War Crimes in Bosnia-Hercegovina (Volume II)

Helsinki Watch has been monitoring human rights abuses and violations of the laws of war in both Croatia and Bosnia- Hercegovina since the conflict began two years ago. The original volume in this series documented the appalling brutality inflicted on the civilian population and called on the U.N. Security Council to take appropriate steps to prevent and suppress genocide and to establish an international war crimes tribunal to try and punish those responsible for crimes against humanity in the former Yugoslavia. While the proposal for a war crimes tribunal has gained some momentum, international efforts have focussed mainly on the need to deliver humanitarian aid to those besieged. Little or nothing has been done to end the intense bombardment of the areas under siege or to stop the systematic process of “ethnic cleansing.” Despite the weighty evidence contained in these reports and other evidence that has been presented to the United Nations, extreme abuses continue in Bosnia-Hercegovina without respite. In short, no effective actions have been taken to end the suffering and the world's nations as parties to the Genocide Convention and the U.N. as its sponsor have utterly failed in meeting their treaty obligations to take appropriate measures to stop genocide.