Dozens In Serbia, Macedonia Pay Tribute To Srebrenica Victims

Members of the Youth Initiative for Human Rights lit candles in Andric's park in downtown Belgrade to pay tribute to the victims of genocide in Srebrenica

Dozens of Serbs and Macedonians have gathered to pay tribute to the victims of the massacre in Srebrenica 22 years ago.

Members of the Youth Initiative for Human Rights paid tribute in Belgrade on July 11 by lighting candles at a park near the Serbian presidential building.

Since there is no official marking of this event in Serbia, the nonprofit group said it wanted to draw the attention of the authorities.

Surrounded by police, participants in the rally carried a banner saying "We will never forget the genocide in Srebrenica" and placards with the number 8,372 to indicate the number of victims.

Members of right-wing organizations also gathered with the intention to stop the event. They threw surgical gloves filled with water, shouted insults, and chanted the name of the Srebrenica genocide indictee, General Ratko Mladic.

The organizers of the peaceful tribute did not comment on the provocations of the right-wingers, and said young people only want to ensure victims of the massacre are not forgotten.

Meanwhile, several dozen peple marched in the old part of Skopje carrying banners saying, "Srebrenica, the conscience of the world."

The tribute was organized by the Bosniak Cultural Community in Macedonia.