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“From Words to Violence: Lives Behind the Fields of Death” opened on Tuesday at UN headquarters in New York to mark the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide in eastern Bosnia.
The exhibition includes 12 displays based on testimonies collected from survivors during an oral history project led by BIRN Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Srebrenica Memorial Centre.
During the process, surviving family members donated items belonging to loved ones who were killed in the genocide and shared their stories, so they can be preserved for a historical record.
Denis Dzidic, director of BIRN Bosnia and Herzegovina, said at the opening of the exhibition that he was proud of the journalistic work done on the project but felt most grateful to everyone who told their own stories and the stories of those killed in July 1995.
“Thirty years after the genocide, at the very location where the [UN General Assembly] resolution on Srebrenica was adopted, there is nothing more appropriate than to put the focus on the personal stories of those who are no longer with us and on those who have dedicated their lives to ensuring their loved ones are remembered and honoured,” Dzidic said.
In May last year, the UN General Assembly voted to designate July 11 as an annual International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.
Emir Suljagic, head of the Srebrenica Memorial Centre, said people had fought for the right to tell their stories and speak the truth.
“We had the privilege of experiencing justice as people, at least partially. We saw the generals and presidents who were behind the genocide, as they stood before the face of justice [in court],” Suljagic said.
“And today, when July 11 is on the United Nations calendar, we know we are not forgotten, neither us nor our truth. That is the message we’re sending for the 30th anniversary of the genocide,” he added.
Bosnia’s UN representative, Zlatko Lagumdzija, said the exhibition was “more than an artistic and documentary display – it is a moral call for humanity to not forget.
“Srebrenica is not only a symbol of genocide but also a symbol of the responsibility of all of us to prevent future crimes,” Lagumdzija said, adding that, in a time of denial and revisionism, the exhibition stands as proof of established facts.
The “Lives Behind the Fields of Death” project started in October 2020, when 100 testimonies from surviving witnesses of the genocide were recorded.
These formed part of a permanent exhibition, along with items donated by survivors, at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre, opened in February 2022. After drawing positive reactions, 100 more oral testimonies were recorded.
The exhibition at UN headquarters was organised by Bosnia’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, with the support of the Office of the Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide and the UN Global Communications Department.