intent/a manifestation of genocide/a common adjunct to genocide, but it is stretching credibility to suggest that the usual meaning of 'genocide' conveys either rape or forced deportation ''per se''.
:: Also, I suggest reading the ICTY Oric judgement. It does a much better job of putting the conflict into perspective and specifically describes the "New State Project" (otherwise known as the greater Serbia project) and specifically describes how the JNA became essentially a Serb ethnic army by the time the Bosnia war began. The text from the Oric Judgement would probably serve this article better than the text from the Krstic Judgement. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 18:45, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
:I agree that the article should identify the topic fully, clearly, concisely and accurately. We don't agree about the recent edit-warred-in version fulfilling that, or certainly about it being the clearest or only "correct" version. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 16:24, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
::https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genocide: {{tq|Genocide is the intentional destruction of a people, either in whole or in part. [...] The Genocide Convention establishes five prohibited acts that, when committed with the requisite intent, amount to genocide. Genocide is not just defined as wide scale massacre-style killings that are visible and well-documented. International law recognizes a broad range of forms of violence in which the crime of genocide can be enacted [...] While mass killing is not necessary for genocide to have been committed, it has been present in almost all recognized genocides. In certain instances, men and adolescent boys are singled out for murder in the early stages, such as in the genocide of the Yazidis by Daesh, the Ottoman Turks' attack on the Armenians, and the Burmese security forces' attacks on the Rohingya. Men and boys are typically subject to "fast" killings, such as by gunshot. Women and girls are more likely to die slower deaths by slashing, burning, or as a result of sexual violence. The jurisprudence of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), among others, shows that both the initial executions and those that quickly follow other acts of extreme violence, such as rape and torture, are recognized as falling under the first prohibited act. [...] This second prohibited act can encompass a wide range of non-fatal genocidal acts. The ICTR and International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) have held that rape and sexual violence may constitute the second prohibited act of genocide by causing both physical and mental harm. [...] While it was subject to some debate, the ICTY and, later, the Syrian COI held that under some circumstances deportation and forcible transfer may also cause serious bodily or mental harm.}}
::After extended conversation with someone such as yourself, I realized there are those who are unfamiliar with the language and terminology they are using who will very strongly and consistent assert information which is incorrect. The question I believe is worth tackling is thus, and part of what informs the RfC. i.e. or those more familiar with the material and the English language, "massacre" will only speak to the act of killing, and so "genocide" is necessarily required to remain as it is to contain the totality of events. Anything else is technically incorrect. But this leads to another question to answer – who do we expect to read this article? what level of familiarity do we expect? – but given one of the first sources linked is a 19 page appeal judgement summary from the ICTY, I assume we're necessarily expecting some heightened level of familiarity. At the least the format of Wikipedia means that genocide should remain in the opening sentence so that readers can familiarize themselves with the depths of the term – I encourage you to do the same. You continue to state stuff and nonsense as if any of it were factual. You've no idea what you're talking about, and I did not open the RfC to argue with you again. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 21:25, 1 August 2024 (UTC)
:::Nobody disputes that rape ''can'' constitute genocide ''(I contributed to the 'Bosnian rape' article)'', nor that rape and other forms of extreme violence are common adjuncts to genocide, the question was {{tq|How exactly does using the word 'genocide' <u>communicate</u> that rape and forced deportation occurred in a way that massacre excludes?}}. If you want to ensure that rape, forced deportation and other crimes are given clear, [[WP:DUE]] coverage, the obvious way is to cover them explicitly in the lead, not by assuming that the reader consults the genocide article and absorbs all of it.
:::I long ago apologised for initially forgetting that the long-term stable version was not ''"genocidal massacre" ''(inserted by Tom B around a month ago) but in fact ''"genocidal killing"'', which was in place for several years before that. Your favoured version has in fact never had the support of anyone, neither tacit nor explicit apart from you and the IP who initially inserted it a few days ago. You do not even invite RfC-ers to consider, examine, evaluate it alongside the other versions in ''(clearly unneutral)'' opening statement. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 04:55, 2 August 2024 (UTC)
:::{{TQ|At the least the format of Wikipedia means that genocide should remain in the opening sentence}} Err it is. It's the alternative title and no one has ever suggested removing that. It is even repeated at least once in all the proposed opening sentences. The question is whether we describe the event ONLY by repeating the alternative title. I don't particularly agree with the second part of your sentence {{TQ|so that readers can familiarize themselves with the depths of the term}}, we're mainly writing about what happened at Srebrenica, not on genocide.[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 08:21, 2 August 2024 (UTC)
::::{{tq|We're mainly writing about what happened at Srebrenica, not on genocide.}} A genocide happened at Srebrenica. [[User:122141510|122141510]] ([[User talk:122141510|talk]]) 17:03, 2 August 2024 (UTC)
{{Archive bottom}}
 
===Proposed SNOW close of RfC===
== Related: Repeated spam attacks on the Bratunac article ==
Unless anyone objects in the next 48 hours, I will close the above RfC, the proposing editor says he has left WP and the RfC is a bit futile without that editor being active.
 
I have already restored the long-term opening sentence ''(was the July 1995 [[genocide|genocidal]] killing of …)''. We can either discuss the various recent variants of this 'opening' and/or any other proposals, and if necessary run a new ''(neutral)'' RfC if agreement can't be reached here. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:04, 5 August 2024 (UTC)
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bratunac&diff=72993813&oldid=72992420
:Closed as proposed.[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:35, 7 August 2024 (UTC)
 
[[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]], I am reading the discussion above. It simply draws my attention that you used every argument at your disposal to discourage the use of genocide in the title. Strangely enough, at the same time, you allow the term genocidal killings to be used. So, in other words, my logic tells me: If something is dubbed as "genocidal killings", then it can be called genocide for short.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 21:57, 12 August 2024 (UTC)
Let me quote:
:Владимир Нимчевић, are you talking about the move discussion, or the opening sentence discussion? The alternative title of the article is '''Srebrenica Genocide''', it is in the opening sentence of the lead, which already has more instances of the word 'genocide' than the [[Holocaust]] or any comparable event, so I can hardly be accused of using {{TQ|every argument at your disposal to discourage the use of genocide in the title.}} It's there already, multiple times! ''What is the simplest, clearest way to describe what happened at the Srebrenica massacre/genocide?'' Is the relevant question.
:The 'genocidal killings' text was the long-term stable text, I have few strong feelings about it either way but restored it pending discussion.I do strongly object to simply repeating the alternative tile as the opening text, on stylistic as well as other grounds. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 04:34, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
 
The opening sentence states that massacre is a genocide (that is genocidal killings). I hardly see any difference between a genocide and genocidal killings. In fact, those two words are pretty much the same. The adjective genocidal comes from the word genocide, it means "something related to a genocide". If something is related to a genocide, why don't we call it a genocide in the first place? When speaking about your sources, you may have come across more instances of mentioning Srebrenica massacre than of Srebenica genocide, but still this article admits that this massacre wasn't just any other massacre committed during the war. It was a genocidal massacre. In other words, it is a genocide, after all, but you call it a massacre, even though you define it as a genocide. If something. Remember the saying: "If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck"--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 10:48, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
"During the war in Bosnia, Bratunac was located in defend zone which was administrated by Holland Kfor or Un. The Holland KFOR has the task to protect any residents in this zone but they didn't do it. In 1993 on the Serbian Orthodox Christmas, Muslem Bosnian Army on lead with Naser Oric raided into the willage burned it and massacred Serbian Civil residents in Bratunac.
:By the way, you are not accussed, we are not in court. I am just sharing my point of view. I see an inconsisitency in your argumentation as mentioned above.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 11:29, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::What are you talking about? The opening sentence calls it both a genocide and a genocidal killing: "The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim[s]." What's the problem with that? Also, "genocide" encompasses more than killing. The UN Convention defines 5 genocidal acts only one of which is killing. (See Article II [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Convention_on_the_Prevention_and_Punishment_of_the_Crime_of_Genocide here]) Using the term "genocidal killing" is therefore the correct subset for this particular genocide. [[User:DeCausa|DeCausa]] ([[User talk:DeCausa|talk]]) 13:06, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
Today in Bratunac exists monument of 3 286 Serbs who were killed in operation of Muslem Bosnian Army on Bratunac. The commadant of Muslem Bosnian Army "Naser Oric" has the biggest responsibility for bloody killing of Serbian Humans in Bratunac."
:::[[User:DeCausa|My friend]], so you also agree that this sentence can be interpreted as saying: "Srebrenica massacre... was the July 1995 genocide, (the type of genocide which involves killing)." If something is defined as a genocide (which is the case here), then it should be named so. I see no point in saying that this event is also known as a genocide, if we define it as a genocide in the first place. It is like we are saying: A ball, also known as a sphere, is a spherical object. That is duplicating, and duplicating is neither a good style nor a encyclopedic.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 13:46, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::The main issue is what genocidal killings actually mean in this context. If it the other way of saying that Srebrenica massacre is a genocide (the type of genocide that involves killings), then there is no point in keeping the part of the sentence that says: also known as Srebrenica genocide. In other words, that's repeating.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 14:00, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::All the more reason why this should be named Srebrenica genocide is that the term genocidal killings used in the opening sentence actually leads to the article genocide.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 14:07, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::I've no idea what you are talking about? What specifically do you want changed? [[User:DeCausa|DeCausa]] ([[User talk:DeCausa|talk]]) 14:11, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::Don't you see there is a repetition in the opening sentence? "Srebrenica massacre, also known as Srebrenica '''genocide''', is a '''genocide'''..." Genocidal killings is just another way of saying a genocide that involves mass killings... Even the link in the sentence leads to the article related to genocide. From what I see here, this should be named Srebrenica genocide. The only problem, as far as was able to see, is that sources tend to use the term massacre, rather that genocide. Also, the article is part of the category Bosnian genocide. So Srebrenica massacre is either part of the Bosnian genocide, of which we don't have an article, or a genocide itself. The first sentence says everything.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 14:23, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::I still don't know what you want to change it to? I don't see any problem with the current sentence so what are you proposing it to be changed to? Or are you just talking about the article title. You need to be clear - what are you proposing?[[User:DeCausa|DeCausa]] ([[User talk:DeCausa|talk]]) 14:26, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::I am saying from what is given here, in this article, this should be named Srebrenica genocide. You don't see any repetition? That is strange. This sentence would sound more natural had it been written this way: Srebrenica genocide, also known as Srebrenica massacre, was the act of killing etc.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 14:41, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::No, can't do that. We follow [[WP:COMMONNAME]]. [[User:DeCausa|DeCausa]] ([[User talk:DeCausa|talk]]) 14:43, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::Srebrenica massacre is perhaps a more common name than Srebrenica genocide, but Srebrenica massacre is defined as genocide here. Thus, this article is essentially about genocide, but the genocide is titled as massacre.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 15:11, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::::There has only just recently been a move discussion, to rename, followed by a review of the move discussion, followed by … .
::::::::::::That bird has flown I'm afraid, whatever anyone's notion of what the article title '' should be'', it's 'massacre' for the foreseeable future, because that is ''still'' the name most commonly used to describe the event. Quite a few genocides don't have that word in their title, most obviously the [[Holocaust]]. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 18:22, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::::Neither the bird has flown, nor the ship has sailed away. How did you come to such a conclusion? Did you read a lot of articles and books on the subject, or do you just suppose it this as you say it is? Holocaust is a different story. It was coined before the term genocide was introduced. This article is related to an instance of genocide (genocidal killings, as you say), but, strangely, you refuse to name it the same way. So Srebrenica massacre it is a genocide after all. But you just do not want to allow it to be titled likewise. It is essential to be aware of that fact. Now I can add the article to a category related to genocides.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 19:22, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::::::It is already added to a genocide category. Look at the list of categories at the bottom of the. article. You seem to fail to understand Wikipedia article naming policy or previous discussions including the RfC. [[User:DeCausa|DeCausa]] ([[User talk:DeCausa|talk]]) 19:40, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
:::::::::::::::I have seen several sources cited in this article that use the term genocide in the title, yet still, you keep saying the more common name is the Srebrenica massacre. Where is your evidence that the latter is true? Few months ago the UN declaration was adopted, removing any ambiguity about interpreting this event. It should be viewed as an act of genocide. Naturally, the Serbian side has maintained its separate stance, but that does not mean others should follow the Serbian suit. [[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 20:51, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
::::::::::::::::{{TQ| have seen several sources cited in this article that use the term genocide in the title, yet still, you keep saying the more common name is the Srebrenica massacre. Where is your evidence that the latter is true?}} Errrr No one disputes that some sources refer to the incident as SG ''(that's why it's an alternative title FFS!)''. The UN and ICTY use both terms in different contexts, the UN has recently favoured SG, but we don't follow UN usages.
::::::::::::::::The evidence that SM was much more common than SG in the past and is now slightly more common is in the move discussion, please read it. We don't follow, nor seek to go against fringe positions, such as Serb deniers, just as we don't seek to marginalise flat-earthers or covid conspirators. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:50, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
 
I've also not seen the evidence that the most common name is massacre. The move request is pending review. Also, [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]], I wasn't really convinced by this comment of yours [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Srebrenica_massacre#c-Pincrete-20240614070000-Trimpops2-20240614155100]. Also, I'm very well familiar that the genocide is heavily denied in Serbia and it's just natural that people who deny the genocide would like to "lower" it to "only" massacre. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 22:41, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
Guess you'd keep an eye on this, thanks.
 
I don't have much problems with the lead sentece regarding the info presented. It clearly defines the event as genocide. I'm not really interested whether it can be forumated in a better way, just the info given. I was advocating to rename the article into the Srebrenica genocide because that term is more precise and it can't be misinterpreted as "mearley a massacre, but not genocide". [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 22:45, 13 August 2024 (UTC)
 
:The lead alone currently uses 'genocide' or 'genocidal' nine times, that's eight times more than the Holocaust I believe! While I would not wish to give comfort to 'deniers', countering them isn't our purpose, they wouldn't take us seriously anyway IMO. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:54, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
Identity of poster? [[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 14:22, 1 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::As I said, I don't have probems with article text in regards that it describes the even as genocide. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 08:02, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
Hi opbeith, to see nick or name of the poster, click on "history".
[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:11, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
I remind you that Holocaust was coined before the term genocide was introduced. Holocaust was introduced to emphasize those murders carried out by the Nazis.
== Splitting ==
 
{{quote|Errrr No one disputes that some sources refer to the incident as SG ''(that's why it's an alternative title FFS!)''.}}
The article is too long, it should be split into smaller parts. --[[User:KOCOBO|K<small>'''OCOBO</small>''']] 01:27, 2 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Come on, [[User talk:Pincrete|Pincrete]], you can do better than that. SG wasn't merely an '''incident'''. The killings were committed '''on purpose'''. Systematically. Even the Dutch forces helped Mladic realize his evil plans (unintentionally and indirectly, of course) by handing over those civilians (unarmed men). Those were cold bloody murders. No one can deny that. Even the Serbian side can't deny they actually took place. I remember the time when they denied they even happened on their watch. They wanted the world to think some other forces carried out those attrocities and that no killing was committed on Serbian part. Incident? That is exactly what those deniers expect us to think. They don't want any responsibilities on their shoulders. And you should not make it easy for them. There are a lot of references that mention the event as SG. I haven't started counting them, but I think I should do that.--[[User:Владимир Нимчевић|Владимир Нимчевић]] ([[User talk:Владимир Нимчевић|talk]]) 07:41, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
'''OK Kocobo'''. Maybe the article could be broken up as follows: 49% of the article could be given to nationalist Serbs to use as they wish and 51% could be left for people who want to engage in genuine discussion. Hmmm... why does that sound familiar?
::You are free to edit the article. I don't see why [[User talk:Pincrete|Pincrete]] would have any objections to different forumation for the lead sentece as long as it contains all info as present sentece. It doesn't matter if the presente sentece is longstanding. If you think it can have a better formulation that's more clear and less repetative, I don't see any problems there. What's your purposed sentece? [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 13:26, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
:No one has said "<u>merely</u> an incident". An incident = an event ''(the term you use) ''= something that happened! [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 21:33, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
::But, can you understand that some have implied "merely" a massacre , but not genocide? Or merely war crime, but not genocide, or merely killings, but not genocide? Do you understand that not every massacre is genocide? [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 21:46, 14 August 2024 (UTC)
:::I dont think I have ever heard anyone say {{TQ|"merely" a massacre , but not genocide}}, though I've heard all kinds of 'denial' iro Srebrenica. If they have said this then it's an extremely odd thing to say. It's like saying "merely" a bloodbath , but not murder, "merely" mass slaughter, but not homicide. It isn't even clear what these mean.
:::But people will find all sorts of ways to 'downplay' extreme behaviour if they are determined to do so. Holocaust deniers will typically say that'' "the numbers who died are greatly exaggerated", ''without saying how they know this or what the 'real' numbers are. WP is an encyc making available factual info to those curious enough to want to read it, it isn't an organisation seeking to fight or negate 'denial'. When challenged about this earlier you produced ample sources that said that Serb politicians denied the genocide, but none that appeared to have said {{TQ|"merely" a massacre}}. [[User:Pincrete|Pincrete]] ([[User talk:Pincrete|talk]]) 05:52, 15 August 2024 (UTC)
::::I said that they implied the word "merely". What they say is something like "a terrible massacre, but not genocide". Do you understand that the meaning is the same? Not genocide is the key point there. [[User:Trimpops2|Trimpops2]] ([[User talk:Trimpops2|talk]]) 13:49, 15 August 2024 (UTC)
 
== Comment on the article title ==
:I agree, I can't find anything in the article, its so enormous. --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 02:16, 2 September 2006 (UTC) User:Bormalagurski
 
It's surprising that opponents of the move are being labeled as giving cover for genocide deniers when one good reason to use the massacre title imo is that it leaves ambiguity between the view that the Bosnian genocide did not extend beyond srebrenica (the view of the icj and icty iirc) and the view that it was a broader event (favored by more than a few historians and scholars such as [[Martin Shaw]]). Moving the page to srebrenica genocide indicates the former position, while the current title leaves open the interpretation that it was '' part of '' a genocide, rather like the [[Babi Yar massacre]] (not Babi Yar genocide). ([[User talk:Buidhe|t]] &#183; [[Special:Contributions/Buidhe|c]]) '''[[User:buidhe|<span style="color: black">buidhe</span>]]''' 15:28, 9 August 2024 (UTC)
'''Bormalagurski''', it is called a table of contents. Do you need help learning how to use it? Perhaps we could offer you tutoring along with basic English reading skills.
 
== Encyclopedia Britannica changed title to Srebrenica genocide ==
:Bosniak, sarcasm isn't nice. --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 03:30, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Check it here: https://www.britannica.com/event/Srebrenica-genocide [[Special:Contributions/77.77.216.185|77.77.216.185]] ([[User talk:77.77.216.185|talk]]) 20:00, 20 September 2024 (UTC)
'''Bormalagurski''', for someone who has been banned from wikipedia and repeatedly warned by several administrators for improper behavior, you are hardly in a position to be scolding anyone about what is "nice".[[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 05:58, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== 2020 addition to [[Srebrenica]] ==
- '''A message from Bosniak''' This article will never be conceded to extremist Serb nationals. You massacred over 8,000 Bosniaks during Srebrenica genocide, and you have no right to deface this article in any way, shape or form. This article is not about you - it's about over 8,000 lives of innocence that were taken by the hands of uncivilized barbarians in the heart of the Europe. If you want to engage in genuine discussion - you may do so only after you recognize that your forces committed genocide. Nobody is interested in your propaganda, and all such posts will be edited and changed within 24 hours or less. We will not allow you to deny Srebrenica Genocide, at least not on wikipedia. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:15, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
An issue had been noticed at [[Talk:Srebrenica#"British Army documents declassified in 2019"]]. This was apparently added in an anonymous edit [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?diff=936085829 in 2020]. If there's something useful for this topic there, it should be added here instead. --[[User:Joy|Joy]] ([[User talk:Joy|talk]]) 20:27, 15 January 2025 (UTC)
:Are you accusing all extremist Serb nationals (A ''Serb national'' is any Serb living in Serbia) of killing 8,000 Bosniaks? Are you accusing me? First of all, I think you wanted to use the word "nationalist" and not "national". I think it is you who needs the ''tutoring along with basic English reading skills''. --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 03:30, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:BTW in 2024, another editor had also amended it with [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica&diff=prev&oldid=1224691809 this change] with the edit summary: {{tq|Added a page that has the quoted letter visible - source is very pro-serb, shows other articles at end though}}. --[[User:Joy|Joy]] ([[User talk:Joy|talk]]) 20:30, 15 January 2025 (UTC)
'''Bosniaks' reply to Serb nationalist Boris Malagurski'''
Don't change the topic. That's a cheap trick. My mother tongue is [[bosnian language | bosnian]]. Based on your edits, I can see that you are a Serb nationalist. I am not accusing all Serbs of Genocide, as my best friend is Serb. I am accusing your leadership of genocide, namely Serb forces led by indicted war criminals Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 03:46, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Serb nationalist Boris Malagurski's reply to Bosniak'''
Don't call me a nationalist. That's a cheap trick. I'm sure your best friend is a Serb, because you are so open minded that your username is identical to your ethnic affiliation. Very entertaining. You're accusing my leadership of genocide? So, I lead the troops to genocide? Jesus, I was never accused of such things untill tonight... For shame. --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 03:57, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
What I find most amazing is your ability to be so utterly unaware of your own hypocrisy '''Bormalagurski'''. Read what you wrote to Bosniak several times and try thinking about it. Bormalgurski wrote: "Bosniak, I hardly find you objective. I mean, your username is Bosniak, I don't trust people who's username is their ethnic affiliation. Please, keep your nationalism at home, thank you. --Serb talk 03:35, 3 September 2006 (UTC)" Think about it Bormalagurski. You say you do not trust people who have a user name that shows their ethnic affiliation and then you sign as "Serb"? Are you making a joke or are you really that oblivious? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 05:50, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
Back to the original point. It's true there's a lot in the article and while it's full of important information I don't find as easy to read as it might be. The Table of Contents isn't ideal. But that doesn't mean the article should be split. Simply that care needs to be taken in deciding what's germane, what's opinion/provocation at odds with the established facts, and what's going off at a tangent.
 
For example there's no point discussing the issue of genocide again unless the ICTY's relevant verdicts are overthrown. The minimum figure for deaths has been established as approximately 8000 but which of the numbers above that figure should be mentioned is a subject for legitimate discussion at present. Malagurski presumably called himself Serb as a legitimate but pointlessly provocative riposte to Bosniak.
 
Further knockabout argument over Malagurski's motives and practices is a waste of time and energy. Whatever the motives of a question or suggestion the simplest thing is to deal with it as such while noting that the discussion should not necessarily be taken as having implications for other issues that may be raised subsequently. "Trojan horse" suggestions inevitably lead to the exposure of the contributor's motives, but sadly after the futile expenditure of a lot of precious energy and effort. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 12:46, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Bosniak's reply to Boris - possible cease fire or more war ? ==
 
'''Bosniak's reply to Boris'''
Hi Boris, of course we can deal in civilized matter. Why do you think that the article is not neutral? Can you at least discuss this in Srebrenica Massacre's discussion page? If you want your edits to stay longer, you need to discuss it before you make any changes. People are very sensitive to any changes to that article. Even when I make a change, they are sensitive to it. Why do you think that the article does not tell all sides of the story? Are you trying to tell that Naser Oric attacked Serb villages and Serbs had to defend themselves from Bosniaks who were under siege? You guys used same argument in the past with Sarajevo, basicly the story goes that you had to defend yourself from Bosniak people in Sarajevo who were under siege. You can try these arguments in discussion page, but it's pointless and offensive to use such arguments as a defence. However, you are welcome to try. Simply go to discussion page, tell people reasons of your edits and sources and then we will all compromise. It's simple as that. No need for personal attacks as we can all deal in civilized matter. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 03:53, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
One more thing - I already donated my translation to your page, and I copied your translations to my page. I think there is a chance that both of us get along well, because you recognized t hat over 8,000 people were killed in Srebrenica @ Srebrenica Massacre discussion page. That's all I care about. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 03:55, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Serb side of story and Boris ==
 
If you want Serb side of the story, why not post this statement: "Most Serbs consider the massacre an act of revenge against Naser Oric and his troops who committed individual war crimes during raids into Serb villages."
 
The reason these raids cannot be called massacres is the following: Serbs blame Oric and his forces for hundreds of deaths in Kravice during Orthodox Christmas in January 1993. Republika Srpska primary sources state that in Kravica 35 soldiers and 11 civilians died. If we are going to call slaughter of 11 civilians a massacre, then we could apply that term to mostly all killings in Bosnia. What I can agree with you is that individual actions of Oric's troops in Kravica were a war crime and I absolutely condemn these killings. However, they cannot be used for justification of genocide, and I don't believe you are trying to use them as such. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 04:15, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Compromise, POV removed'''
Hi Boris, POV is no longer needed.
I agree that the following statement needs to be inserted, and I inserted it:
 
"Most Serbs consider the massacre an act of revenge against Naser Oric and his troops who committed individual war crimes during raids into Serb villages" [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 04:48, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Background of conversation between me and Boris can be read here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Bosniak
 
'''UPDATE''' Boris Malagurski has stated that he does not recognize Srebrenica Genocide. At this point, he should not be allowed to even participate in Srebrencia Massacre edits, because he obviously does not recognize the crime committed at Srebrenica. Here you can find his statement: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Bosniak and you can find Boris Malagurski's page here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Bormalagurski . [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 19:30, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Wow, so if I don't agree with every single word that Bosniak writes, I'm out of the discussion? Bosniak, this is not fascism, it's an encyclopedia, live with it. --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 02:57, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Bormalagurski, when you write a brazen outright denial of genocide, you have disqualified yourself from being someone who actually wants to improve the article. Too many administrators are wise to your ways. There is no way you will be able to present yourself as simply being reasonable. Your agenda is one of denial and obfuscation. It is obvious. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 05:04, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:Fairview, please go to your admins to sort this out, because you're obviously not up for a discussion. Yes, you would rather inforce your opinion on all of us. The admins are coming to their senses, and so should you. --[[User:Svetislav Jovanović|Svetislav Jovanović]] 05:33, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:Svetislav, who are you refering to when you say "us"? What opinion exactly are you refering to? That the VRS committed an act of genocide? Try as you may, but reducing that assertion to simply a personal opinion will not succeed. The ICTY already sorted this out. They convicted Krstic of aiding and abetting genocide. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 05:57, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak Reply to Srebrenica Genocide Denier Boris Malagurski from Vancouver BC, Canada''' - You don't have to agree with everything I say, but you must recognize Srebrenica Genocide. Otherwise, stay away from the article, because Srebrenica genocide denial edits will not be tolerated. This is free encyclopedia, and not an outlet for Serbian propaganda and vandalism. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 03:24, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Um.. the holocaust, the killing of 6 million Jews was genocide. What happened in Srebrenica, the killing of 8,000 people was a massacre, not a genocide (read the title of the article). Get a life, Bosniak. --[[User:Srbijanković|Srbijanković]] 05:50, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Srbijanković''', read the ICTY judgement. Try as you may to deny it or bully people with "get a life" comments, the fact is that Serb ultra-nationalists tried to create greater Serbia through ethnic cleansing, in other words, genocide. Srebrenica was an act of genocide. That has been proven in an international court of law. So what is it you need to get? A clue? What? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 06:12, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== POV - tag ==
 
I see that the Bosniak editors of this article still insist on a very POV language and interpretation of certain events while refusing any analysis which they disagree with for political reasons. Please see earlier discussions for details.
Instead of entering into a long argument I will place a POV-tag on the article.
Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 20:30, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak Reply to Osli73''' Hi Osli73, I am the only Bosniak editor here. Fairview and others are not Bosniak and they are not Muslim. Once again, your assumptions are wrong. You are pulling old tricks with POV tag. Your tricks are getting old man. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 21:34, 3 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak''', I have added back the POV tag since I believe that this article does not conform to NPOV. I have stated before what my issues are with it. Well, User:Live Forever certainly says that he is Bosniak.[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 09:43, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Again''', I have added back the POV-tag. Please read below what [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NPOV_dispute#What_is_an_NPOV_dispute.3F Wikipedia] says about POV-disputes:
 
:''"It is important to remember that the NPOV dispute tag does not mean that an article actually violates NPOV. It simply means that there is an ongoing dispute about whether the article complies with a neutral point of view or not. In any NPOV dispute, there will be some people who think the article complies with NPOV, and some people who disagree. In general, you should not remove the NPOV dispute tag merely because you personally feel the article complies with NPOV. Rather, the tag should be removed only when there is a consensus among the editors that the NPOV disputes have indeed been resolved.''
 
:''Sometimes people have edit wars over the NPOV dispute tag, or have an extended debate about whether there is a NPOV dispute or not. In general, if you find yourself having an ongoing dispute about whether a dispute exists, there's a good chance one does, and you should therefore leave the NPOV tag up until there is a consensus that it should be removed."''
 
So, clearly it is not up to a single editor to decide whether or not a POV tag belongs there or not. [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:38, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
There clearly is a POV issue with this article (pls see entry above). Adding the POV tag is a way of stating this and giving the main editors of the article a heads up about this without engaging in an edit war.[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:50, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
:Finally, the POV tag is '''not''' about whether or not the article is NPOV or not, it's about there being a '''dispute''' about it - ie that some editors feel that it is not conforming to NPOV. Pls leave this tag or be prepared to address the underlying POV issues.[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:09, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
If there is a POV dispute about an article, clearly either one accepts the POV tag or accepts that a compromise is reached regarding the text in the article. [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:20, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Genocide query or denial ==
 
One of the problems of Wikipaedia seems to be that matters get announced and discussed all over the place. I've found out from Bosniak's User Talk page that his ISP has been suspended for a week as a result of a heated exchange with another contributor who affirmed his disbelief in the fact of genocide. I'm uncertain whether the suspension is related simply to the User Talk exchange or concerns matters relating to the article itself, but suspension has implications for editing of the article itself. I've posted the following at Bosniak's User Page but I think the subject of the admissibility of certain types of edit and the need to accept a framework of objectively established fact is relevant here.
 
 
"Bosniak is very sensitive to the issue of genocide denial, understandably, and doesn't always express himself in tempered tones. But Blnguyen it seems to me that you've simply responded to the tone of his language rather than the substantive justification for his action.
 
 
The ICTY, a member of the United Nations family of organisations and the legal authority in the field, has ruled in the Krstic case that the Srebrenica massacre could be termed genocide in accordance with the provisions of the Genocide Convention. No other international forum has overthrown that ruling. The ICTY is currently hearing cases in which charges of genocide are involved. I think it is fair to assume that the defence will present all current arguments challenging the categorisation of the Srebrenica massacre as genocide to the Court. The Court will then rule as to whether its previous opinion should be overthrown. There is no room for any personal expression of doubt in this article. I might dispute the legitimacy of Slobodan Milosevic's assumption of the presidency of Yugoslavia or equally George W. Bush's election as President of the United States but I cannot change the content of an entry to indicate that they were not President of their respective nations.
 
 
Bosniak was right to insist that denials of genocide will be edited out of this article. There is no scope to allow any further denial of genocide unless and until the ICTY's ruling is overthrown. Even though I don't always agree with the way Bosniak expresses his views, in this case he is absolutely correct. Personally I find it a moral outrage that genocide at Srebrenica is denied but for the purposes of this article we're trying to pretend that moral outrage doesn't exist and keep to the facts. Genocide at Srebrenica is a fact established in international law. I ask the moderators of this article to accept that." --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 11:36, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
I think it really is very clear cut - the ICTY claims that the massacre was an Act of Genocide. Others disagree. This is what the article should present to the reader. Remember, Wiki articles should not present original research, only other source's interpretation of original research. The Act of Genocide or not is clearly such an issue.[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:43, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
: Is Osli making sense? What exactly is being described as "original research" that does not belong in the article? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 03:44, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Osli73, I will repeat once: The ICTY, a member of the United Nations family of organisations and the legal authority in the field, has ruled in the Krstic case that the Srebrenica massacre could be termed genocide in accordance with the provisions of the Genocide Convention. No other international forum has overthrown that ruling. The ICTY is currently hearing cases in which charges of genocide are involved. I think it is fair to assume that the defence will present all current arguments challenging the categorisation of the Srebrenica massacre as genocide to the Court. The Court will then rule as to whether its previous opinion should be overthrown. There is no room for any personal expression of doubt in this article.
 
The ICTY does not claim that the massacre was an Act of Genocide, it found after hearing the evidence and due deliberation that genocide was committed. Original research? Hmm, a novel way of describing the findings of the highest legal instance in the field. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 22:03, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
Again, anonymous user, it's not very difficult. The ICTY has ruled that it was an Act of Genocide. Others don't agree. That's all the article needs to say. Act of Genocide or not is clearly a judgement issue, not an issue of fact (which is why there was a court case about it).[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:05, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
Osli, not an anonymous, just my same self, I hadn't realised that I'd been logged off so I've now changed the anonymous ISP to my name as a minor edit. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 23:12, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Just so you know ==
 
<math>Insert formula here</math>
I have been asked by one of the users to help out on this article. I will not bring in extremist views from myself, but I will fight for the right and correct statements.
 
One thing you all should know is that [[User:Bormalagurski]] is a person with totally extremist ideas. I am saying this because he is blocked on the Serbian Wikipedia due to those same ideas and views. I have been analyzing his moves. He not only has problems with how he expresses himself, but also has tried to manipulate other users. He stepped up to the plate when he tried to be my friend through telling me how he wanted BiH to be united (Check my discussion archives). An other case is: (User:Rémih) on the French wikipedia. He convinced Remith to vote for him even though Rémih did neither know Cyrillic nor Serbian. Once he was block indefinitely, he tried to change Wikipedia policies through making a public vote for his return on the Serbian Wikipedia. This was seen by the other Serbian users and it has definitely blocked him for good. Check this:[http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discussion_Utilisateur:R%C3%A9mih#From_Boris_:.29 His plea] [http://sr.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%D0%92%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%BF%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%B8%D1%98%D0%B0:%D0%A2%D1%80%D0%B3/%D0%A0%D0%B0%D0%B7%D0%BD%D0%BE&variant=sr-jl#.D0.91.D0.BE.D1.80.D0.BC.D0.B0.D0.BB.D0.B0.D0.B3.D1.83.D1.80.D1.81.D0.BA.D0.B8_.28.D0.93.D0.BB.D0.B0.D1.81.D0.B0.D1.9A.D0.B5.29 The "Voting"]
 
I just wanted to tell you guys with whom you are dealing with. Srebrenica happened and their is no denying it. There is tons of videofootage from channels such as CNN. My aunt is married to a Serbian man. They both agree that the nation of Serbia still to this day denies any acts such as Srebrenica and even denies BiH TV stations in its nation.
 
Croatia on the contrary, allowed Srebrenica posters for the ten year anniversary to be displayed all over Zagreb.
 
Wikipedia should not be a website for one to express his own ideas without any facts to back up with. I will try to bring in a neutral point of view.
 
Thanks, [[User:Kseferovic|Kseferovic]] 17:30, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:You have been ''analyzing my moves''? This is a clear case of [[Wikipedia:Harassment|Wikistalking]]. My actions on sr wiki don't concern the fine administrators here on en wiki, but your actions on en wiki do. I will report you for harassment. Furthermore, I do NOT deny that the Srebrenica massacre happened, I condemn it, but fail to recognize it as an act of genocide, and I think your Serbian aunt's husband would agree with me. Also, Kseferovic, I never did or said anything bad to you, I really wanted to be your friend, but to you, ethnic affiliation is more important. I think I know who the nationalist is here. Have a nice day, --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 01:01, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::It doesn't look like stalking to me - everybody who edits has their contribs put on a list and will be held to account for their edits. Heaps of people are keeping an eye on me and I know that and there is nothing wrong, unless they follow me around excessively scrutinising my edits across all fields. Unless you can show he is targeting your edits, then there is no violation.'''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 01:25, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::: '''Bormalagurski''', all Kseferovic has done is hold you accountable for your behavior. All wikipedians are held accountable by a system that keeps track of all we have done or said. What is wrong with being held accountable?[[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 03:38, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== revisionist blitzkrieg ==
 
Are we to believe that users KOCOBO, Osli73, Srbijanković, Svetislav Jovanović, Bormalagurski, and Manojlo all show up at this article at the same time and it is a coincidence? They each take turns deleting part of the article forcing multiple reverts by an outnumbered editor or editors and then when that one editor is blocked, they move in to gut the article. This is gang warfare. This is the wiki equivalent of kristalnacht. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kristalnacht What mechanisms does wiki have to protect an article from an organized assault? There are parts of this article that are clearly accurate, that have been very carefully written and discussed, and these editors are just gutting them without discussion. Yes, parts of this articles need help but this is not the way. What has happened in the past is that if they are given an inch they'll tear the article apart or take up immense time discussing anything they can think of all for the purpose of stopping people from creating a well written article. One reason it needs help is that it gets jumbled by edit wars. [[User:128.253.56.172|128.253.56.172]] 22:51, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Anonymous user''',
Clearly many editors feel that this article is not POV. So, this warrants a POV tag. Either that or reaching some sort of compromise about a version acceptable to all. I don't see where you are getting all this about Kristallnacht and ganging up from? It seems a bit paranoid.[[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 23:19, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
:Yes, everyone please try to understand a cornerstone of Wikipedia, [[WP:NPOV]]. <span style="color:#006CB7">[[User: Lowg|<span style="color:#006CB7">// Lowg</span>]] <small><sup>[[User talk:Lowg|<span style="color:#006CB7">.talk.</span>]]</sup></small></span> 04:04, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Osli73''', '''Lowg''', If you want to understand the significance in the Bosnian context of the reference to the Kristallnacht - a campaign of intimidation linked to an ideology of ethnic cleansing - can I point you to Roy Gutman's "''A Witness to Genocide''". Gutman, you'll perhaps remember, is the reporter whose articles in ''Newsday'' alerted the world to the horrific reality of what was going on in Bosnia when the stories of ethnic cleansing first began to emerge.
 
"The assault against Bosnia's Islamic heritage has been a largely unreported facet of the "ethnic cleansing" campaign, for it occurred in areas now occupied by the Serb conquerors. But accounts by refugees and data collected by the Bosnian government, Bosnian scholars and Muslim leaders point to an irreplaceable loss. ...
 
Kristallnacht for the Bosnian Muslims came not in one or two nights, as it did for Germany's Jews in Novermber 1938, but was spread over many months, according to information now available. In Zvornik, where it all started on April 8, Serb forces destroyed or damaged 19 mosques in and around the city and at least 50 in other towns nearby."
 
Gutman of course has lots more examples of physical and moral intimidation in a similar and worse vein. The deliberate destruction of Bosnia's cultural heritage in the Serb offensive of April 1992 and subsequently sent a clear message about the end of civilised discourse and coexistence that was aimed at intimidating the target population into leaving the area under attack.
 
It's not hard to see a similar spirit at work in the destructive efforts of a number of the contributors to this article before it was protected. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 06:24, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''Opbeith''', are you referring to me?
 
== Protected ==
Seeing as this page has suffered 20-25 sets of reverts within 2 hours, it has been protected. Some guys may end up in the cooler for reverting too much. As to why I blocked Bosniak, it was due to [[WP:LEGAL]] threats and nothing to do with any article edits by him, Bormalagurski or any other Bosnian, Serbian, Croatian, Albanian editors. Queries about his block are welcome at my talk page. Thanks, '''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 23:34, 4 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== BOSNIAKS CANNOT COMPROMISE WITH FACTS ==
 
We cannot compromise with ICTY facts and judgements. If Serbs think that recognition of Srebrenica genocide is pro-Bosniak, that's their problem. The article should be reverted to the last edit by Fairview and then we can continue building and improving the article from there. We cannot compromise with people who deny Srebrenica genocide. Srebrenica massacre article is heavily relied on ICTY facts and judgements, and there is no compromise regarding facts. If Serbs don't like the facts, that's their problem, not ours. The bottom line: The International Crimes Tribunal has ruled that the massacre in Srebrenica was an act of genocide (in the case of Krstic and in the case of Blagojevic). There is no compromise with facts. Those who vandalize this article should be either blocked from editing it or banned, because they are vandals, they publicly deny Srebrenica genocide, and they destroy ICTY facts. We are not willing to compromise with facts. The article is already heavily relied to ICTY facts if Serbs think that the international justice is against them, that's their problem, not ours.
 
'''Bosniak''' , Number 1, nationalist Serbs do not represent all Serbs therefore I would ask that you use more specific language and stop blaming all Serbs for the nationalists in their midst. All Serbs are not of one mentality. Thousands of Serbs this week protested the proposal to name a street after Milosevic. Tens of thousands of Serbs protested Milosevic in 1991. Serbs Stambolic and Dzindic were murdered by Serb ultra-nationalists. Many Serbs were killed by Serbian ultra-nationalists. When you accuse all Serbs of being nationalist, you are helping the nationalists' claim that they represent all Serbs. They don't. Number 2, ultra-nationalist Serbs committed genocide. That is a crime against humanity, not just Bosniaks. Therefore, it is an issue for all humanity, not just Bosniaks. There are people of all ethnicities and nationalities including Serbs who oppose the denial of the Srebrenica Massacre. (Women in Black from Belgrade) So Bosniaks are not alone in the commitment to maintain the truth of what happened in Srebrenica. Do not worry, we are not going to allow this article to become one of denial and obfuscation. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 04:49, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak''' (if that's you), I hope it's not a matter simply of Bosniaks not agreeing to compromise on the facts, there must surely be some Wikipedia principle of non-interference with facts established in international law. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 17:01, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:If we talk about genocide, that region is subject of several genocides against Serbs. It is well documented in book of independent researcher Milivoje Ivanisevic . Here is summary of book: http://www.suc.org/culture/library/Hronika_Naseg_Groblja/misc/summary.html
Whole book is in serbian http://www.suc.org/culture/library/Hronika_Naseg_Groblja/index.html
If we talk about genocide we have to talk about several genocides against Sebs in same region.--[[User:Medule|Medule]] 17:38, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Medule''' , could you please explain the connection as you see it between the Srebrenica Massacre and genocide against the Serbs? Is there a cause and effect relationship? Do you believe the Srebrenica Massacre was revenge for previous genocides against Serbs in prior decades or centuries? How would you propose explaining the connection between the Srebrenica Massacre and genocide against the Serbs? Are you proposing that the article become a generalized article about genocide? Please explain. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 23:09, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:Um, hey. There was a link, Mladic was recorded in Srebrenica giving speach about "time to take revenge on Turks, here on the Serb holy day" (this kind of stuff). --[[User:HanzoHattori|HanzoHattori]] 23:16, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Medule''', War crimes are war crimes, whoever they may be perpetrated by, and the untimely deaths of Serbs during the war period must be mourned in the same way as those of members of any other community. I think, though, that you've missed the fact that the deaths of Serbs in the area has indeed been discussed here. And also when you raise the issue of the deaths of Serbs in the area over a period of a couple of years it would not go amiss for you to give such deaths perspective by noting that the subject of this article is a massacre in which over 8000 people were killed within the space of roughly one week, and the worst massacre perpetrated in Europe since the end of World War II.
 
It may well be appropriate for you to write an article about the deaths of local Serbs, alleging genocide if you so choose but noting also that genocide according to the provisions of the Genocide Convention has not been alleged or proven before a court of law. I think if you want to avoid controversy you need to investigate the reliability of your reference - for example it's difficult to credit the claim of a conspiracy by local Muslims to carry out a large-scale ethnic cleansing of Serbs when so many more Muslims were killed in the period around April 1992 than Serbs, and there are other issues you'd need to deal with if you want to establish the book as a trustworthy source.
 
In any case that would all be matter for another article, this one is about what happened in and around Srebrenica in July 1995.
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 21:00, 5 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''This article belongs to Srebrenica genocide of 1995, genocide of over 8,000 Bosniaks. If you want to write about alleged genocides of Serbs (which were never legally proven in court), you can go ahead and write somewhere else, but not here. It's off topic. The article needs to be reverted to the version before vandalism, which is this one http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73689151 and then we will start building it from there. Everything else is off-topic.'''
 
== post protected discussions ==
 
So how about if we start with the introduction. I am copying the topic #47 discussion below which tracks the edits to the introduction shown in this versions http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73689151
 
This introduction explains what happened and then puts into into context relying on the ICTY determination which was reached after considering all sides and all relevant facts.
 
If there is anyone who objects to this version, please explain.
 
Here is the discussion to date. Please add your comments below.
 
Hanzo,
 
"up to 8,373" is not accurate. The data indicates that it was more. That is only confirmed to date. It was not called the Serb Army of RS. The intro makes it entirely clear that it was Bosnian Serbs with help from Serbia that did the killing. No need for emphasis that confuses terms. Please consider this version which includes "at least 8,000" and then the 8,373 number later and answers the questions of who was killed, how many were killed, who did the killing, and gives the context. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 16:48, 18 August 2006 (UTC)
 
The Srebrenica massacre (also referred to as: Srebrenica Genocide) was the July 1995 killing of at least eight thousand[1] Bosniak males, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of general Ratko Mladić. In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, special state security forces of Serbia known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre.[2] The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were killed. [3] While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons includes 8,373 names.[4][5]
 
The Srebrenica massacre is the largest mass murder in Europe since WWII and it is the first legally established case of genocide in Europe[6] (see the section Legal Proceedings). In the unanimous landmark ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide stating in its judgement:
 
"By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims, the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity." [7]
 
:Thanks, this is a good way to resolve the matter. Somebody proposes a version and then we can discuss it. I have some criticisms:
:*Why ''at least'' eight thousand? You said above that the media reported "eight thousand", without the at least. My quick investigations come to the same conclusion. Associated Press: "As many as 8,000", as reported in ABC News [http://www.abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=2325528] and other outlets, BBC: "More than 7,000" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5167914.stm] and "about 8,000" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5260192.stm], AFP: "Some 8,000" [http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060817/wl_afp/warcrimesbosnia], EFE Brazil: "cerca de oito mil" (about eight thousand) [http://noticias.terra.com.br/mundo/interna/0,,OI1099386-EI294,00.html], Volkskrant Netherlands: "7000 tot 8000" (7000 to 8000) [http://www.volkskrant.nl/buitenland/article338544.ece/Opnieuw_grote_vondst_in_massagraf_Srebrenica], ORF Austria "8,000" [http://news.orf.at/?href=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.orf.at%2Fticker%2F226737.html].
:*The ICTY ruling was not unanimous; one judge gave a partially dissenting opinion.
:*The first sentence is a bit too long.
:*The [[WP:LEAD|lead section]] should summarize the rest of the article, but the fact on the Scorpions is never mentioned. I also think that the last sentence is unnecessary detail, but it seems many feel quite strongly about it.
:*I think there should be a bit more context. In particular, I think it's important to mention that the people of Srebrenica were supposed to be under UN protection.
:So, I propose the following text for the first paragraph:
::"The Srebrenica massacre (also referred to as: Srebrenica Genocide) was the July 1995 killing of approximately eight thousand[1] Bosniaks in the region of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Army of Republika Srpska during the Bosnian War. In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, special state security forces of Serbia known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre.[2] The victims were mostly men of military age, but also included some preteen children and women.[3] The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a safe haven, but this did not prevent the massacre. While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons includes 8,373 names.[4][5]"
:I'm quite happy with the second paragraph, except that the word "unanimous" should be removed. Please comment. -- [[User:Jitse Niesen|Jitse Niesen]] ([[User talk:Jitse Niesen|talk]]) 04:33, 20 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Jitse''' , hopefully we can continue this discussion and come to a "new and improved" intro.
 
1) I agree very much with including the sentence about the UN's failure to defend the safe area. I am surprised we had not already included that.
 
2) Given that the intro refers specifically to the killing of Bosniaks (execution), I believe "estimated 8,000" would be acceptable. The "at least" comes from there being 8,370 victim's names on the Srebrenica memorial with those names substantiated with JMBR number (social security number), name of father, dates of births, and other identifying information. I asked a Harvard researcher what he would recommend and he said "at least 8,000 killed". But I would not want to get into hair splitting with someone who wants to say a victim wasn't actually killed if they died of exhaustion while penned in at Potocari or were a woman who committed suicide to avoid being raped or after being raped. I find that kind of hair splitting to be offensive. Hence, I would support "an estimated 8,000" or something to that effect since there is nothing controversial about that statement and follow-up info indicates that number killed is probably higher than 8,000.
 
3) ICTY questions. One judge from the Trial Court or the Appeals Court dissented? Did he/she support the decision but write a seperate opinion? Or actually voted against the judgement? Most importantly, where can one find the info on how each judge actually voted. I can't find it on this site - http://www.un.org/icty/ . Please help.
 
4) I agree that the role of the skorpions ought to be described in the article since it is in the intro.
 
5) I do not see why the memorial info is in the intro. It seems rather non-sequitor. Perhaps, we could get an explanation from whomever believes it should be in the intro. (?)
 
Jitse, here is an alternative first paragraph that puts back some info but also keeps the shorter first sentence that you are recommending. Perhaps there should be a few more words about the presence of 400 Dutch peacekeepers in Srebrenica at the time of the takeover and executions, something to the effect: "despite the presence of 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers". Let me know what you think:
 
"The Srebrenica massacre (also referred to as: Srebrenica Genocide) was the July 1995 killing of approximately eight thousand[1] Bosniaks in the region of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of general Ratko Mladić. In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, special state security forces of Serbia known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre.[2] The victims were mostly men of military age, but also included some preteen children, women, and elderly men.[3] The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a safe haven, but did not prevent the massacre. While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica currently being compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons includes 8,373 names.[4][5]"
 
Bosniak, Live Forever, Emir, Hanzo, others, what is your opinion on this? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 18:43, 20 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Update 1''' : with a 20:53, 20 August 2006 edit, Hanzo removed the sentence from the intro that refers to the memorial. I believe this is a good edit. Will be interesting to see if it remains out. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 21:53, 20 August 2006 (UTC)
 
:That's all fine with me. I agree with removing the memorial from the lead, and also with mentioning the Dutch soldiers. For instance, we can change the fourth sentence to "The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a safe haven and 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers were present at the time, but they did not prevent the massacre." I didn't check the number 400 though.
:Ad 3) In the Appeals Chamber, Judge Shahabuddeen wrote a partially dissenting opinion. He agrees with most parts of the judgement (including the fact that it was genocide and the sentence). You can read it in Part VIII (''Partial dissenting opinion of Judge Shahabuddeen'') in the Appeals Chamber Judgement, [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/Appeal/judgement/index.htm Case IT-98-33-A].
:I don't know why the article currently starts with "The Srebrenica massacre (also referred to as: [[Genocide on Bosniaks]])" instead of "The Srebrenica massacre (also referred to as: Srebrenica Genocide)". Anybody care to explain? -- [[User:Jitse Niesen|Jitse Niesen]] ([[User talk:Jitse Niesen|talk]]) 12:40, 21 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Update 2''' : with a 14:59, 21 August 2006 edit, Hanzo changed "Genocide on Bosniaks" to "Srebrenica Genocide". I wish Hanzo would participate in this discussion before making edits, but so far I have agreed with the two he has made. 14:59, 21 August 2006
 
:'''Jitse''' , no one has explained why they want "genocide on bosniaks" but from what I have seen, there are some editors who want the reader to know as quickly as possible and without any doubt that Bosniaks were the ones who were killed, and that it was Serbs who did the killing. The same editors then want to remind the reader of that with each and every opportunity. (I prefer more precise language, who exactly, what part of Serbian society, what military units, etc.) In the intro, the quote from the ICTY makes it clear that the Bosnian Serbs were executing Bosniaks, so I do not believe it is necessary to have "genocide on bosniaks" in the first sentence. Also, ironically, while the intention is to make things clear, the expression "genocide on bosniaks" sounds strange and confusing to a native speaker of English. In Bosnian/Serbian/Croatian the preposition "on" is appropriate but in English it is a little strange though technically OK. Plus, the word Bosniak needs some explaining to the average reader. User:Bosniak added Bosniak in brackets in the ICTY quote which efficiently explains the matter.
 
:We do need to check the number of Dutch troops. I was estimating when I suggested the wording.
 
: I'll work on the wording of the ICTY ruling. The judges were unanimous in there determination that genocide occurred, but apparently the entire decision was not entirely unanimous. I assume we just need to reword the sentence. I think it is important for the reader to see that each judge determined that genocide occurred.
 
:O.K. I feel like we are making progress. Hope it keeps up. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 15:29, 21 August 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''number killed''' : today in the Australia's Herald Sun, the article stated "more than 8,000". "More than 8000 men and boys were summarily executed at several locations around Srebrenica. The lightly armed Dutch peacekeepers protecting the enclave failed to prevent the onslaught, citing limited rules of engagement." In three other papers reporting on the current ICTY Srebrenica case, two said "about 8000", the other just said "8,000". http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,20206173-5005961,00.html [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 18:51, 21 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak''' , I would like to put in the intro the sentence about the UN and Dutch peacekeepers. Can you direct me to the best primary source material that shows the declaration of the safe area and the number of Dutch troops at the time the VRS entered Srebrenica? Thanks. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 16:21, 22 August 2006 (UTC)
 
Hi '''Fairview360''', the source is already listed in Srebrenica massacre article's references. I would give you direct source, but www.un.org/icty website is down at the moment. Just follow this link (when it's up again) to PDF file http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/krs-tj010802e.pdf#search=%22prosecutor%20vs%20krstic%20judgement%22 and you should find that info there. Let me know results of your search. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:11, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Bosniak''' , thank you. I found the exact paragraphs to substantiate the sentence.[[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 17:06, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Update 3''' I added the sentence about the UN declaring Srebrenica a safe area and the 400 Dutch troops not preventing the massacre. The sentence is referenced to the exact paragraphs in the Finding of Facts section of the ICTY Prosecutor vs. Krstic Trial Chamber Judgment [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 17:11, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Update 4''' I took out the parathetical (See Legal Proceedings) from the intro since I believe it was awkward. I assume that it was a relic left over from the revert war and that it is OK with all that it has now been removed. If anyone objects, please join this discussion. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 17:32, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
 
Hi Fairview, good job! I knew that source had alrady been listed in the references of the article. [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:09, 25 August 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Update 5''' With a 23:47, 25 August 2006 edit, Dado made the statement refering to the number killed more accurate by changing "may never be known" to "will never be known" and added the word "also" to the following sentence: "The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed."
 
:'''Darkoe''' has proposed the following sentence for the introduction: "In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, including soldiers from [[Republic of Serbian Krajina|Serbian Krajina]] paramilitary group "Scorpions" participated in the massacre." Source material that I have seen states that the Scorpions were part of Serbia's MUP. Also the above sentence is lacking a subject. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 13:57, 27 August 2006 (UTC)
 
:'''Darkoe''', in your proposed version of the introduction, the reference to your proposed sentence directly contradicts what you've written. The reference material clearly states that the Scorpions were part of Serbia's security forces. Please read this reference:
http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=260394&apc_state=henitri200603 [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 14:08, 27 August 2006 (UTC)
 
While I see that there is a long discussion here taking place and while I am unable to indulge myself too much in this issue at this time may I just bring up couple of minor items in the introduction. In the sentance "While the exact number killed will never be known," I have already once replaced "will" with "may" once, since "will" seams to be to definitive and maybe an overstatement. Someone reverted this so I am posting it here for discussion. Also the image of a hung girl is particulary disturbing and I would prefer to move it to the lower part of the article as it in the introduction it seams as a too strong appeal to emotions. While the rape was common during the Srebrenica massacre it is not the predominant subject of it as the image in the introduction may imply.--[[User:Dado|Dado]] 17:27, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
 
:'''Dado''' , I believe all agree that "will" is better than "may". If it has been reverted out, it has I believe been by mistake. I'll keep an eye on it. Right now it has "will".
 
:In regards to the photo, I suggest looking at the top of the My Lai massacre wiki article. It also has a stark image of what happened. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Lai_Massacre I believe it is appropriate to communicate the horror of what happened in images and in the beginning. However, along the lines of what you are saying, for the introduction, I believe a picture of men and boys recently executed would better communicate the nature of the massacre with the picture of the girl who committed suicide being moved to the "12–13 July: crimes committed in Potočari" section. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 18:22, 29 August 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Fairview360''', just briefly, I think Dado was suggesting "may" rather than "will" and on balance I think I agree. As far as the number count is concerned I think "over 8,000" is fully justified, plenty of confirmation. It's essential no more time and energy is wasted on any suggestions trying to sneak in a suggestion that the figure may be below 8,000. Much lower figures are suggested by deniers still refusing to acknowledge genocide and minimise the atrocity. They're easy enough to dismiss. Figures slightly lowering the numbers below the currently accepted number are part of the campaign of disruption and energy-wasting. Accepting the phrase "over 8,000" gives a round figure that allows scope for certain revision upwards while making sure that there's no risk of the impression being given that "8,000" is an approximation arrived at as a compromise figure which might be revised downward. I'll come back with further thoughts when I can. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 11:23, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Bosniak ==
If you think that the IP address is Bosniak evadin his block, then please use [[WP:RFCU]] to ask for his IP to be checked. '''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 04:56, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== The entry ==
 
Somebody please explain to me why
 
The Srebrenica [[massacre]] is the largest [[mass murder]] in [[Europe]] since [[World War II]] and it is the first legally established case of [[genocide]] in Europe. <ref>Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Tribunal Update: Briefly Noted (TU No 398, 18-Mar-05) [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=235656&apc_state=henitri2005]</ref> In the unanimous landmark ruling, the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia|International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)]] ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide stating in its judgement:
:"''By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity''." <ref>ICTY; "Prosecutor vs. Krstic: Appeals chamber judgement"; United Nations [http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2004/p860-e.htm]</ref>
 
was put out from the article (and entirely). Guess it was done by, well, genocide deniers.
 
:'''Hanzo''', it is a shame that that part was lost during the edit war since it provides well documented thoroughly researched context for what happened. The first part of the intro shows what happened. The second part gives context. Hopefully, the second part can be restored. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 15:16, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Also, first part of the entry
 
The '''Srebrenica massacre''' was the July [[1995]] killing of at least 8,000 <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref> [[Bosniak]] males, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of [[Srebrenica]] in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] by the [[Army of Republika Srpska]] under the command of general [[Ratko Mladić]]. In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, special state security forces of [[Serbia]] known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre. <ref>Tribunal Update #444, "Stanisic and Simatovic Pleas". Institute for War and Peace Reporting. 17 March 2006. [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=260394&apc_state=henitri200603] </ref> The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers were present at the time, but they did not prevent the massacre. <ref> ICTY Trial Chamber Judgement "Prosecutor vs Krstic", Findings of Fact, paragraphs 18 and 26 [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/krs-tj010802e.pdf#search=%22prosecutor%20vs%20krstic%20judgement%22] </ref> The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed.<ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names.<ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref>
 
should be changed into
 
The '''Srebrenica massacre''', was the July [[1995]] killing of at least 8,000 <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref> [[Bosniak]] males, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of [[Srebrenica]] in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]] by the [[Army of Republika Srpska|Army of Republika Srpska]] (VRS) under the command of general [[Ratko Mladić]]. In addition to the forces of [[Republika Srpska]] (RS), special [[state security]] forces of [[Serbia]] known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre. <ref>Tribunal Update #444, "Stanisic and Simatovic Pleas". Institute for War and Peace Reporting. 17 March 2006. [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=260394&apc_state=henitri200603] </ref> The [[United Nations]] had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch [[peacekeepers]] were present at the time, but they did not prevent the killings. <ref> ICTY Trial Chamber Judgement "Prosecutor vs Krstic", Findings of Fact, paragraphs 18 and 26[http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/krs-tj010802e.pdf#search=%22prosecutor%20vs%20krstic%20judgement%22] </ref> The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed. <ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names. <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref>
 
because the unexplained "VRS"s later create confusion. Also later, the "RS" (with citation marks) should be changed into RS, and [[crimes against humanity]] interlinked. --[[User:HanzoHattori|HanzoHattori]] 12:10, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''Hanzo''', excellent suggestion. The article definitely needs help establishing consistency in the terminology and explaining abbreviations. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 15:16, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
All initials and abbreviations should be rendered in full at the first time of use, followed by the initials or abbreviation in brackets. Also there are a number of unnecessary links. Only links that significantly help understanding should be established. For example at the particular point where the Sabic brothers use a walkie-talkie to establish communication both Motorola and walkie-talkie are linked. The link to the walkie-talkie at this point is helpful, the link to Motorola is not. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 12:48, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Legal proceedings ==
 
I want to change "Legal Proceedings" to "Legal proceedings" to comply with the MoS, but the article is blocked :-( Could someone fix it when the block expires? Lots of thanks in advance, [[User:Gerbrant|Shinobu]] 12:20, 6 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Doublestandarts getting brutal ==
 
As far as I ve read Osli is patronizing positively towards Serbian fascist. This is a very ironic attitude as I can see on userpage of Osli he is interested in politics. He most probably have some knowledge on eu politics and I know that Europeans are very sensitive on genocides having very deep comprehension on the genocide claims of Armenians or Pontus. However some people especially those who are rather interested in politics tend to get blind when there is a debate about the war crimes in the European continent or more precisely in Balkans. The politics today is not different from the politics 100 years ago, same brutality same doublestandarts...and this will not change, I hope it will be broken, so the eagerness for human rights in developed countries is a big lie. ([[User:Cantikadam|cantikadam]] 14:27, 6 September 2006 (UTC))
 
== continuing discussions regarding the intro ==
 
This was the intro before the edit war, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73384141 , which can serve as the starting point for this post-protected discussion. To see how the intro got to this form, see topic #47
 
Please comment on these changes proposed by Hanzo. I have put in bold the parts that are different from the previous version. This new version would introduce terms and abbreviations that the reader needs to understand later in the article. I believe they are good suggestions.
 
The Srebrenica massacre, was the July [[1995]] killing of at least 8,000 <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref> [[Bosniak]] males, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of [[Srebrenica]] in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]] by the [[Army of Republika Srpska|Army of Republika Srpska]] '''(VRS)''' under the command of general [[Ratko Mladić]]. In addition to the '''forces of [[Republika Srpska]] (RS),''' special [[state security]] forces of [[Serbia]] known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre. <ref>Tribunal Update #444, "Stanisic and Simatovic Pleas". Institute for War and Peace Reporting. 17 March 2006. [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=260394&apc_state=henitri200603] </ref> The [[United Nations]] had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch [[peacekeepers]] were present at the time, but they did not prevent the killings. <ref> ICTY Trial Chamber Judgement "Prosecutor vs Krstic", Findings of Fact, paragraphs 18 and 26[http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/krs-tj010802e.pdf#search=%22prosecutor%20vs%20krstic%20judgement%22] </ref> The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed. <ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names. <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref>
 
Any comments? Any suggestions? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 02:26, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
If Hanzo's suggestions are incorporated into the intro, it would be as follows. Is there anyone who would like to suggest other edits? [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 02:38, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
 
The '''Srebrenica massacre''', was the July [[1995]] killing of at least 8,000 <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref> [[Bosniak]] males, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of [[Srebrenica]] in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]] by the [[Army of Republika Srpska|Army of Republika Srpska]] (VRS) under the command of general [[Ratko Mladić]]. In addition to the forces of [[Republika Srpska]] (RS), special [[state security]] forces of [[Serbia]] known as the "Scorpions" participated in the massacre. <ref>Tribunal Update #444, "Stanisic and Simatovic Pleas". Institute for War and Peace Reporting. 17 March 2006. [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=260394&apc_state=henitri200603] </ref> The [[United Nations]] had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch [[peacekeepers]] were present at the time, but they did not prevent the killings. <ref> ICTY Trial Chamber Judgement "Prosecutor vs Krstic", Findings of Fact, paragraphs 18 and 26[http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/krs-tj010802e.pdf#search=%22prosecutor%20vs%20krstic%20judgement%22] </ref> The massacre included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed. <ref>ICTY, ''Prosecutor vs Krstic, Trial Chamber Judgement'', Case No. IT-98-33-T, paras 43–46. [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/jug33-e.htm]</ref> While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names. <ref>Federal Commission for Missing Persons; "Preliminary List of Missing and Killed in Srebrenica"; 2005 [http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm]</ref>
 
The Srebrenica [[massacre]] is the largest [[mass murder]] in [[Europe]] since [[World War II]] and it is the first legally established case of [[genocide]] in Europe. <ref>Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Tribunal Update: Briefly Noted (TU No 398, 18-Mar-05) [http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=235656&apc_state=henitri2005]</ref> In the unanimous landmark ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia|International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)]] ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide stating in its judgement:
:"''By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity''." <ref>ICTY; "Prosecutor vs. Krstic: Appeals chamber judgement"; United Nations [http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2004/p860-e.htm]</ref>
 
I'd put out the "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of" thing, it's not really that important. --[[User:HanzoHattori|HanzoHattori]] 13:43, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Fairview, Hanzo,''' I'd like to suggest expanding the intro to include some other important elements, as follows (I'm afraid I've lost the links in cutting and pasting):
 
The Srebrenica Massacre was the July 1995 killing by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) under the command of General Ratko Mladić of over 8,000 [13] mostly unarmed Bosniaks in and around the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition to Republika Srpska (RS) forces special state security forces of Serbia participated in the massacre. [14] The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a UN-protected "safe area". A battalion of armed Dutch UN peacekeepers stationed in the besieged enclave failed to prevent the killings. [15] The victims were mostly men and teenage boys but women and young children were also killed. [16] The dead were buried in mass graves whose existence was denied. In an attempt to conceal the evidence many of the bodies were subsequently disinterred and secretly reburied. The Bosnian Federal Commission of Missing Persons's most recent list of individuals missing from or killed in Srebrenica contains 8,373 names. [17] Sophisticated techniques have been used by forensic scientists to identify bodies as the burial sites have been uncovered. Charges have been brought and convictions obtained against many of the participants at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague and also in national courts in the countries of the Former Yugoslavia.
 
This massacre was the largest act of mass murder in Europe since World War II and the first legally established case of genocide in Europe. [23] In its unanimous landmark ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY ruled that the Srebrenica massacre constituted an act of genocide under the provisions of the international Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide, stating in its judgement:
 
"By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity." [24]
 
 
I'm in favour of keeping the "Prosecutor vs Krstic" label and the ref to the Appeals Chamber, but those details could be provided in the body of the article. I don't think the number of members of Dutchbat is important in the intro. I haven't included a reference to the war context, but perhaps that's important. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 17:53, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
Perhaps we should also have a reference to the fact that important trials are currently taking place (eg Beara et al) but the two men generally considered to bear primary responsibility for the massacre, M and K, are still at large. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 18:18, 7 September 2006 (UTC)
 
A couple of quick comments.
 
:One excuse those intent on clouding the article use to delete parts of the intro is that it is too long. This intro would give them more fodder for such claims.
:I believe by saying "mostly unarmed Bosniaks" you are refering to the fact the area had been demilitarized to a certain extent but to the first time reader it sounds like they were fighting when they were killed when in fact their hands were tied behind their backs or they were bunched together in warehouses and executed.
:denied by whom?
:I don't know why the sophisticated techniques of identifying bodies needs to be in the intro.
:I agree with keeping the details of the ICTY ruling. I believe it gives greater credibility when such details of the decision are included. The determination of genocide was in fact unanimous and that is relavant.
 
Opbeith, thank you for participating in the discussion. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:36, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Fairview, my mention of "mostly unarmed" wasn't in reference to the demilitarisation of the area, it was to the fact that although some members of the column which set out to cross the lines were armed the very large majority were not, and of course the selectees at Potocari were unarmed. I thought this mention was relevant because of the way the deniers make out that a large portion of the victims whose death they are prepared to acknowledge were killed in combat and that the column was was a fighting force.
The reason for mentioning the identification techniques is to make the point that efforst were made to conceal the atrocity by removing means of identification, mass burial and reburials but nevertheles the identity of the victims is being authoritatively confirmed in spite of all the efforts to ensure otherwise. I think that's a point that's worth including and I think the length of the introduction remains within the bounds of what's reasonable. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 10:05, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== I am suggesting.... ==
 
'''I would like to suggest Blnguyen unprotects the article. Let's start building it. We can start from previous edit, that was in place before edit-war and vandalism http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73384141 . We can start from there and build the article.'''
 
 
:The reason for the protection was that there was an inability to agree on / compromise regarding the tone and presentation of content in the article. There was even an unwillingness to accept that there was a POV conflict (this was the trigger causing the protection of the article). So, I don't see how unprotecting the article will enable us to 'build' the article unless there is some kind of agreement/compromise regarding the tone and presentation of content in the article.
:Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 10:24, 9 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Would the person suggesting that the article is unprotected please identify themselves? --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 10:08, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
: It is obvious that Serb nationalists: (let's call them the right names, because they are trying to deny genocide proven by international tribunal) KOCOBO, Osli73, Srbijanković, Svetislav Jovanović, and Bormalagurski, are doing what they know the best. Continuing the genocide. So, I think that admins should return the version that was suggested above, and based on international judgements and remove POV tag (or denial tag). It is obvious what is the pathetic goal of this people, to sabotage the articel in order to destroy all the effort made in the past months. I am sorry for this sharp words, but they are the truth and reaction to nationalistic manners of this users. --[[User:Emir Arven|Emir Arven]] 18:30, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
:'''Emir''', I am not denying or refuting that there was a massacre, that some 8,000 people were killed, that it was carried out by the Bosnian Serb army or anyting else which the ICTY describes. I do, however, think that the article should use a neutral tone (ie skip the emotional language), present the facts as found by the ICTY and the Dutch NIOD report (which are, to my knowledge, appear to be the two most well-researched sources available on the topic), and where there are dissenting opinions/theories present these in a neutral sense. [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 19:57, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:'''Osli''' , you delete sections of the intro that are based solely on ICTY rulings and then say that you believe the article should "present the facts as found by the ICTY" and then you complain when people call you essentially a hypocrite. How is that logical Osli? How can you say you believe that the article should be based on ICTY rulings and at the same time delete ICTY statements? And how is that you are surprised when people describe you as aggressive? Deleting the following section is being aggressive. '''Would you like to explain now why you have repeatedly and aggressively deleted the following section?''' [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:28, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::''The Srebrenica massacre is the largest mass murder in Europe since World War II and it is the first legally established case of genocide in Europe. [6] In the unanimous landmark ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide stating in its judgement:
 
::''"By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity." [7]''''
 
 
 
:Regarding the POV-tag, the reason for the tag is precisely to signal that there is dissent among the editors of the article as to if it conforms to NPOV.
 
:Is it possible to agree on these principles first?
 
:Finally, labelling anyone who does not agree with you a "Serb nationalist" is not a productive way forward if you want to build this article.
 
:Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 19:57, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
::::So why did you delete the fact about genocide in intro? That fact is from ICTY source. The article is based on ICTY judgements. I didnt lable just anyone "who does not agree with me", I said what I saw, and I saw removing sourced part of the article. So please don't twist theses.--[[User:Emir Arven|Emir Arven]] 20:30, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
:::::I'm not saying the ICTY did not call this an Act of Genocide, however, the article should state precisely that (that the ICTY judged it to be an Act of Genocide). However, generally (ie outside the world of the Srebrenica Genocide blogspot) the massacre is not referred to as the "Srebrenica Genocide." Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:15, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:::::::You said that the article should present the facts as found by the ICTY. And they were presented that way. I don't see what is the problem (Actually I know what the problem is, for you and your friends). On the other hand, there is a planty of sources including UN resolutions, US resolution, academic and human rights institutions as HRW and UCR, even in Serbia for instance Natasa Kandic and Fond za humanitarno pravo, which call it the Srebrenica Genocide. So, no need to lie, nor deny. Regards.--[[User:Emir Arven|Emir Arven]] 21:36, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
::::::Feel free to explain that to CNN[http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/06/26/Krstic.charged/?related], TIME[http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,169877,00.html], the Washington Post[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/20/AR2006082000360.html], Forbes[http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2006/08/20/ap2961056.html], the Jerusalem Post[http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite%3Fcid%3D1154525912704%26pagename%3DJPost%252FJPArticle%252FShowFull&cid=0], CBS[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/08/20/ap/world/mainD8JKCOV80.shtml&cid=0], the Hindu[http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/003200608211417.htm], and a slew of other large and reputable international medie outlets. [[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 21:27, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
'''Live Forever''', I stand corrected. You are correct, in this case we should definately keep it. Again, I'm not denying that the ICTY judged this to be an Act of Genocide or anything else the ICTY has found. Emir Arven, pls refrain from you aggressive language and accusations. Don't try to lump me together with "your friends". Take it easy. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:42, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''LiveForever''', to be picky, as far as I can see it is only the Time article which refers to the massacre as the Srebrenica Genocide, the other articles (the ones I could open) refer to the Srebrenica Genocide '''trial''' (not the massacre as such).Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 21:46, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:: '''Osli''', what kind of tortured logic are you trying to foist on people??! Is that your goal? Obfuscation by taking up people's time arguing the absurd? If a newspaper article refers to the O.J. Simpson murder trial, the article is asserting that murder occurred. It is just a question of who committed it. When the above mentioned articles refer to the Srebrenica Genocide trial, again, they are asserting that genocide occurred. It is just a question of whether these particular individuals participated. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:19, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:::Osli, pls refrain from aggressive actions as removing sourced parts as in [[Naser Orić]] article or articles related to Srebrenica genocide. I showed what you did, so it is not about my language, it is about explaining your actions which are in my opinion not correct, because first you removed sourced part, then you said that you didn't do it, when I proved it to you, you accussed me of "aggressive language". Regards.--[[User:Emir Arven|Emir Arven]] 21:58, 10 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Osli73: The Srebrenica massacre was a genocide! That is a fact that UN have admitted!!! And thats the end of disscusion! I hate serbian nationalist, for you this genocid was a myth from us muslim. [[User:Hahahihihoho|Hahahihihoho]] 00:37, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Suggestions for (1) Intro (2) article structure and (3) editing principles ==
 
'''Dear all''',
I think the best way forward is to agree upon an intro, a structure for the rest of the article and some kind of basic principles for writing the article. Here is my suggestion, please consider. In the intro. I have strived to summarize what the main points of the article are/could be.
 
'''Introduction''':
:''The Srebrenica massacre was the killing of an estimated 8,000 Bosniak males (though some women and children were also killed) following the takeover of the town of Srebrenica in July 1995 by Bosnian Serb forces during the Bosnian War. An estimated xx were executed after being captured in the town itself, while an estimated xx were captured or killed while trying to flee to Bosnian government controlled town of Tuzla.''
 
:''To date, xx bodies have been excavated of which xx have been identified. Another xx persons are still registered as missing. The process has been made more difficult by the attempts by the Bosnian Serb army to hide the traces of the massacre, including reburials of some of the victims.''
 
:''Ratko Mladić and other Serb officers in the Army of Republika Srpska have been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) for the massacre. In 2004 the Bosnian Serb general Radislav Krstić became the third person ever to be convicted under the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide for aiding and abetting genocide. In its ruling the ICTY found that the Srebrenica massacre was an Act of genocide.''
 
:''The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers were present at the time, but did not prevent the massacre. Following an investigation into the massacre and the role of the Dutch peacekeepers the Dutch government resigned in April 2002''.
 
::'''Osli''', 1) the introduction that you are suggesting here communicates essentially the same thing as this version that you have objected to. http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73689151 Why? 2) It will never be known exactly how each person was killed so I do not believe the intro can support the exact numbers that it is looking for. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:24, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:::'''Fairview360''', I feel that there are some important differences, both in content and in tone, compared to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73689151 version you referred to]:
:::::# It proposes to give the numbers for where the people were killed (Potocari or en route to Tuzla)
:::::# It sets out how many bodies have been exhumed, how many have been identified and how many are missing. It also mentions the reburials
:::::# It mentions the resignation of the Dutch government
:::::# It avoids lenghty quotes, which, in my opinon, don't reall belong in an introduction (which should be a summary)
:::::# It gives a, in my opinion, better description of the number of persons killed by saying "an estimated 8,000" instead of siting a specific figure or giving the "at least"
::::Fairview, should I take your statement above about this version being similar to the previous one as an endorsement/support for this version? Is there anything you would like to change, add or adjust (apart from the Federal Commission figure, dealt with below)? Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 07:58, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
 
 
'''Article structure'''
 
1. Introduction
 
2. Background
:a. The war in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina
:b. The Bosnian Serb war aims
:c. Events in and around Srebrenica 1992-1995
 
3. The attack on Srebrenica
 
4. The massacre
:a. Potocari
:b. The column of Bosniak men fleeing to Tuzla
:c. The mass executions
 
5. After the massacre
:a. Arrival in Tuzla
:b. The reburials
 
6. Legal proceedings
:a. ICTY
:b. National court cases
:c. International Court of Justice
 
7. Political consequences
:a. Reaction of the Bosnian Serb and Yugoslav governments
:b. Resignation of the Dutch government
:c. Srebrenica genocide memorial
:d. Charges and countercharges of politicization of the massacre and of genocide denial and revisionism
 
'''Principles for writing and editing''':
:* Use the ICTY and the NIOD report as sources in as far as possible
:* Rewrite “The Massacre” section to avoid paraphrasing/plagiarizing the ICTY’s Krstic conviction
:* Summarizing instead of using long quotes
:* Agreeing on all text and edits (save spelling/grammar) on the Talk page prior to chage/publication
 
Let me know what you think. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 10:02, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
==Introduction==
 
I would like to propose this introduction:
 
''The Srebrenica massacre, also known as Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 killing of at least 8,000 Bosniak civilians, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly, in the region of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of general Ratko Mladić. In addition to the Army of Republika Srpska, special state security forces of Serbia known as the "Scorpions" participated in the genocide. The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers were present at the time, but they did not prevent the massacre. The genocide included several instances where preteen children and women were also killed.While the exact number killed will never be known, the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names.
 
The Srebrenica massacre is the largest mass murder in Europe since World War II and it is the first legally established case of genocide in Europe. In the unanimous landmark ruling "Prosecutor v. Krstic", the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of genocide stating in its judgement:
 
"By seeking to eliminate a part of the Bosnian Muslims [Bosniaks], the Bosnian Serb forces committed genocide. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity."
 
War ciminals responsible for genocide, Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic are still protected by Serbian government according to NATO, ICTY and some Serbian officials as Vladan Batic, former Serbian minister of justice.''
 
'''Explanation:'''
This is purely based on ICTY judgement and NATO sources. I also suggest to change the name of the article in Srebrenica Genocide instead of Srebrenica Massacre, as it is ICTY based, as the above user suggested. [[User:Kruško Mortale|Kruško Mortale]] 14:00, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::I would also support this, at least until the ICJ rules in favor of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Bosnian genocide case. [[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 16:50, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Krusko''', well, I don't support your proposed introduction (which is quite similar to an older one). Here are my reasons:
1. "also known as Srebrenica genocide" - this is not really the case. More correct would be to say that "it is referred to by some" as the Srebrenica genocide. However, this is not how the massacre is generally referred to. Yes, the ICTY judged it to be an Act of Genocide, but it is not generally know as this.
:::"Referred to by some" is not POV because the word "some" implies that those who refer to it as the "Srebrenica genocide" form some sort of united front with an agenda. Of course, this is not the case. A more accurate and NPOV description would be "Also referred to as the Srebrenica genocide". [[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 21:42, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
2. "of at least 8,000" - this is getting into some judgmenet calls. The ICTY judgement says 7-8000. The approximate figure of 7,000 or 8,000 is often cited. Saying "an estimated 8,000" is NPOV. The different estimates of the numbers killed can be expanded on in a separate section.
:::Well, no, because nobody is actually saying that exactly 8,000 people were killed. Although using the words "at least" may come off as POV, the generally accepted view is in fact that there were '''more''' than 8,000 victims - and it ''is'' the generally accepted view. The ICTY judgement you bring up is now five years old, and it's findings are (as you yourself admitted earlier) outdated. You go on to say that this figure "is often cited" (although you conveniently never bother to provide concrete examples), but the only reason that this figure "is often cited" is precisely because the sources that do so are based on the ICTY judgement. [[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 21:42, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
3. "Bosniak civilians, ranging in age from teenagers to the elderly" - most were military age men (most of which were also soldiers), though some women and children were also killed.
 
4. "special state security forces of Serbia known as the "Scorpions" participated" - this is correct, but how important is it? Does it really belong in the introduction?
 
5. "participated in the genocide" - again, let's refer to it as the massacre while being clear that the ICTY judged it to be an Act of Genocide. Otherwise you are clearly politicizing the entire issue.
:::And here we come to the central disagreement through which negotiating with you is, perhaps, impossible. The Srebrenica massacre was an act of Genocide - '''period'''. This is not a political viewpoint, it is not an "issue" to be debated or "politicized"; it is a historical fact, independent of (although certainly reinforced by) the ICTY judgement. It has been repeatedly proven in international court, reiterated by various foreign governments, widely accepted as echoed by numerous international media, and recognized by a wide variety of academic and human rights organizations ranging from Human Rights Watch to The International Association of Genocide Scholars (the major body of scholars who study genocide in North America and Europe). On the other hand, for the view that you repeatedly insist holds equal validity, we have the majority of Serbs and a handful of sympathizing (and often criticized) Western intellectuals. In short, we have on our hands a situation that (in these respects) is identical to the Armenian genocide - a better known instance of genocide on whose article any attempts to do what you're trying to do here is treated (and rightly so) as simple vandalism. [[User:Live Forever|Live Forever]] 21:42, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
6. "the list of people missing or killed in Srebrenica compiled by the Federal Commission of Missing Persons so far includes 8,373 names." - again expand on this in a separate section
 
7. The rest of the text (paras 2-4) seems more concerned with the whole Genocide issue than with talking about the massacre. This will give the article a politicized / POV tilt while missing to provide other important information. Better, and enough, to simply state what the ICTY has judged. Also, I don't see how long quotes belong in an introduction.
 
8. Your proposed text says nothing about the flight to Tuzla, nothing about the number of bodies found, identified and persons still missing. It says nothing about the Dutch govt. resignation, etc.
 
Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 18:38, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
== Issues ==
 
'''Dear all''',
 
There seem to be at least three major open issues which need to be somehow agreed upon before moving on with the article.
 
'''1. Numbers killed'''
There are a number of different estimates, most of them ranging from 7,000 to somewhere slightly above 8,000:
:* '''ICTY''': In its judgement in the Krstic case the ICTY refers to “7,000 – 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men were systematically murdered” (paragraph 2 [http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/Appeal/judgement/index.htm])
:* '''European Journal of Population''': in this 2003 academic article by researchers from the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (used by the ICTY Prosecutor in the case against Krstic) the authors write that “We conclude that at least7,475 persons were killed after the fall of Srebrenica” ([http://www.springerlink.com/content/t8457j673l88p203/] )
:* '''International Red Cross''': refers to “murder of up to 8,000 Bosnian Moslems” “including 5,500 missing persons” (“Srebrenica – remembering the missing, 5 July 2005, [http://www.icrc.org/web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/srebrenica-editorial-050705?opendocument] )
:* '''Federal Commission of Missing Persons''': appears to list some 8,373 names as killed or missing ([http://www.srebrenica-zepa.ba/srebrenica/spisak.htm] ?)
:* '''ICMP''' (International Commission on Missing Persons): states "Of the 7,789 Srebrenica victims in the ICMP database, for whom family members have come forward and given a blood sample for DNA identification, 2,636 have been identified to date."
 
I therefore support using the “an estimated 8,000” figure. This seems to be in line with what most media/intl. organizations are using as well:
:* '''UNHCR''': talks of “Nearly 8,000 civilians were slaughtered“ in a 2006 article commemorating the massacre ([http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/news/opendoc.htm?tbl=NEWS&page=home&id=42ce70314] )
:* '''TIME Magazine''': “murder of some 8,000 Bosnian Muslim inhabitants of the town of Srebrenica in 1995” (“10 Questions For Carla del Ponte “, 13 August 2006, [http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/article/0,13005,901060821-1226057,00.html])
:* '''BBC''': in it’s “Timeline – Siege of Srebrenica” the BBC writes “more than 7,000 Muslim men are thought to have been killed” ([http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/675945.stm] )
:* '''Washington Post''': writes “As many as 8,000 Muslim men and boys were slain” in a recent report on bodies exhumed from a mass grave (“Massacre Victims Exhumed In Bosnia”, 18 August 2006, [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/17/AR2006081701682.html] )
:* '''CBC News''': writes that “massacre of 8,000 Bosnian Muslims by Bosnian Serbs” ([http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/balkans/bones.html] )
 
In light of this I think the term "an estimated 8,000" is reasonable. Presentations of the various estimates of the numbers killed or missing should be expanded on in a specific section in the text.
 
:::: '''Dear All''', I agree with "an estimated 8,000" as long as the intro includes the Federal Commission of Missing Persons data. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:30, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:::::'''Fairview360''', my idea was to simply state "an estimated 8,000" and then present the various figures in detail in a separate section. If we first say "an estimated 8,000" and then, further down in the text, state a different figure from another source it will be inconsistent/contradictory. It is this type of thing where everyone gets "their" preferred figure/fact/quote in which leads to the text becoming overloaded, contradictory and generally poor.
 
:::::However, if we agreed to expand on the various estimates available in a separate section (or possibly footnote), I would have no problem in setting the Federal Commissions figures at the top of the list. Cheers [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 07:37, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:::: '''Osli''' , if where you are trying to take us is back to introducing highly inflated numbers (Oric) or deflated numbers(Srebrenica) that have no basis in objective research, then please save us the time and quit right now. It is clear that well over 8,000 people went missing after the BSA takeover of Srebrenica. The opening sentence of the intro refers specifically to people killed by the BSA troops under Mladic's command. Some of the missing made it to Zepa and were killed during the takeover of Zepa. Some committed suicide. Some made it to other places and died of starvation, exhaustion, or were killed by people or soldiers not under the command of Mladic. Agreeing to "an estimated 8,000" in that particular sentence does not mean that I, for one, am going to entertain numbers below 8000. Saying an estimated 8,000 when well over 8,000 are confirmed missing simply allows for those who died of starvation, exhaustion, or were killed by people other than those troops under the command of Mladic during the Srebrenica Massacre. Well over 8,000 people died as a result of the BSA seige and takeover of Srebrenica. Do not think that this article is going to include the clearly inflated revisionist numbers that you have tried to introduce in the past. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 19:53, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
::::: '''Fairview360''', I'm sorry to disagree quite forcefully with you. There is no question of the figure of 8000 being "estimated". The figure of 8000 has been sufficiently well established. Any uncertainty relates to the number above 8000. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 09:56, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:::::'''Fairview360''', I take your point about the figures for the dead and missing including those who died of starvation, exhaustion or killed by other people than the BSA. Nevertheless these people died in the massacre as a result of the genocidal conditions imposed by the enterprise in which Mladic was responsible for the military component.
The introduction does not refer to RSA troops, it reads "the July 1995 killing *''in the region of''* Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina *''by the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of general Ratko Mladić''*.
We have heard in various trials including the Krstic case of the involvement of the command structure of of the Army of Republika Srpska. We have also heard how other parties were coopted, coordinated or their actions otherwise sanctioned by the command structure. We will be hearing more evidence on the subject during the Beara et al. trial.
At least / over 8,000 people were killed in the Srebrenica Genocide carried out by the Army of Republika Srpska. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 13:11, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''2. Srebrenica massacre or Srebrenica genocide'''
The ICTY clearly judged it to be an Act of Genocide in its April 2004 judgement in the Prosecutor vs Krstic case ([http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/Appeal/judgement/index.htm] ). However, it should be noted than nowhere in the judgement does the ICTY refer to the massacre as the “Srebrenica genocide”
 
Otherwise it is difficult to argue with how common the term “Srebrenica genocide” is. Yes, it is used by some (including by ICTY Prosecutor Carla del Ponte on some occasions [http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/2004/p907-e.htm] and also by some magazines, as pointed out previously on this Talk page, see above).
 
A [[Google]] of the net (minus blogs) of the words “Srebrenica massacre” and “Srebrenica genocide” give 131,000 and 13,200 hits, respectively. Googling “BBC” and “Srebrenica massacre” and “Srebrenica genocide” provide 46,100 hits in the first case and only 701 in the second, implying that the BBC uses the term “Srebrenica massacre” 66 times more often than it uses the term “Srebrenica genocide”. By this simply (and of course far from perfect) measure “massacre” seems to be far the preferred / most common wording.
 
Based on this I would suggest that saying that it is referred to as the “Srebrenica genocide
 
Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:41, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Mr. Osli, I think that you are not correct. Because you presented here wrong information. I just googled the terms Srebrenica genocide and Srebrenica massacre, which give 511,000 [http://www.google.ba/search?q=Srebrenica+genocide&sourceid=mozilla-search&start=0&start=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official] and 455,000 [http://www.google.ba/search?q=Srebrenica+massacre&sourceid=mozilla-search&start=0&start=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official] hits, respectively. But even this results are not as relevant as the judgement. As we agreed to use official international judgements, then it is clear that Srebrenica genocide is the right term. Cheers. [[User:Kruško Mortale|Kruško Mortale]] 20:10, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Krusko''', I excluded the word "blog" from the Search to at least try to capture mainly 'official' media rather than personal blogs. Yes, the ICTY judged that the massacre was an Act of Genocide, however, it does then not go on to use the word "genocide" instead of "massacre" throughout the judgement. I am not against saying that "some persons" or "in some cases" it is referred to as the Srebrenica genocide. However, I believe it would be incorrect to say that it is "known as the Srebrenica genocide" or to in the article replace massacre for genocide. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:47, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Osli73''', '''Krusko''', in ordinary use I hear both "the genocide at Srebrenica" and "the massacre at Srebrenica" used, but the former rather more than the latter. As far as the title of the article is concerned my preference would be for "The Srebrenica Genocide" but it's not unreasonable for the sake of continuity to stay with "The Srebrenica Massacre". Either way the initial character of the noun should be in upper case since the reference is to a particular rather than a generic event. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 08:42, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Osli''', where is number 3? You said there were three issues, but only gave two. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:47, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Fairview''', you're right. Sorry about that. The third issue I was thinking of was the extent to which the intro should cover other topics such as the numbers exhumed, identified, etc, the resignation of the Dutch govt., the political repercussions (response from Bosnian Serbs, Yugoslavia/Serbia) etc. The earlier versions focused almost exclusively on the numbers killed and, to a very lare extent, on the legal proceedings. I feel that is not a very good balance. But maybe it doesn't have to be such a big issue (which is why I think I forgot it by the time I ended issue no. 2). Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:46, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:: '''Osli''' , please note that you are here suggesting adding more to the intro when in the past you deleted ICTY based text from the intro giving as the only reason that the intro was too long. This does not bode well for your credibility. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 19:46, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
----
 
[I'm putting my comments on structuring discussions into a new section "Organised Discussion"] --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 08:50, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== left-apologists? NPOV. ==
 
"Although the International Crimes Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia ruled that the Srebrenica massacre was an act of Genocide, the number of casualties is still disputed by '''left-apologist''' revisionists and Serbian and Serbian nationalists. The government of the Republika Srpska has officially condemned the atrocity."
 
It is '''NOT''' neutral point of view to neglect stating the specific context of the politics in a case of '''GENOCIDE DENIAL''' and quitely dump it on the shoulders of an entire branch of politics in this world, or even to imply just in that region. Leftist is not slur, and if someone wants that region or the whole world to throw left-leaning politics or "left-apologism" completely in the trash can over something it is not intrinsically related to, that persons opinion is '''NOT SUITABLE''' for a Wikipedia article. Consider right-wing politics that took over the region in the past that was also guilty of genocide. (i.e. the Nazis)
 
I am removing "left-apologist" and will remove anything that does not express proper context. There is more than one left-leaning movement in this world, and there is more than one left-leaning movement in that region. '''LEFT-WING DOES NOT EQUAL GENOCIDE.''' If you want to make nonchalant hints that things are otherwise, go take a shit somewhere else. [[User:209.226.121.140|209.226.121.140]] 22:17, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:Great, you cannot edit this page. Can someone please make an appropriate edit, or discussion on this? I know nothing of history, but this is a NPOV problem even I can see. Appropriate distinction has to be made. [[User:209.226.121.140|209.226.121.140]] 22:21, 11 September 2006 (UTC)
 
'''209.226.121.140''', you can't edit at the moment as the article is protected because of an edit-war.
 
I absolutely agree with you that left wing views have nothing to do with support for genocide. In this particular instance, though, the term "left-apologist" isn't tarring left-wingers generally with the genocide denial brush, it's referring to a particular group of people with left-wing views generally who've consistently sought to deny and minimise the genocide, support Milosevic et al., and make out that the victim community were the guilty party - people like Diane Johnstone, Ed Herman, ZNet, LM, and so on. I don't see the term here as identifying me or you with genocide, I see it as designating that specific group, who as far as I know don't have an alternative collective name. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 15:45, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:I certainly agree that there seems to be a group of left-wing academics and journalists (intellectuals if you will) who have challenged the mainstream/generally accepted version of the Srebrenica massacre. However, there are also other, such as presumably Gen. MacKenzie, who are not know to be left-wing. While some Marxists appear to support Milosevic out of some knee-jerk anti-Americanism/Imperialism their views are not necessarily shared by 'mild' left-wingers like Johnstone. So, labelling all of these people, or all who share their views, "left-wing" is not correct.
 
:Labelling them "apologists" is a judgement and not appropriate for Wikipedia (think slander / libel, etc.). I'm not sure what the "left-wing apologists" have to do with "The Nazis" as referred to by the anonymous user above. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:36, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
::No connection between the two were implied in that sense at all. Since I was worried of a connection implied between left politics in an essential sense and genocide justification and cover-up, I used an well-known extreme EXAMPLE of right-wing politics that was undisputedly involved in genocide justification and cover-up that once came and took over the same region. Atrocities have been carried under the banner of all types of politics, left, right, imperialist, sepratist, communist, fascist, capitalist, yet as anyone should agree none of these groups of political ideals plainly equal genocide.
 
::I still don't like "left-apologist" used even in the context of this. Is it entirely assured that the genocidal group represented the only brand of leftism that population could produce, or that by virtue of the genocidal group's purpoted political leanings, that left-wing politics should be abandoned in that region? Maybe I would understand not wanting to attract the crazies back under the same banner they meant to abuse, but I mean to say that (and I think you guys agree?) maybe that there is more appropriate and clearly neutral wording that would not at the very least be easily interpreted or misinterpreted as sweepingly partisan? [[User:209.226.121.136|209.226.121.136]] 00:07, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''209.226.121.136''', it's easier to follow who's saying what if you can get yourself a Wiki identity. I assume you and 209.226.121.140 are the same person. The "left" in "left-apologists" - or "left revisionists" - refers to the general political alignment of the persons concerned rather than to the subject of their concern. The Balkan war was a territorial war driven by nationalism and opportunism rather than a fight between "left" and "right".
 
The left has traditionally championed the cause of the oppressed. That's why many people who have always seen themselves as being on the left of the political spectrum and who experienced or observed the war and its atrocities have been appalled by the stance taken by a group of left-wing intellectuals who, on the basis of an anti-imperialist analysis, have supported or defended Milosevic and his allies and denied or minimised the war crimes for which they were responsible.
 
These people see the wars of the breakup of the former Yugoslavia as the subject of deliberately biased reporting by the Western media and offer a a different, notionally "leftist" narrative interpretation instead. They challenge the accepted historical account and that's why their stance has been described as "revisionism", by critics such as Marko Attila Hoare.
 
Hoare's article on "The Left Revisionists" (at http://www.glypx.com/BalkanWitness/hoare.htm) notes that "Although the revisionist camp stretches right across the political spectrum to encompass liberals, conservatives, socialists, and members of the far right, the ideological motivation of each of these groups is very different. The current I wish to analyse here consists of people who are to the left of mainstream Social Democracy and who oppose what they see as the anti-Serbian or anti-Yugoslav policies of the Western alliance. It includes members of many different far-left traditions .... For the sake of convenience I shall refer to them as ‘left revisionists’, meaning those who, on the basis of a radical left-wing philosophy, seek 1) to revise the negative evaluation of the Milosevic regime made by politically mainstream commentators; 2) to deny that genocide took place and downplay the violence and suffering involved in the wars in the former Yugoslavia; and 3) to shift the blame for this violence and suffering, as well as for the break-up of Yugoslavia, on to the Western alliance." He also notes that other adherents of a radical left-wing philosophy opposed Western military intervention in the Balkans but also opposed the Milosevic regime.
 
I have to confess that when I said I didn't know of an alternative collective name for the group, "left revisionists" had slipped my mind. In my defence I don't think of them in that sense - it's not an adequate description. Revisionism is a legitimate stance when it involves a reappraisal of accepted fact. What I find reprehensible about the "left revisionism" Hoare talks about, like its right-wing cousin "Holocaust revisionism", is its ideologically-driven selectivity with respect to established fact going as far as denial of known atrocities - effectively an expression of contempt for the victims. That's why I'm happy to accept the description "left-apologists". These people are in practice apologists for atrocity and genocide, like their right-wing nationalist partners in denial. Strictly speaking, yes, there is an element of ambiguity about the term but used in context its significance is clear. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 09:08, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
Having said all that, personally I'd be prepared to accept inverted commas around any reference to "left-apologist" or "left-apologists" if that answers your objection. But there should be no use of inverted commas around the word "apologist" when it refers to someone who seeks to excuse or deny the established reality of genocide and the massacre of over 8000 individuals. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 09:24, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Unprotection imminent ==
Seeing as there is some serious discussion and ideas for the development of the article, it will be protected in a day or so. Also please note that [[WP:3RR]] '''does not guarantee 3 reverts per day''' - so in order to avoid disruption and as a condition of trying to improve constructive editing, I am giving a notice that I will block people who do more than '''two reverts per day''' and '''three reverts per two days'''. This is to allow editing as well as to prevent disruptive revert-warring. Inquiries and propsed amendments are welcome. Thanks, '''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 01:28, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''Blnguyen''',
 
:I don't agree. Although I realize that protecting pages is not a long-term solution I would suggest maintaining the protection for some time longer. Here are my reasons:
::* There has yet to be any kind of compromise or agreement on a common view with regards to how the article should be written
::* The protection is the only reason there are some attempts at fruitful discussion. Without it the Bosniak editors would simply refuse ANY edits not to their liking (and I believe their liking is POV).
 
:I would suggest keeping the protection until there has been some progress towards a common view.
:Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:30, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''Blnguyen''', I'm a little surprised to find myself agreeing with Osli73, though my view of what's likely to happen identifies the problems as coming from a different point of the compass. You may have misinterpreted the tone of the discussions - I think the genuine discussions that are taking place are going on in our own separate corner/s. I think maybe we still need some downtime. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 15:52, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:'''Opbeith''', I'm glad to hear that we can at least agree on this. Have you had a chance to look through my proposals above regarding the intro., the article structure and the principles for editing/referencing the article? Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 22:26, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:: '''Osli73''', on the whole the basic framework you suggest doesn't seem unreasonable, though I haven't thought about the implications in detail yet. I am rather more uncertain about your "Principles for writing and editing". The ICTY (you don't say whether you're including Defence and Prosecution submissions as well as judgments) and the NIOD report can both be useful sources but the way those sources are used can be problematic. The Krstic conviction is crucial to the issue of genocide and it's nonsense to rule out its use in the way the phraseology you use appears to do (and of course attributed quotation is not plagiarism). The appropriate length of a quote depends on how easy it is to summarise without distorting its content. And finally it's a little confusing to see you propose "* Agreeing on all text and edits (save spelling/grammar) on the Talk page prior to chage/publication" when I understood that it was your unannounced edits that inspired a lot of the dissent here. Certainly "Agreement" is a sound principle, and perhaps the first thing that needs to be agreed is what constitutes "Agreement". I'm sure we would all be anxious to avoid a situation in which individuals with a particular axe to grind were able to use "Disagreement" as a tactic to prevent any progress towards an improved article. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 10:20, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
:: Just to clarify my comment about the NIOD report. Although it can be a useful source it is also flawed in a number of ways. My comment that the way it is used can be problematic stands. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 22:43, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
::: '''Osli''' , at face value, your objection to ICTY quotes have never made sense. What does make sense is that you object because ICTY quotes are so effective at clearly describing what happened in Srebrenica. I am of the mind that your true objective here is to plant seeds of doubt and revise numbers down and get MacKenzie-esque revisionism back in the article. But we'll take it step by step and see where you want to take things. From time to time, you do make reasonable suggestions. Until you do something outrageous again, I will support your reasonable suggestions. But if you go back to assaulting the article with bogus reasons -- like deleting the intro saying it is too long while suggesting intros that are as long or longer -- then the best course of action will be, once again, to ignore you. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 19:42, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
:I think that article should be unprotected, because it is obvious that Mr. Osli, doesn't want accept a principle that he proposed, to use ICTY documents, which are clear to everyone who read them. So I don't understand those "arguments", and it seems to me that Mr. Osli doesn't want to make progress here, but to keep POV tag. The article, earlier versions, were perfectly OK, so I don't see what is the problem?? Cheers. [[User:Kruško Mortale|Kruško Mortale]] 20:10, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
 
Fairview, Krusko and Opbeith,
:# Regarding your comments on '''"The principles"''' I agree that it is difficult to specify what exactly is meant by "agreement", but that is why I called it a principle. It will, involve some give and take and willingness to compromise when it concerns details. If we are unable to agree on major issues then some kind of POV conflict tag or other means is going to have to be used to enable us to move on.
:# Regarding my comment on using ICTY and NIOD documents as sources my general idea was to agree on this to then avoid conflicts about sources. That doesn’t mean that either of them can/should be quoted/used indiscriminately (see below). To allow us some freedom I suggest using all/any material issued by the ICTY (including judgments, indictments, comments by the prosecutor, press releases, etc), as long as it is specified what type it is in the reference
:# I have never objected to using ICTY documents as sources. I have, however, objected to how these documents have been quoted at times. These objects regard both the length of quotes (in some cases including whole chapters) or how they have been used. This also applies to the NIOD report.
:# I am not trying to deflate the numbers killed in Srebrenica, I propose to say “an estimated 8,000” and then expanding on the various estimates in a separate section.
:# As for “inflating” the number of Serbs killed prior to 1995, I proposed entering the estimates made by the ICTY in its press release on this topic in relation to the Naser Oric case. It must be possible to mention estimates of 2-3,000 people (without saying that they are correct) together with other estimates or mentioning the comments by people like MacKenzie (without labelling him a “concentration camp rapist” and such things) without being called a “revisionist” or “genocide denier”.
:# My objection earlier, which to a certain extent still remains (following recent entries on this talk page), is that many editors seems more concerned with issues like paying homage to/remembering the victims or combating evil or stopping genocide. Wikipedia is not the place for such work. It is an encyclopedia.
So, even if we continue to mistrust each others motives/methods, I hope that we will be able to step-by step move forward with an article that we both can accept. However, if this is to be the case I will have to ask that editors stop throwing insults like "revisionist", "genocide denier", "nazi", "left wing apologist" etc around whenever their views are challenged. I will also abide by this
Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 08:37, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== [[Kamenica]] needs disambiguation ==
 
[[Kamenica]] needs disambiguation, most likely into [[Kamenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina)]]. The disambigation itself also could be improved, there are several settlements of the same name in Bosnia. [[User:Pavel Vozenilek|Pavel Vozenilek]] 14:30, 12 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Response to Osli ==
 
Osli said: "Without it the Bosniak editors would simply refuse ANY edits not to their liking (and I believe their liking is POV)."
 
'''What Bosniak editors? There is only 2 of them. And before vandalism, Srebrenica Massacre article was heavily referenced to International Crimes Tribunal and United Nations' sources. Then extremist Serbs came and vandalized article, destroyed important sections, and then BLnguyen protected article, by keeping vandalized section. Bosniak POV is International Crimes Tribunal's point of view. If you think that International Crimes Tribunal is not neutral, that's your problem. Facts speak for themselves. Your opinion is your opinion, we don't care about that; we care about facts. There is lots of opinions denying Holocaust, we don't care about that either. Facts speak for themselves, and opinions are irrelevant.
'''
 
== BLnguyen, keep article protected indefinitely ==
 
'''it must be protected from vandals who destroy UN/ICTY facts. However, I wish this was a protected version http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Srebrenica_massacre&oldid=73689151 . But again, I don't think BLnguyen is neutral, but at least his decision doesn't help the Serb cause.
 
However, if he was fair, he would have locked the topic that was in place before vandalism; but he didnt. His censorship and administrative privileges should be under review.'''
 
:You can go to [[Wikipedia:Requests for comment/User conduct]] and lodge a complaint. '''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 00:55, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
As someone who requested that '''Blnguyen''' lock in the pre-revert war version, I experienced Blnguyen disagreeing with what I thought fair. With that said, I am sick and tired of hard-core Bosniaks and/or nationalist Serbs threatening administrators with impeachment whenever the administrator disagrees with their views. Being an administrator trying to mediate Balkan conflicts will inevitably involve decisions that do not please everyone. Blnguyen has acted judiciuously and in good faith. While not all will agree with each and every decision, all seem to agree that administrative intervention or oversight is needed. And now we have it. Rather than threats, there is reason for appreciation here. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 01:19, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:I second Fairview's statement above. I also take heart in his statement that "mediating Balkan conflicts will inevitably involve decisions that do not please everyone". For us to make progress on this article that statement will also go for ''articles'' about Balkan conflicts. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 07:41, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
I agree with '''Fairview360''' that it's important to respect the role of the administrator. Nevertheless I think administrators must be careful not to see themselves as being bound to observe a sort of passive neutrality. They must not see every argument as having equal validity. That sort of neutrality is effectively a taking of sides. '''Fairview''', I'm afraid that at a different level - that of the international community's intervention in the Balkans - the attitude that "mediating Balkan conflicts will inevitably involve decisions that do not please everyone" gave us the level playing field on which genocide took place.
 
I'm not demanding that the administrator should agree with my or anyone else's take on specific issues. But the administrator must be prepared to inform him/herself sufficiently to be able to understand the substance of disagreements. I agree that '''Blnguyen''' appears to have acted in good faith and in an unpartisan manner, but I hope that he/she also appreciates that good faith is not always enough. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 09:44, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
:: To remain passive in the face of an unmitigated evil is not neutral; it is immoral and taking the side of the aggressor. The only way people are able to perpetrate genocide is by good people remaining passive. When an innocent human being is murdered or raped, saying it takes two to tango is a perversion of any fair minded assessment. Allowing neo-nazi's to add revisionist edits to the Holocaust wiki-article would not be considered a fair minded approach to administering wiki. So yes, '''Opbeith''', I believe we are in agreement and I hope that any administrator would be well informed and not let revisionist propaganda get a foothold in this article. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 19:34, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
And whatever they may have to say anonymous comments that aren't associated with an identity of some sort deserve to be ignored. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 09:48, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
And in the opposite direction I hope no-one, including '''Bosniak''', will mind me editing his Wiki reference in several comments by '''Osli73''' so that only his name appears (as I'm sure was intended) rather than multiple copies of his mission statement complete with requests for translation of the Universal Declaration. It was impossible to read the comments otherwise. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 10:53, 13 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Title: Srebrenica Massacre or massacre ==
 
I'm not sure why the initial "M" has gone from upper case to lower case. In English capitalisation is used to indicate a unique event - for example see the Wikipedia article on the Peterloo Massacre. I see no reason for a lower case "m" (is it the typographically challenged editor of the Guardian at work here?). Would anyone disagree to reverting to the upper case "M"? --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 16:55, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
 
I agree, it should be Massacre with a capital M. [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 19:03, 14 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Unprotected ==
Dmcdevit has stated that this is due to [[Wikipedia:Requests for arbitration/Kosovo]] under [[Wikipedia:Article probation]] as this article intersects with [[Kosovo]] in the sense of the people editing it. Also Bormalagurski needs to explain "rv blocked user" because unless the Ip is a sock evading a block he is not entitled to a free revert. '''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 02:11, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
Well, the IP appeared right after Bosniak was blocked, and the IP started making the edits Bosniak couldn't do because he was blocked.
 
Let me just provide my evidence:
*[[User:Bosniak]] blocked at 03:37, 4 September 2006 [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Log&type=block&page=User:Bosniak]. Last edit before he made a legal threat: [[Srebrenica massacre]]
*[[User:128.253.56.185]] started making edits at 21:12, 4 September 2006 [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Contributions&target=128.253.56.185]. First edit: [[Srebrenica massacre]]
Not to mention the same tone he took with me, as if we already know each other... Isn't it obvious? --[[User:Bormalagurski|<font color="#003399">'''Serb'''</font>]] [[User_talk:Bormalagurski|<font color="#A61022"><sup>'''talk'''</sup></font>]] 03:36, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
That is not sufficient evidence. Bosniak's block has expired anyway.'''[[User:Blnguyen|Blnguyen]]''' <nowiki>|</nowiki> [[User talk:Blnguyen|BLabberiNg]] 03:50, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Organised Discussion ==
 
'''Osli73''', for the sake of clarity I suggest that three separate discussion sections are created, one for each of your "issues" and that the comments under "Issues" concerning each separate issue are copied into the relevant section. That might help make the issues easier to access.
 
For these three issues I suggest creating sections as follows (1)"Title - Srebrenica Massacre or Srebrenica Genocide"; (2)for your untitled third issue, topics covered in the Introduction, something along the lines of "Introduction - Main Issues"; and (3)"Issue - Number killed".
 
If any other specific points in the article become subjects for discussion I suggest that the person raising the issue creates a new section with a title along the lines of "Issue - XXXX", e.g. "Issue - ICTY", "Issue - Krstic Judgment", "Issue - NIOD Report", "Issue - Naser Oric", "Issue - Lewis MacKenzie", "Issue - Plans for Genocide", "Issue - "Left-Apologists" (just examples - and perhaps once the Introduction Issues have been agreed, any further discussion of these could be raised in a Discussion section under a title such as "Main Issue - XXXXX").
 
I'd also suggest, though who knows whether or not this suggestion is likely to be practical in the heat of the moment, that if anyone has a complaint about the way in which a contributor is engaging in the discussion as opposed to argument over the details that they create a discussion under the title "Complaint - XXXX", e.g. "Complaint - Opbeith" (just an example).
 
I'm not sure how best to handle issues like "Protection", parhaps under something like "General Procedure -XXXXX", but I'm sure someone can suggest some better approach.
 
Above all, I suggest we avoid uncommunicative Discussion section titles like "Adjustments", "The entry", "Response to Osli", "I am suggesting ....".
 
These are just suggestions and may not be easy to follow in practice but they might provide us with a bit more structure to the discussions and help some of us follow developments. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 08:42, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Dear Opbeith''', I this is a very good suggestion. It was something along these lines which I was trying to introduce with my suggestion for agreeing on:
:# intro text
:# structure of the article and
:# general principles for editing it (sources to be used, how they are to be used and when edits should be made).
Otherwise, this topic risks descending into chaos and mudslinging. My suggestions for these three are set out above. However, I will now reenter them into separate sections below with some of your suggestions added in. Hope this is OK. I also think it would be more constructive if we tried to deal with a limited number of "issues" at a time instead of trying to tackle too many of them at the same time. Regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:12, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Introduction ==
 
Here is my proposal for an introduction to the article (same as above). Please comment.
 
:''The Srebrenica massacre was the killing of an estimated 8,000 Bosniak males (though some women and children were also killed) following the takeover of the town of Srebrenica in July 1995 by Bosnian Serb forces during the Bosnian War. An estimated xx were executed after being captured in the town itself, while an estimated xx were captured or killed while trying to flee to Bosnian government controlled town of Tuzla.''
 
:''To date, xx bodies have been excavated of which xx have been identified. Another xx persons are still registered as missing. The process has been made more difficult by the attempts by the Bosnian Serb army to hide the traces of the massacre, including reburials of some of the victims.''
 
:''Ratko Mladić and other Serb officers in the Army of Republika Srpska have been indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) for the massacre. In 2004 the Bosnian Serb general Radislav Krstić became the third person ever to be convicted under the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide for aiding and abetting genocide. In its ruling the ICTY found that the Srebrenica massacre was an Act of genocide.''
 
:''The United Nations had previously declared Srebrenica a UN protected "safe area" and 400 armed Dutch peacekeepers were present at the time, but did not prevent the massacre. Following an investigation into the massacre and the role of the Dutch peacekeepers the Dutch government resigned in April 2002''.
 
Sincere regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:15, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Structure of the article ==
 
Here is my suggestion for a structure of the article (same as above except for adding a section for no:s killed in section 5c). Please comment.
 
1. Introduction
 
2. Background
:a. The war in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina
:b. The Bosnian Serb war aims
:c. Events in and around Srebrenica 1992-1995
 
3. The attack on Srebrenica
 
4. The massacre
:a. Potocari
:b. The column of Bosniak men fleeing to Tuzla
:c. The mass executions
 
5. After the massacre
:a. Arrival in Tuzla
:b. The reburials
:c. Numbers killed
 
6. Legal proceedings
:a. ICTY
:b. National court cases
:c. International Court of Justice
 
7. Political consequences
:a. Reaction of the Bosnian Serb and Yugoslav governments
:b. Resignation of the Dutch government
:c. Srebrenica genocide memorial
:d. Charges and countercharges of politicization of the massacre and of genocide denial and revisionism
 
Sincere regards [[User:Osli73|Osli73]] 11:18, 15 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Srebrenica Massacre - My Proposition ==
 
Blnguyen and others:
 
Here is my proposal for Srebrenica Massacre article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Srebrenica_massacre . Please don't use reverts, use this template for changes. We want to avoid another revert war. I also propose this version of the article be shortened. It contains facts of the case (ICTY, UN, etc). New material can be added as appropriate. However, it should be shortened (paraphrasing ok). [[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 02:16, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Bosniak''', I think you've mixed the Article itself up with the template, so that the picture of the young woman whose copyright was at issue has ended up back at the top of the Article. We need to be clear how this business of amending templates work. In principle, as I understand it, it's a good idea but I don't fully understand how all the complications of Wikipedia work and I'm sure I'm not the only one, so it would be a good idea to explain the technicalities. I'm going to be away for a few days but I'll try and pick up when I get back. --[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 06:59, 20 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== FOOTER FORMATTING ==
 
Can someone please fix footer formatting, so there is one line for multiple references instead of multiple line referencing to same reference, you know what I mean?[[User:142.179.66.89|142.179.66.89]] 20:53, 22 September 2006 (UTC)
 
== Serb Gen Ratko Mladic Recognized Genocide and Warned Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic about Genocide ==
 
Both highest ranking Bosnian Serb politicans, Radovan Karadzic and Momcilo Krajisnik, were warned by Bosnian Serb military commander General Ratko Mladic, also indicted on genocide charges, that their plans could not be committed without committing genocide.
 
'''''People are not little stones, or keys in someone's pocket, that can be moved from one place to another just like that... Therefore, we cannot precisely arrange for only Serbs to stay in one part of the country while removing others painlessly. I do not know how Mr Krajisnik and Mr Karadzic will explain that to the world. That is genocide,'' said Mladic.'''
 
References:
 
http://www.bosnia.org.uk/news/news_body.cfm?newsid=2229
Bosnia's Accidental Genocide, Bosnian Institute in UK. September 30, 2006.[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 04:34, 1 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
'''Bosniak''', Mladic's canny discourse to the Bosnian-Serb Assembly on 12 May 1992 is cited in the ICTY's Krajisnik judgment as follows (at http://www.un.org/icty/krajisnik/trialc/judgement/kra-jud060927e.pdf):
 
 
975. The Accused [''Krajisnik''] did not just know about the operations of Bosnian-Serb armed forces in 1992, he actively supervised them as a member of the leadership. The Bosnian-Serb Assembly was a forum for the formulation and coordination of military strategy. On 12 May 1992, in a long speech to the Assembly, General Ratko Mladiæ explained his “vision” that the Serbs could prevail in the territories they considered theirs without completely destroying the Muslims:(1943) “we cannot cleanse nor can we have a sieve to sift so that only Serbs would stay, or that the Serbs would fall through and the rest leave. ... I do not know how Mr. Krajišnik and Mr. Karadžiæ would explain this to the world. ... that would be genocide.”(1944) But there was an alternative to genocide. Mladiæ advised the Bosnian-Serb leadership on how to achieve controversial military objectives quietly, cynically, ruthlessly, while staying below the radar of international attention: “We should not say: we will destroy Sarajevo, we need Sarajevo. We are not going to say that we are going to destroy the power supply pylons or turn off the water supply, no, because that would get America out of its seat, but ... one day there is no water at all in Sarajevo. What it is we do not know ... And the same with the electrical power ... we have to wisely tell the world, it was they who were shooting, hit the transmission line and the power went off, they were shooting at the power supply facilities ... that is what diplomacy is”.(1945)
 
 
1943 - P65, tab 127, pp. 38-9.
 
1944 - P65, tab 127, p. 39.
 
1945 - P65, tab 127, pp. 42-3.
 
where P65, tab 127 is "Minutes and record of 16th session of Bosnian-Serb Assembly, 12 May 1992"
 
 
Mladic is saying that that what is being proposed is genocide and so he is suggesting an alternative approach that will allow the Bosnian Serb command to achieve the same objectives without them being seen by the international community to have been responsible for genocide.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 21:32, 5 October 2006 (UTC)
 
== How the ICTY found that genocide had been perpetrated at Srebrenica and found General Radislav Krstic guilty of the crime ==
 
 
 
This summary, although it omits much of the discussion of the joint criminal enterprise and the general nature of the crime of genocide, nevertheless contains most of the substance of the court's reasoning in finding Gen. Krstic guilty of genocide at Srebrenica.
 
 
The court notes the Bosnian Serbs' central war objective was "the use of military means to terrorise civilian populations, often with the goal of forcing their flight in a process that came to be known as 'ethnic cleansing'" and how Momcilo Krajisnik and Krstic defined that objective in very similar terms with reference to the Serbianisation of the Podrinje region, ("in [which] goal the cleansing of Bosnian Muslims from Srebrenica had special advantages").
 
 
The court couldn't be clearer in explaining why it found that the killing of the Muslim men of military age in Srebrenica did in fact constitute genocide, leaving no scope for Gen. Lewis MacKenzie's argument that it did not.
 
 
All text quoted below has been taken from the full Krstic judgment at
http://www.un.org/icty/krstic/TrialC1/judgement/index.htm
 
...
 
 
3. In July 1995, at the time the atrocities occurred, General Krstic was first the Chief of Staff and, subsequently, the Commander of the Drina Corps, a formation of the Bosnian Serb Army (hereafter “VRS”). All of the crimes committed following the take-over of Srebrenica were committed in the zone of responsibility of the Drina Corps. ...
 
 
...
 
 
335. Despite efforts to distance himself from Krivaja 95, particularly the second phase involving the capture of Srebrenica, the Trial Chamber is left without doubt that General Krstic was no ordinary participant in these events. Regardless of whether or not he was completely sidelined upon the arrival of General Mladic, it is clear that General Krstic was fully informed of the conduct of the operation. Given his position as Deputy Commander/Chief of Staff of the Drina Corps and his prominent role in the drafting and execution of Krivaja 95, the Trial Chamber finds that General Krstic must have known the VRS military activities against Srebrenica were calculated to trigger a humanitarian crisis, eventually leading to the elimination of the enclave. He thus played a leading role in the events that forced the terrorised civilian population of Srebrenica to flee the town in fear of their lives and move toward Potocari, setting the stage for the crimes that followed. From his vantage point at the FCP in the hills of Pribicevac, he had an unobstructed view of the impact of the shelling upon the terrorised Bosnian Muslim residents of Srebrenica town. It is inconceivable that a commander so actively involved in the campaign would not have been aware of such an obvious cause and effect relationship between the shelling and the exodus of residents from Srebrenica that was apparent to virtually all UN military personnel in the area.
 
 
...
 
 
335. The Trial Chamber finds that General Krstic was well aware that the shelling of Srebrenica would drive tens of thousands of Bosnian Muslim civilians from the town into the small area of Potocari they thought “safe” because of the UN base there. He must have known that, inevitably, basic needs for shelter, food, water and medicine at that site would prove overwhelming. The Trial Chamber further finds that General Krstic was fully appraised of the VRS territorial goals in the Srebrenica enclave, which included cleansing the area of the Bosnian Muslim population.
 
 
...
 
 
544. The critical determination still to be made is whether the offences were committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such.
 
 
545. The Prosecution contends that the Bosnian Serb forces planned and intended to kill all the Bosnian Muslim men of military age at Srebrenica and that these large scale murders constitute genocide. The Defence does not challenge that the Bosnian Serb forces killed a significant number of Bosnian Muslim men of military age but disagrees a genocidal intent within the meaning of Article 4 has been proved.
 
 
546. The Trial Chamber is ultimately satisfied that murders and infliction of serious bodily or mental harm were committed with the intent to kill all the Bosnian Muslim men of military age at Srebrenica. The evidence shows that the mass executions mainly took place between 13 and 16 July, while executions of smaller scale continued until 19 July. All of the executions systematically targeted Bosnian Muslim men of military age, regardless of whether they were civilians or soldiers.
 
 
...
 
 
547. The VRS may have initially considered only targeting the military men for execution. Some men from the column were in fact killed in combat and it is not certain that the VRS intended at first to kill all the captured Muslim men, including the civilians in the column. Evidence shows, however, that a decision was taken, at some point, to capture and kill all the Bosnian Muslim men indiscriminately. No effort thereafter was made to distinguish the soldiers from the civilians. ... The evidence shows that the VRS sought to kill all the Bosnian Muslim military aged men in Srebrenica, regardless of their civilian or military status.
 
 
548. The Prosecution contends that evidence demonstrates an intent to destroy part of a group as such, which is consonant with the definition of genocide. Conversely, the Defence maintains that the intent to kill all the Bosnian Muslim men of military age living in Srebrenica cannot be interpreted as an intent to destroy in whole or in part a group as such within the meaning of Article 4 of the Statute.
 
 
...
 
 
557. A group’s cultural, religious, ethnical or national characteristics must be identified within the socio-historic context which it inhabits. As in the Nikolic and Jelisic cases, the Chamber identifies the relevant group by using as a criterion the stigmatisation of the group, notably by the perpetrators of the crime, on the basis of its perceived national, ethnical, racial or religious characteristics.
 
 
558. Whereas the indictment in this case defined the targeted group as the Bosnian Muslims, the Prosecution appeared to use an alternative definition in its pre-trial brief by pleading the intention to eliminate the “Bosnian Muslim population of Srebrenica ” through mass killing and deportation. In its final trial brief, the Prosecution chose to define the group as the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica, while it referred to the Bosnian Muslims of Eastern Bosnia in its final arguments. The Defence argued in its final brief that the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica did not form a specific national, ethnical, racial or religious group. In particular , it contended that “one cannot create an artificial ‘group’ by limiting its scope to a geographical area”. According to the Defence, the Bosnian Muslims constitute the only group that fits the definition of a group protected by the Convention.
 
 
559. ... The evidence tendered at trial also shows very clearly that the highest Bosnian Serb political authorities and the Bosnian Serb forces operating in Srebrenica in July 1995 viewed the Bosnian Muslims as a specific national group. Conversely, no national, ethnical, racial or religious characteristic makes it possible to differentiate the Bosnian Muslims residing in Srebrenica, at the time of the 1995 offensive, from the other Bosnian Muslims. The only distinctive criterion would be their geographical ___location, not a criterion contemplated by the Convention. In addition, it is doubtful that the Bosnian Muslims residing in the enclave at the time of the offensive considered themselves a distinct national, ethnical, racial or religious group among the Bosnian Muslims. Indeed, most of the Bosnian Muslims residing in Srebrenica at the time of the attack were not originally from Srebrenica but from all around the central Podrinje region. Evidence shows that they rather viewed themselves as members of the Bosnian Muslim group.
 
 
560. The Chamber concludes that the protected group, within the meaning of Article 4 of the Statute, must be defined, in the present case, as the Bosnian Muslims. The Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica or the Bosnian Muslims of Eastern Bosnia constitute a part of the protected group under Article 4. The question of whether an intent to destroy a part of the protected group falls under the definition of genocide is a separate issue that will be discussed below.
 
 
561. The Prosecution and the Defence, in this case, concur in their belief that the victims of genocide must be targeted by reason of their membership in a group. This is the only interpretation coinciding with the intent which characterises the crime of genocide. The intent to destroy a group as such, in whole or in part, presupposes that the victims were chosen by reason of their membership in the group whose destruction was sought. Mere knowledge of the victims’ membership in a distinct group on the part of the perpetrators is not sufficient to establish an intention to destroy the group as such. As the ILC noted:
 
 
[…] the intention must be to destroy a group and not merely one or more individuals who are coincidentally members of a particular group. The […] act must be committed against an individual because of his membership in a particular group and as an incremental step in the overall objective of destroying the group.
 
 
562. As a result, there are obvious similarities between a genocidal policy and the policy commonly known as ''ethnic cleansing''. In this case, acts of discrimination are not confined to the events in Srebrenica alone, but characterise the whole of the 1992-95 conflict between the Bosnian Serbs, Muslims and Croats. The Report of the Secretary-General comments that “a central objective of the conflict was the use of military means to terrorise civilian populations, often with the goal of forcing their flight in a process that came to be known as 'ethnic cleansing' ”. The Bosnian Serbs’ war objective was clearly spelt out, notably in a decision issued on 12 May 1992 by Momcilo Krajisnik , then President of the National Assembly of the Bosnian Serb People. The decision indicates that one of the strategic objectives of the Serbian people of Bosnia-Herzegovina was to reunite all Serbian people in a single State, in particular by erasing the border along the Drina which separated Serbia from Eastern Bosnia, whose population was mostly Serbian.
 
 
563. The accused himself defined the objective of the campaign in Bosnia during an interview in November 1995, when he explained that the Podrinje region should remain “Serbian for ever, while the Eastern part of Republika Srpska and the Drina river w?ouldg be an important meeting point for the entire Serbian people from both sides of the Drina”.
 
 
564. In this goal, the cleansing of Bosnian Muslims from Srebrenica had special advantages. Lying in the central Podrinje region, whose strategic importance for the creation of a Bosnian Serb Republic has frequently been cited in testimony,1247 Srebrenica and the surrounding area was a predominantly Muslim pocket within a mainly Serbian region adjoining Serbia.1248 Given the war objectives, it is hardly surprising that the Serbs and Bosnian Muslims fought each other bitterly in this region from the outbreak of the conflict.
 
 
...
 
 
567. ... the Trial Chamber has found that, on its face, the operation Krivaja 95 did not include a plan to overrun the enclave and expel the Bosnian Muslim population. ...
 
 
568. The operation, however, was not confined to mere retaliation. Its objective, although perhaps restricted initially to blocking communications between the two enclaves and reducing the Srebrenica enclave to its urban core, was quickly extended. ... Operation Krivaja 1995 then became an instrument of the policy designed to drive out the Bosnian Muslim population. The humanitarian crisis caused by the flow of refugees arriving at Potocari, the intensity and the scale of the violence, the illegal confinement of the men in one area, while the women and children were forcibly transferred out of the Bosnian Serb held territory , and the subsequent death of thousands of Bosnian Muslim civilian and military men, most of whom clearly did not die in combat, demonstrate that a purposeful decision was taken by the Bosnian Serb forces to target the Bosnian Muslim population in Srebrenica, by reason of their membership in the Bosnian Muslim group. It remains to determine whether this discriminatory attack sought to destroy the group, in whole or in part, within the meaning of Article 4 of the Statute.
 
 
...
 
 
569. The Prosecution urges a broad interpretation of Article 4’s requirement of an intent to destroy all or part of the group. It contends that the acts have been committed with the requisite intent if “?the accusedg consciously desired ?hisg acts to result in the destruction, in whole or in part, of the group, as such; or he knew his acts were destroying, in whole or in part, the group, as such; or he knew that the likely consequence of his acts would be to destroy, in whole or in part, the group, as such”. The Prosecution is of the opinion that, in this case, General Krstic and others “consciously desired their acts to lead to the destruction of part of the Bosnian Muslim people as a […] group”.
 
 
...
 
 
571. ... Some legal commentators further contend that genocide embraces those acts whose foreseeable or probable consequence is the total or partial destruction of the group without any necessity of showing that destruction was the goal of the act. Whether this interpretation can be viewed as reflecting the status of customary international law at the time of the acts involved here is not clear. For the purpose of this case, the Chamber will therefore adhere to the characterisation of genocide which encompass only acts committed with the goal of destroying all or part of a group.
 
 
572. ... Evidence presented in this case has shown that the killings were planned: the number and nature of the forces involved, the standardised coded language used by the units in communicating information about the killings, the scale of the executions, the invariability of the killing methods applied, indicate that a decision was made to kill all the Bosnian Muslim military aged men.
 
 
...
 
 
581. Since in this case primarily the Bosnian Muslim men of military age were killed , a second issue is whether this group of victims represented a sufficient part of the Bosnian Muslim group so that the intent to destroy them qualifies as an “ intent to destroy the group in whole or in part” under Article 4 of the Statute.
 
 
...
 
 
583. The Defence contends that the term "in part" refers to the scale of the crimes actually committed, as opposed to the intent, which would have to extend to destroying the group as such, i.e. in its entirety. ...
 
 
584. The Trial Chamber does not agree. Admittedly, by adding the term “in part”, some of the Convention’s drafters may have intended that actual destruction of a mere part of a human group could be characterised as genocide, only as long as it was carried out with the intent to destroy the group as such. The debates on this point during the preparatory work are unclear, however, and a plain reading of the Convention contradicts this interpretation. Under the Convention , the term ''in whole or in part'' refers to the intent, as opposed to the actual destruction, and it would run contrary to the rules of interpretation to alter the ordinary meaning of the terms used in the Convention by recourse to the preparatory work which lacks clarity on the issue. The Trial Chamber concludes that any act committed with the intent to destroy a part of a group, as such, constitutes an act of genocide within the meaning of the Convention.
 
 
585. The Genocide Convention itself provides no indication of what constitutes intent to destroy “in part”. ...
 
 
586. ... According to the ILC, the perpetrators of the crime must seek to destroy a quantitatively substantial part of the protected group:
 
It is not necessary to intend to achieve the complete annihilation of a group from every corner of the globe. None the less the crime of genocide by its very nature requires the intention to destroy at least a substantial part of a particular group . ...
 
 
...
 
 
587. Benjamin Whitaker's 1985 study on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide holds that the partial destruction of a group merits the characterisation of genocide when it concerns a large portion of the entire group or a significant section of that group.
 
'In part' would seem to imply a reasonably significant number, relative to the total of the group as a whole, or else a significant section of a group, such as its leadership .
 
The “Final Report of the Commission of Experts established pursuant to Security Council resolution 780 (1992)” (hereinafter “ Report of the Commission of Experts ”) confirmed this interpretation, and considered that an intent to destroy a specific part of a group, such as its political, administrative, intellectual or business leaders, “may be a strong indication of genocide regardless of the actual numbers killed”. The report states that extermination specifically directed against law enforcement and military personnel may affect “a significant section of a group in that it renders the group at large defenceless against other abuses of a similar or other nature”. However, the Report goes on to say that “the attack on the leadership must be viewed in the context of the fate of what happened to the rest of the group. If a group suffers extermination of its leadership and in the wake of that loss, a large number of its members are killed or subjected to other heinous acts, for example deportation, the cluster of violations ought to be considered in its entirety in order to interpret the provisions of the Convention in a spirit consistent with its purpose”.
 
 
588. Judge Elihu Lauterpacht, the ad hoc Judge nominated by Bosnia-Herzegovina in the case before the International Court of Justice regarding the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, spoke similarly in his separate opinion. Judge Lauterpacht observed that the Bosnian Serb forces had murdered and caused serious mental and bodily injury to the Bosnian Muslims and had subjected the group to living conditions meant to bring about its total or partial physical destruction . He went on to take into account “the forced migration of civilians, more commonly known as ‘ethnic cleansing’” in order to establish the intent to destroy all or part of the group. In his view, this demonstrated the Serbs’ intent “to eliminate Muslim control of, and presence in, substantial parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina”. Judge Lauterpacht concluded that the acts which led to the group's physical destruction had to be characterised as “acts of genocide” since they were “directed against an ethnical or religious group as such, and they (were( intended to destroy that group, if not in whole certainly in part, to the extent necessary to ensure that that group (would( no longer occup(y( the parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina coveted by the Serbs”.
 
 
589. Several other sources confirm that the intent to eradicate a group within a limited geographical area such as the region of a country or even a municipality may be characterised as genocide. ...
 
 
590. The Trial Chamber is ... left with a margin of discretion in assessing what is destruction “in part” of the group. But it must exercise its discretionary power in a spirit consonant with the object and purpose of the Convention which is to criminalise specified conduct directed against the existence of protected groups, as such. The Trial Chamber is therefore of the opinion that the intent to destroy a group, even if only in part, means seeking to destroy a distinct part of the group as opposed to an accumulation of isolated individuals within it. Although the perpetrators of genocide need not seek to destroy the entire group protected by the Convention, they must view the part of the group they wish to destroy as a distinct entity which must be eliminated as such. A campaign resulting in the killings, in different places spread over a broad geographical area, of a finite number of members of a protected group might not thus qualify as genocide, despite the high total number of casualties, because it would not show an intent by the perpetrators to target the very existence of the group as such. Conversely, the killing of all members of the part of a group located within a small geographical area, although resulting in a lesser number of victims, would qualify as genocide if carried out with the intent to destroy the part of the group as such located in this small geographical area. Indeed, the physical destruction may target only a part of the geographically limited part of the larger group because the perpetrators of the genocide regard the intended destruction as sufficient to annihilate the group as a distinct entity in the geographic area at issue. In this regard, it is important to bear in mind the total context in which the physical destruction is carried out.
 
 
591. The parties have presented opposing views as to whether the killings of Bosnian Muslim men in Srebrenica were carried out with intent to destroy a substantial part of the Bosnian Muslim group. It should be recalled that the Prosecution at different times has proposed different definitions of the group in the context of the charge of genocide. In the Indictment, as in the submission of the Defence, the Prosecution referred to the group of the Bosnian Muslims, while in the final brief and arguments it defined the group as the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica or the Bosnian Muslims of Eastern Bosnia. The Trial Chamber has previously indicated that the protected group, under Article 4 of the Statue, should be defined as the Bosnian Muslims.
 
 
594. The Trial Chamber concludes from the evidence that the VRS forces sought to eliminate all of the Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica as a community. ...
 
 
595. Granted, only the men of military age were systematically massacred, but it is significant that these massacres occurred at a time when the forcible transfer of the rest of the Bosnian Muslim population was well under way. The Bosnian Serb forces could not have failed to know, by the time they decided to kill all the men , that this selective destruction of the group would have a lasting impact upon the entire group. Their death precluded any effective attempt by the Bosnian Muslims to recapture the territory. Furthermore, the Bosnian Serb forces had to be aware of the catastrophic impact that the disappearance of two or three generations of men would have on the survival of a traditionally patriarchal society, an impact the Chamber has previously described in detail. The Bosnian Serb forces knew, by the time they decided to kill all of the military aged men, that the combination of those killings with the forcible transfer of the women, children and elderly would inevitably result in the physical disappearance of the Bosnian Muslim population at Srebrenica. Intent by the Bosnian Serb forces to target the Bosnian Muslims of Srebrenica as a group is further evidenced by their destroying homes of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica and Potocari and the principal mosque in Srebrenica soon after the attack.
 
 
...
 
 
597. The strategic ___location of the enclave, situated between two Serb territories , may explain why the Bosnian Serb forces did not limit themselves to expelling the Bosnian Muslim population. By killing all the military aged men, the Bosnian Serb forces effectively destroyed the community of the Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica as such and eliminated all likelihood that it could ever re-establish itself on that territory.
 
 
598. The Chamber concludes that the intent to kill all the Bosnian Muslim men of military age in Srebrenica constitutes an intent to destroy in part the Bosnian Muslim group within the meaning of Article 4 and therefore must be qualified as a genocide.
 
 
...
 
 
619. The Trial Chamber has made findings that, as of 13 July, the plan to ethnically cleanse the area of Srebrenica escalated to a far more insidious level that included killing all of the military-aged Bosnian Muslim men of Srebrenica. A transfer of the men after screening for war criminals - the purported reason for their separation from the women, children and elderly at Potocari - to Bosnian Muslim held territory or to prisons to await a prisoner exchange was at some point considered an inadequate mode for assuring the ethnic cleansing of Srebrenica. Killing the men, in addition to forcibly transferring the women, children and elderly, became the object of the newly elevated joint criminal enterprise of General Mladic and VRS Main Staff personnel. The Trial Chamber concluded that this campaign to kill all the military aged men was conducted to guarantee that the Bosnian Muslim population would be permanently eradicated from Srebrenica and therefore constituted genocide.
 
 
...
 
 
621. The Trial Chamber has concluded that General Krstic was involved in organising the buses for the transportation of the women, children and elderly from Potocari throughout 12 July. He personally saw that the military-aged men were being segregated at Potocari and that they were being detained at the White House in sordid conditions. He must have observed, further, that contrary to General Mladic’s statement at the Hotel Fontana meeting, no genuine efforts were taking place to screen the men for war criminals. General Krstic knew, also on 12 July, that the buses exiting from Potocari were being stopped at Tišca where any men who had managed to get aboard were pulled off and taken to detention sites. On 13 July, when he was preparing the military operation at Zepa which commenced the next day, General Krstic found out that thousands of Srebrenica men fleeing in the column through the woods toward Tuzla had been captured on the territory of the Drina Corps. As the then Corps’ Chief of Staff, “the primary co-ordinator of the Corps’ activities”, General Krstic must have been aware that no adequate measures were being taken to provide for shelter, food, water and medical care for several thousand captured men and that no arrangements or negotiations were ongoing for their prisoner-of-war exchange.
 
 
622. On that basis alone, the Trial Chamber must conclude that, by the evening of 13 July at the latest, General Krstic knew that the Muslim men were being executed at a number of separate sites and that none had been allowed to enter government held territory along with the women, children and elderly. General Krstic could only surmise that the original objective of ethnic cleansing by forcible transfer had turned into a lethal plan to destroy the male population of Srebrenica once and for all.
 
 
623. In terms of General Krstic’s participation in the killing plan, the evidence has established that, from 14 July onwards, Drina Corps troops took part in killing episodes. The facts in relation to the Drina Corps’ participation at each site may be summarised as follows:
 
[Details of actions at Orahovac, Petkovci Dam, Branjevo Farm, Pilica Cultural Dom, Kozluk]
 
 
624. Thus, the Drina Corps rendered tangible and substantial assistance and technical support to the detention, killing and burial at these several sites between 14 and 16 July. ...
 
 
...
 
 
630. ... as Commander of the Drina Corps, General Krstic had extensive formal powers over the assets and troops of the Drina Corps. ...
 
 
...
 
 
633. The Trial Chamber concludes beyond reasonable doubt that General Krstic participated in a joint criminal enterprise to kill the Bosnian Muslim military-aged men from Srebrenica from the evening of 13 July onward. General Krstic may not have devised the killing plan, or participated in the initial decision to escalate the objective of the criminal enterprise from forcible transfer to destruction of Srebrenica’s Bosnian Muslim military-aged male community, but there can be no doubt that, from the point he learned of the widespread and systematic killings and became clearly involved in their perpetration, he shared the genocidal intent to kill the men. This cannot be gainsaid given his informed participation in the executions through the use of Drina Corps assets.
 
 
634. Finally, the Trial Chamber has concluded that, in terms of the requirement of Article 4(2) of the Statute that an intent to destroy only part of the group must nevertheless concern a substantial part thereof, either numerically or qualitatively , the military aged Bosnian Muslim men of Srebrenica do in fact constitute a substantial part of the Bosnian Muslim group, because the killing of these men inevitably and fundamentally would result in the annihilation of the entire Bosnian Muslim community at Srebrenica. In this respect, the intent to kill the men amounted to an intent to destroy a substantial part of the Bosnian Muslim group. Having already played a key role in the forcible transfer of the Muslim women, children and elderly out of Serb-held territory, General Krstic undeniably was aware of the fatal impact that the killing of the men would have on the ability of the Bosnian Muslim community of Srebrenica to survive, as such. General Krstic thus participated in the genocidal acts of “killing members of the group” under Article 4(2)(a) with the intent to destroy a part of the group.
 
 
...
 
 
644. In the present case, General Krstic participated in a joint criminal enterprise to kill the military-aged Bosnian Muslim men of Srebrenica with the awareness that such killings would lead to the annihilation of the entire Bosnian Muslim community at Srebrenica. His intent to kill the men thus amounts to a genocidal intent to destroy the group in part. General Krstic did not conceive the plan to kill the men, nor did he kill them personally. However, he fulfilled a key co-ordinating role in the implementation of the killing campaign. In particular, at a stage when his participation was clearly indispensable, General Krstic exerted his authority as Drina Corps Commander and arranged for men under his command to commit killings . He thus was an essential participant in the genocidal killings in the aftermath of the fall of Srebrenica. In sum, in view of both his mens rea and actus reus, General Krstic must be considered a principal perpetrator of these crimes.
 
 
645. General Krstic is guilty of genocide pursuant to Article 4(2)(a).
 
 
I am sorry that's a rather lengthy exposition but I trust that it clears up some misconceptions and areas of confusion.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 20:57, 5 October 2006 (UTC)
 
== 8000 Figure Has Not Been Verified; Hotly Debated ==
 
Evidence given at The Hague war crimes tribunal casts serious doubt on the
figure of "up to" 8,000 Bosnian Muslims massacred. That figure includes "up
to" 5,000 who have been classified as missing. '''More than 2,000 bodies have
been recovered in and around Srebrenica, and they include victims of the
three years of intense fighting in the area. The math just doesn't support
the scale of 8,000 killed.'''
 
http://www.opensubscriber.com/message/bctf-socialjustice@list.bctf.ca/1738836.html
 
{{unsigned2|20:15, 8 October 2006|68.126.253.36}}
 
:This is the article by Gen. MacKenzie, which is already included as external link in the article. However, his analysis differ vastly from the consensus. -- [[User:Jitse Niesen|Jitse Niesen]] ([[User talk:Jitse Niesen|talk]]) 04:50, 9 October 2006 (UTC)
 
==14 year old girl==
With all due respect for the genocide that took place in Sreprenica and its innocent victims, is the picture of the 14 year old girl hanging, for real? Also, how do we know those were the reasons for her suicide? [[User:Politis|Politis]] 13:07, 9 October 2006 (UTC)
:should be eliminated from this article (inflammatory, unknown sources, copyright problems)--[[User:TheFEARgod|<font color="#003399">The'''FE'''</font><font color="red">'''AR'''god</font>]] ([[User talk:TheFEARgod|'''Ч''']]) 15:40, 13 October 2006 (UTC)
 
The photo of a hunged Bosniak child has a source and it is real, the source can be found here:
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/journalism/nelson/rohde/followup_otherstories.html
 
[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 22:23, 14 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
I remember that photograph (with less of the woodland background cropped) being published on the front page of The Guardian a couple of days after the fall of Srebrenica, as survivors were arriving in Tuzla and reporting what had happened. It is not "inflammatory", it is the painful reality of what was being done to children as well as adults.
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 14:55, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
It seems from the following that the girl's name was Fata Smailovic. There's no direct confirmation here that this girl and her cousin are the two linked to the photograph at the source cited by Bosniak but there seems little reason to doubt that they are.
 
"Update: Women's Action 3.4
August 1995
 
Bosnia-Herzegovina: Rape, Forced Removal, Genocide
 
On July 11, 1995, the town of Srebrenica was overrun and captured by Bosnian Serb forces. Srebrenica had been declared a "safe area" by the United Nations in the summer of 1993 and United Nations peacekeepers were stationed in Srebrenica when it fell to the Bosnian Serbs. Numerous atrocities were reported by fleeing refugees, mostly women, children and the elderly, who initially went to Potocari, where United Nations peacekeepers guided them to factory buildings for the night and assured them that they would be safe. Among the atrocities reported were incidents of rape by Bosnian Serb forces. A refugee interviewed by the New York Times, 32 year-old Sevda Porobic, recounted sitting in the Cinkara factory in Potocari, near two girls she knew well, 12 year-old Mina Smailovic, and her 14 year-old cousin, Fata Smailovic. Three Bosnian Serb soldiers entered the factory at midnight on Tuesday July 11, and abducted the two girls and another woman, 23 year-old Nizama Oric. The three returned several hours later, bruised, bleeding and crying. Mina said, "We are not girls anymore. Our lives are over." At dawn, Bosnian Serb soldiers stormed through the factory, looking for boys and men. During the chaos, Fata slipped away and, using the scarf she had around her neck, she hanged herself.
 
Equality Now first called attention to the systematic use of rape by Bosnian Serbs as part of their genocidal "ethnic cleansing" policy against Bosnian Muslim civilians in August 1992. In February and June 1993, and again in April 1994, Equality Now issued urgent appeals calling on the United Nations to take immediate and effective action to stop the rape, killing and other atrocities. In May 1993, when the Security Council of the United Nations established an International Criminal Tribunal for the prosecution of those responsible for war crimes in the former Yugoslavia, Equality Now called for the swift prosecution of Radovan Karadzic and other war criminals responsible for rape, murder and "ethnic cleansing" of innocent civilians in the former Yugoslavia. Equality Now, through the poster on the reverse side of this page, has tried to highlight that these atrocities have been carried out under orders, and that there are individuals such as Radovan Karadzic, the leader of the Bosnian Serbs, directly responsible for them.
 
..."
 
http://www.equalitynow.org/english/actions/action_0304_en.html
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 15:11, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
Having posted the above a short while ago I've done some further investigation which has complicated matters. At the Guardian Online site http://www.guardian.co.uk/yugo/article/0,,1461800,00.html I found an article from the Observer in April 2005 in which the journalist Lorna Martin looks again at the publication of that phatograph as the tenth anniversary approached:
 
"
Sunday April 17, 2005
The Observer
 
Fatima Osmanovic has only one photograph of her mother. She cannot bear to look at it. Nine years ago, when aged 10, she caught a fleeting glimpse. Since then, every time she closes her eyes and thinks of her mother, no matter how hard she tries not to see the image, it always appears.
 
Fatima can no longer remember her mother's face or features. All she has now is that picture, seared indelibly on her mind and inside her eyelids, of her mother in her white dress and red cardigan, hanging from a tree by a noose plaited from her belt and shawl. Fatima and her brother Damir were shocked by their own reaction to the photo. It changed the way they felt about their mother and destroyed all their cherished memories. 'I still cannot picture my mother whole in front of my eyes,' Fatima whispers.
 
...
 
In the dawn hours of 11 July, 1995, with Srebrenica on the edge of collapse, the Osmanovic family joined the refugees streaming north to the last haven. Elderly men hobbled on canes. Old women wailed. Young mothers carried suitcases and children. At the UN base, they found the gates locked. About 5,000 people had entered the base by a hole in the fence, 20,000 were in a hysterical state outside. Selman made two attempts to flee through the forest, but he was forced back by shelling. The family huddled together, all trying to sleep on one blanket.
 
As soon as the Serb troops arrived triumphant in Srebrenica, they made a mockery of the UN and their 'safe area' as they began, aided by UN peacekeepers, to separate all men aged between 17 and 70 for 'interrogation for suspected war crimes'. The next morning buses arrived to take women and children to Tuzla. Damir, a softly-spoken young man, gazes into the middle distance as he recalls what happened. 'The four of us started walking towards the buses. All of the women were screaming. I was clinging on to my father because I always felt, no matter what, he will protect me ... The Chetniks [Serbs] were standing on both sides of the road. Just as we were about to step on to the bus, they grabbed my father. They pointed their guns at him and told him to join the other men. I didn't want to leave him so I started to go too. But my mother jumped off the bus. She was screaming and crying and somehow managed to prise me away from my father. I hugged him and kissed him and everyone was crying, but I never thought that I would never see him again.'
 
That night and for five days after, the air around Srebrenica was filled with the screams of men and boys being mutilated, slaughtered, some buried alive, others killed and dumped in mass graves; and of women and girls being raped. Damir and Fatima recall their mother becoming distraught. 'At some point, she started repeating over and over again, "My husband is coming, my husband is coming," but perhaps she realised he was never coming back,' Damir says.
 
'Then my mother said, "Stay there." We fell asleep and when we woke up the next morning we didn't see Mother around. My sister and I went looking for her. For two days we searched the camp, calling out her name. But we couldn't find her anywhere.'
 
Not far from them, some children had found a young woman in a white dress and red cardigan hanging in the forest round the airfield. They alerted a photographer, Darko Bandic, who shot only two frames as he was not sure whether his picture desk would want it. Nobody knew who she was. As the Guardian, The Observer 's sister newspaper, said the next day: 'No one wept for her when police finally cut down her body and only one single bored policeman kept vigil over the corpse as it lay abandoned by the gate of the heaving camp.'
 
Police eventually buried her in an anonymous grave on the edge of the refugee camp. On the wooden headboard they wrote: 'Unknown, Tuzla.' It was not until six months later, when a US journalist showed them the photograph, that Fatima and Damir discovered what had happened to their mother. The first time the children visited her grave, they wrote her name on the headstone with a felt-tip pen. When they returned months later, they could not find her grave.
 
Almost 10 years have elapsed since the fall of Srebrenica, but Bosnia-Herzegovina remains a deeply traumatised country. It is also almost a decade since war crimes warrants were issued for Mladic and Karadzic. Despite the scale of the carnage, there has been little effort by the international community to capture them.
 
Fatima and Damir are students at Sarajevo University. Fatima is studying political science and dreams of becoming a journalist; Damir is taking a degree in physics and hopes to become a teacher. But the fact that those responsible remain at large makes the process of healing and reconciliation so much more difficult.
 
'I don't see any purpose in violence and hate,' says Damir. 'But I'm very angry. I know that some ordinary people are sometimes ordered to do things they don't usually do ... so I don't blame all Serbs. But I blame General Mladic and Karadzic. They must be brought to justice. And in many ways I also blame the world because I think all of this could have been stopped should the world have decided to act earlier and stop the genocide. They could have done, but chose not to.'
 
The sun disappears behind a black mountain. Before they begin the three-hour drive home, Fatima and Damir turn again to the graves at the former UN base where they sought refuge. They bow their heads and say a silent prayer for the souls of those massacred at Srebrenica.
 
I saw so many awful things in Bosnia'
 
Darko Bandic was a freelance photographer from Croatia, covering the Balkan wars for the Associated Press news agency when he took the photograph, above, of Ferida Osmanovic.
 
I had arrived at this massive makeshift refugee camp in Tuzla early in the morning, around 5.30am. Tens of thousands of distraught women and children had poured into the camp the previous day.
 
Just as I was about to enter the camp, two or three young girls told me they had spotted a woman hanging from a tree in the woods. They took me to her. I was actually a bit confused. I didn't know exactly what to do. From the direction I was walking I could see her face, but obviously I didn't want to shoot that. I shot just a couple of frames, then went back to the UN guard. I remember he was a Swedish soldier and I told him what I had seen. He said: 'For now, let's take care of the ones who are alive.'
 
I saw so many really awful things in Bosnia's war, that was just yet another of them. I did wonder what horrific things must have happened to her to drive herself to take her own life. But I never found out. I never even knew her name until a year later."
 
 
 
From the above it seems that the photograph is of Ferida Osmanovic, driven to despair by the fate of her husband Selman, not a photograph of Fata Smailovic. The reality behind the image is still as awful, just a different reality. It doesn't change what happened to 12 year old Mina and 14 year old Fata Smailovic. It just tells us about what Srebrenic did to the four members of the Osmanovic family. For us, it means thinking about whether the photograph should remain as a reminder of a different aspect of what the massacre did. It also means that we need to ask Darko Bandic whether the photo can be used. It means that we need to contact The Rohde to Sarajevo website to check whether they have any comments. And perhaps we should contact Lorna Martin at the Observer to find out whether Fatima and Damir Osmanovic would prefer not to have their mother's photo used in this way.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 16:09, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
I've e-mailed Anne Nelson at the "The Rohde to Srebrenica" website and Darko Bandic, whose photograph of Ferida Osmanovic is at his website. I'll come back with any further news. Bandic may be on assignment.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 17:28, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
Hi Owen, excellent job. I am proud of you for contributing to Srebrenica genocide project.
Excellent investigative work. If you manage to get in touch with Darko Bandic, ask him can we use his photograph on wikipedia. If he gives us his permission, then nobody can delete the photo.
 
[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 20:40, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
 
I remember how shocked I was--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 21:39, 15 October 2006 (UTC) seeing that picture on the front of the Guardian. I felt it was tearing a away the last veil of privacy that woman had left to her. I was going to complain. But then I thought a while about it and I realised that provoking the horror that photograph had made me feel and that I hope anyone normal would have felt was the most important thing that anyone could have done for her once her death was unavoidable. Having read Lorna Martin's article and Darko Brandic's account of his hesitation and restraint I've got a lot of admiration for him.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 21:36, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
The photo still doesn't look as an adult woman, look http://www.columbia.edu/itc/journalism/nelson/rohde/followup_otherstories.html . Now we have two sources, and guardian's source seems to be more credible. It certainly looks as a child.
[[User:Bosniak|Bosniak]] 21:19, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
I think this is the original, at Darko Brandic's website: http://www.dbandic.com/pages/sre02.html
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 21:39, 15 October 2006 (UTC)
 
==First Legally Established Genocide in Europe?==
While I understand that Srebrenica was the first act of genocide to be perpatrated in Europe after the [[Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide]] was ratified, but couldn't one make the argument that the persecution of [[crimes against humanity]] at the [[Nuremberg Trials]] was in fact punishing the genocide of the European Jews, which would make the Holocaust the first legally estalished genocide in European history?[[User:Trojan traveler|Trojan traveler]] 07:33, 17 October 2006 (UTC)
 
'''Trojan traveler''', I wouldn't want to argue that point with you, but the wording of the introduction here refers to the *crime* of genocide, which did not exist as an offence in international law until the Genocide Convention came into effect.
 
--[[User:Opbeith|Opbeith]] 16:51, 19 October 2006 (UTC)
 
The fact that the Holocaust was never tried in court specifically for the charge of genocide is a technicality based on the timing of the genocide convention. Yes, I believe that the Nuremburg trials did establish the facts which would in a modern court lead to a genocide conviction. The current wording of the intro is the result of previous edit wars that included tit for tat exchanges leading to this hair splitting version which is technically correct but gives the casual reader the impression the article is arguing that the Holocaust was not a case of genocide. I do not think anyone is going to argue that the Holocaust was not genocide. I suggest we reword the intro such that it affirms that Srebrenica was determined in court of being a case of genocide without the reference to it being the "first legally established case in Europe" - an esoteric legal point. The Holocaust was a case of genocide and Srebrenica was a case of genocide. The intro should be written such that it is clear that no one is questioning that. [[User:Fairview360|Fairview360]] 03:09, 20 October 2006 (UTC)
 
== Potocari ==
 
[[User:Fairview360]] reverted my edits related to Potocari group. He restored the old version which used CNN's story[http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/02/22/warcrimes.srebrenica/] as a reference. However, the CNN story doesn't mention Potocari at all, and as far as I can tell refers to something else. What it does mention however is work of Jean-Rene Ruez, however his work can't refer to Potocari group because it was about the group executed at Petkovci[http://www.sense-agency.com/en/stream.php?sta=3&pid=8468&kat=3]. Note that, according to this article, Petkovci group was "numbering some 1,500 to 2,000" while Potocari had "at least 300 men inside the perimeter of the UN compound and between 600 and 900 men in the crowd outside". [[User:Nikola Smolenski|Nikola]] 19:40, 19 October 2006 (UTC)
 
:The CNN article indeed does not mention Potocari, though it's well possible that the scenes described in the article took place there. I agree that this needs some clarification. As for Ruez, he has done a lot of work. The CNN article mentions a testimony Ruez gave in 1996, while the report from SENSE is about a testimony in 2006. They may well be about different things. Of course, the text you replaced the old version with is unacceptable, because it fails to mention that the men separated out were killed. -- [[User:Jitse Niesen|Jitse Niesen]] ([[User talk:Jitse Niesen|talk]]) 02:32, 20 October 2006 (UTC)
 
::Um, maybe that is because they were not killed? Do you have any reference which claims that they were killed? [[User:Nikola Smolenski|Nikola]] 06:43, 20 October 2006 (UTC)