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Al Jazeera
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Across 100 kilometres, they walk where Srebrenica's dead once ran
Thirty years later, one man joins thousands on a three-day journey along the once-deadly path of remembrance in Bosnia. More than 7,000 people arrived in a tiny village in Bosnia to commemorate victims [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] More than 7,000 people arrived in a tiny village in Bosnia to commemorate victims [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] Nezuk and Potocari, Bosnia and Herzegovina – Thirty years ago, thousands of Bosniak men and boys emerged emaciated from the forests surrounding the quiet Bosnian village of Nezuk. Their gaunt faces and skeletal frames told only part of the story – visible hints of a far deeper horror that would fully emerge only after the mass graves of the 1995 Srebrenica genocide were found. Today, Sejfudin Dizdarevic, 48, lives a life worlds apart from the desperate men who once fled through these woods. But he and thousands of others have just spent three days walking the same path. 'Knowing this history, it makes you humble,' Dizdarevic said about his participation in the annual remembrance walk called the Peace March. 'Knowing that you are going [on] the path [where] not only people were killed, but also [that those] who survived ... were hiding exactly in the spot [in] which you are marching now.' A banner flies in the village of Nezuk, where the march began on July 8 [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] In July 1995, the town of Srebrenica and surrounding villages fell to Bosnian Serb forces, whose nationalist and territorial ambitions were emboldened by the dissolution of the former Yugoslavia. Bosniak males, who were being hunted, fled the area, crossing the thickly forested slopes of eastern Bosnia for days and even weeks on end in a journey now referred to as 'the death march'. During their trek, they evaded deceptive calls by Bosnian Serb forces, who tried to lure them to surrender with false promises of safety. Many of the Bosniak men and boys saw their counterparts slaughtered en masse and were forced to wade through the pungent odour of their corpses stiffening under the blazing July heat. Since 2005, Bosnians and people from around the world have been embarking on the three-day, 100-kilometre (62-mile) walk from Nezuk to the Srebrenica Genocide Memorial in Potocari, where newly identified victims are still laid to rest each year. Dizdarevic, a Bosnian war refugee who fled to Germany in 1992, has been returning to take part in the march for the last four years and organising groups of nationals from other countries to join him. While Dizdarevic, who is Bosniak, was not personally affected by the Srebrenica genocide, some of his family members were killed during Bosnia's three-year war from 1992 to 1995. 'My intention is to show respect for those who were killed in the genocide,' he explained. The marchers walked along rolling green hills and stony slopes [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] The marchers walked along rolling green hills and stony slopes [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] The first day of the march this year, July 8, was unbearably hot, the sun beating down on the nearly 7,000 people beginning their days-long journey. Spectators lined the march's path, stepping out into their front yards to offer quiet acts of solidarity – holding signs commemorating the genocide, handing out food, and passing bottles of water to the participants. People wore coordinated outfits, many featuring slogans in remembrance of the genocide. Dizdarevic's group of 40 included Bosniaks, Germans, Turks, Americans and a Dutch nurse who had first come to Srebrenica during the war with Doctors Without Borders. Dizdarevic, centre, and his group during the march [Courtesy of Sejfudin Dizdarevic] As a veteran of the march, Dizdarevic advised his group to begin physically training as early as February, but he struggled to prepare them emotionally. 'When you talk to some people who survived genocide and they tell you your story ... there is no way to prepare for that,' he explained. The scars of his country's past still resonate deeply with Dizdarevic, and he feels a duty to raise awareness about it. It's what drives him to organise others to take part. On that first day, Dizdarevic heard a swirl of languages being spoken around him, which underscored just how far people had come to show their solidarity. 'It's very important to me that the people will learn the lessons of this genocide because if we don't draw the right lessons from this genocide, [the victims] were killed in vain,' he said. As the day stretched into late afternoon, and the marchers continued across rolling green hills and stony slopes, the sweltering heat suddenly gave way to unexpected showers and powerful gusts of wind. But Dizdarevic and his team were prepared for all weather conditions. Eventually, night fell, and the group arrived in the village of Josanica, where they camped for their first overnight stop. As is common among marchers, Dizdarevic arranged for his group to stay at the home of Srebrenica genocide survivors – some slept inside, while others pitched tents in a yard wet from the rain. Their bellies full from food handed out by strangers and charities supporting the marchers, they had only one resolve: to complete the walk. Dizdarevic met two survivors who had hidden from Bosnian Serb forces in the forests [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] Dizdarevic met two survivors who had hidden from Bosnian Serb forces in the forests [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] After a night of rain, the trail was slick with mud. As the group traversed the mountain of Udrc in the Dinaric Alps, Dizdarevic explained, through shallow breaths, that the muddy conditions were slowing them down. It was there, on the mountain, that he met two survivors of the genocide - men who had hidden in the forests from Bosnian Serb forces in the summer of 1995. Hasan Hasanovic and Mevludin Hrnjic, both young men at the time, spent 80 days in hiding. Hasanovic was just 19 and lost his father and twin brother in the killings. Years later, they were found in mass graves. Hrnjic, then 24, lost his father and four of his brothers. He was the only male in his family to emerge from the woods to safety and to his mother. He later told his story in a book he authored, Witness to the Srebrenica Genocide. 'That was a very emotional moment for me,' Dizdarevic said, about walking with the two survivors where they had run for their lives three decades earlier. As they walked together, he tried to put himself in their shoes, but Dizdarevic was sure it was just a glimpse of the hardships they went through. 'Look, we have all [the] logistical support. There are people from the Red Cross helping us to get up the mountain [with ropes],' he said. It's already 'very, very hard', without having to worry about being killed, or having no food or shelter, he added. The marchers walked mostly in silence, their heads bowed. Then, Dizdarevic encountered his most difficult moment of the day: walking through the so-called 'death valley' in Kamenica, where smaller mass graves had been found along the Drina River basin. 'You cannot comprehend how massive this was and what destruction [it caused] not only for the people killed, but also for their families,' he reflected. The gravesites there were found near the homes of Bosniaks, in their yards or in nearby meadows. Now, memorial plaques honour the Srebrenica victims at several of the sepulchres. At the end of the second day, Dizdarevic and his group once again camped at a genocide survivor's home, this time in the village of Pubode. People pray among the gravestones of Srebrenica victims [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] People pray among the gravestones of Srebrenica victims [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] On the third and final day, Dizdarevic and most of those around him could not contain their emotions as they reached Potocari, the site of the memorial to Srebrenica victims. In the grassy valley dotted with row upon row of white marble tombstones, are the remnants of the gray slab concrete buildings where the UN Dutch battalion had been stationed to protect Bosniaks during the war. But in July 1995, the battalion was overrun by Bosnian Serb forces, leading to the bloodshed that ensued. Reaching the site where thousands were brutally killed brought 'overwhelming sadness' to Dizdarevic. 'It was very emotional,' he said. But Dizdarevic was also awash with relief – not only from the physical toll of the march being over, but also from the emotional weight of having walked in the footsteps of victims who never made it to safety. 'It was very important for every one of us to finish this march,' he said. 'This remembrance should lead to a prevention of potential future genocide.' As he and his companions set up one final camp in Potocari, before the memorial event there the next day on the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre, Dizdarevic pondered what justice for its victims looks like. 'The search for justice ... is a very difficult process ... Even more difficult is that the Serbian society ... [is] very in favour of this genocide,' he said. 'I am afraid that Serbian society – they did not undergo this catharsis [of] saying, 'Yes, we did this and we are guilty, sorry.' [On the] contrary, they are very proud of it ... or they deny it.' In the years since, the International Court of Justice and courts in the Balkans have sentenced almost 50 Bosnian Serb wartime officials collectively to more than 700 years in prison for the genocide. But many of the accused remain unpunished, and genocide denial is rampant, especially among political leaders in Serbia and the Serb-majority entity of Republika Srpska. Milorad Dodik, the entity's current leader, whose image appears on billboards flashing the three-finger salute, a symbol of Serb nationalism, has dismissed the Srebrenica genocide as a 'fabricated myth'. The group arrived in Potocari a day before the 30th anniversary event [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] Still, Dizdarevic has held on to hope, a feeling renewed during the march as he watched countless young people take part, many of them born after the Bosnian war. 'What is, for me, very important, [is] that the young men and women who participate in this march understand ... they should play an active role in the prevention of future genocide by creating a positive environment in their societies,' he said. On July 11, the day after the march ended, Dizdarevic and his group joined thousands in Potocari to mark the sombre anniversary, where the remains of seven newly identified victims were laid to rest. There, they stood in solemn silence as the coffins were lowered into freshly dug graves, soon to be marked with new marble headstones, joining the more than 6,000 others already laid to rest. Reporting for this article was made possible by the NGO Islamic Relief. A woman sits next to the gravestone of a relative at the Srebrenica Genocide Memorial in Potocari [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera] A woman sits next to the gravestone of a relative at the Srebrenica Genocide Memorial in Potocari [Urooba Jamal/Al Jazeera]
Business Recorder
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Business Recorder
ANP activist, policeman shot dead in Bajaur
PESHAWAR: An Awami National Party (ANP) affiliated politician Maulana Khan Zeb and a policeman were shot dead on Thursday by unidentified suspects in the tribal district Bajaur. District Police Officer (DPO) Bajaur Waqas Rafiq has said that the politician was shot dead in Shindai Mor while campaigning for the July 13 Peace March, adding that a policeman was also killed in the attack. 'Three other people were injured in the shooting,' DPO Rafiq said. 'This was a targeted killing carried out by unidentified shooters on motorcycles.' DPO Rafiq added that evidence had been collected from the crime scene. Khan Zeb was a member of the ANP's central cabinet and held the office of secretary of ulema affairs, according to the party website. ANP President Senator Aimal Wali Khan issued a statement condemning the killing, stating that the party would file a first information report against the state. 'State institutions are complicit in this incident because they have maintained criminal silence,' the ANP chief was quoted as saying. 'After consulting with Khan Zeb's elder brother, Sheikh Jahanzada, a FIR for the killing will be registered against the state.' Meanwhile, ANP KP President Mian Ifitkhar Hussain strongly condemned the incident and declared three days of mourning over his death. 'This attack is not only an attack on the Awami National Party but also on the Pashtun consciousness and peace,' Hussain was quoted as saying. According to the statement, Hussain announced that the ANP's KP chapter would observe three days of mourning, suspend all activities, and hoist black flags alongside party flags. The statement added that Hussain was leaving for Bajaur and urged the party to maintain 'morale, unity, and organisational discipline'. Similarly, the office of KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur issued a statement condemning the incident and vowed to bring the suspects to justice. The CM condemned the shooting and ordered the relevant authorities to investigate the incident and promptly arrest the shooters. 'Those involved in the incident will not be able to escape the grip of the law,' Gandapur was quoted as saying. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Euronews
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
Orbán says Pride marched in the Budapest 'on the orders of Brussels'
The international press estimates the number of participants in Saturday's event, the Budapest Pride march - which was, in fact, the outlawed Budapest Pride - at between 100- and 200,000. One thing is for sure: the organisers broke the previous record of 35,000 by a considerable margin. On Sunday, it was finally became clear how Viktor Orbán assessed the Saturday parade, as the Prime Minister. He had told the Pride organisers in February that they "should not bother" with their organisational efforts, as the government would not allow the event to take place. Orders from Brussels? The Prime Minister sent a message to the "Warriors' Club", an organisation close to his party Fidesz - which also reached the independent news website Index - in which he wrote that "Brussels has issued an order that there must be a Pride in Budapest. Their puppet politicians have carried out the order. This is proof of what life would be like if our country were not run by a national government defending our sovereignty. Orders from Brussels, puppet politicians in Budapest in hats, TISZA, [social democrat] DK and Karácsony [Mayor of Budapest] voters in the streets". Orbán called the event itself "disgusting and shameful", pointing out that events such as drag performances, men in high heels or brochures on hormone therapy "do not fit into Hungarian culture". He added that "the 3.7 million voters of the 2022 gender vote" could "not be matched by the number of any demonstration". Orbán - the king of Pride? His main rival Péter Magyar did not miss the opportunity to react. The leader of the TISZA party said that "Viktor Orbán became the king of Pride in Europe yesterday, because no one else has ever managed to mobilise such a large crowd for a demonstration against himself by inciting hatred". The opposition politician took full advantage and wrote in his post that "Orbán can no longer govern, public services are falling apart. The Hungarian railways stop running every weekend, the health care system is dying, people are living worse and worse and everyone is cutting their pennies." Recent polls have shown his party leading Fidesz by up to ten points. Parliamentary elections are expected to be held in April next year. A clever trap? The government officially tried to play down the massive event - and even spin it as a "clever trap" by Viktor Orbán, using it to reinforce his narrative that Pride marchers were a manipulated minority, but political scientist Gábor Török disagreed. According to him, "the clumsy ban and the police's legal manoeuvring" also indicated that events have taken a wrong turn for the government: "Fidesz certainly did not miss the spectacle of today, the crowds, the distant images that almost resemble the Peace March - and of course the prominent role of Our Homeland," he said in his Facebok post. By 20:00 on Saturday, police had arrested 36 people, one woman for criminal mischief and one man for possession of drugs. Two people were taken ill and a 15-year-old boy was injured when he fell from the railing he was climbing. The police called an ambulance as a safety measure, reported.
Japan Forward
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Japan Forward
How Are Chinese Persuasive Narratives Shaping Japanese Public Opinion?
Recent opinion polls have shown that close to 90% of the Japanese public have a negative opinion of China. Among the reasons for the unfavorable attitude towards Japan's giant neighbor are the continuing incursions by Chinese vessels into waters around the Senkaku Islands, the arrests of Japanese living in China, attacks on Japanese schoolchildren in Chinese cities, and the anti-Japan sentiment rampant on Chinese social media. Japan would hardly seem fertile ground for Chinese influence operations. But that is definitely not so, according to a new study. A team led by Professor Tetsuro Kobayashi of Waseda University's School of Political Science and Economics carried out the research. Using two online survey experiments, he and his team examined how Japanese citizens respond to narratives propagated by authoritarian regimes (namely China and Russia) compared to those dominant in democratic societies. They exposed survey participants to both types of narratives and then measured shifts in opinion. The results were startling and definitely concerning. A bouquet of flowers was offered near the school bus stop where a Chinese assailant tried to stab a Japanese mother and her son in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, China. June 30, 2024 (©Kyodo) According to Kobayashi, "The results showed that both illiberal and mainstream narratives produced persuasive effects in the intended direction. However, the illiberal narratives tended to have a greater impact than mainstream narratives." A similar study was previously conducted in Germany. It had shown that individuals with low political knowledge and strong authoritarian tendencies were more vulnerable to illiberal narratives and conspiracy theories. However, the responses of Japanese participants in Kobayashi's study revealed them to be broadly susceptible to illiberal narratives regardless of their prior political knowledge and ideological profile. That led Kobayashi to conclude, "This suggests that it is not only specific segments of the Japanese population that are influenced by illiberal narratives. Rather, it suggests that Japanese individuals are broadly susceptible." An article in the online journal "Democratization" sums up the group's research. Published on March 12, it is titled "Autocracies Win the Minds of the Democratic Public: How Japanese citizens are persuaded by illiberal narratives propagated by authoritarian regimes." It defines illiberal narratives as "story-based messages promoted by authoritarian states to influence public opinion in their favor." Peace March at Tokyo Ginza street by people from Myanmar, Cambodia, Iran, Ukraine, Belarus, Tibet, Uyghur, Southern Mongolia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, and Japan. (Facebook/ MI & FF) The research involved two online experiments with more than 2,500 Japanese participants in each. Participants were exposed to Chinese and Russian narratives as well as mainstream narratives concerning 12 topics. In China's case, these included the Uyghur, Tibet, and Taiwan issues. Japan's handling of the release of wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant was also included. China also expended considerable effort to convince the Japanese public that its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic was more effective than approaches in Japan and other democratic societies. The contrasting narratives canceled each other out to a certain degree. However, the illiberal narratives ended up having a stronger impact, especially when presented last. That was true even when participants knew that the narrative originated in China or Russia ー attribution had minimal impact. In other words, the illiberal narratives effectively shaped public opinion, even among skeptics or individuals with quite different political beliefs. The study does not get into the question of why Japanese should be so vulnerable to illiberal narratives. However, it mentions the proliferation of social media. Members of a Kansai delegation to China, including Masayoshi Matsumoto, Chairman of the Kansai Economic Federation (center) in November 2024 in Beijing. (©Sankei by Kohei Inoue) SNS has created new avenues for authoritarian states to influence democratic societies, sway public opinion in their favor, and even destabilize target societies. These narratives are created in such a way as to appeal to and manipulate cultural emotions and values. Meanwhile, they undermine the liberal democratic order. Persuasive narratives are specifically crafted to appeal to emotions, making it more difficult to construct counterarguments. They are powerful, and their effects are often enduring. In China's case, such narratives are only one weapon in its influence operations and full-spectrum cognitive warfare on Western society. One specific "hard" propaganda case mentioned in the report was direct Chinese involvement in Japanese politics during the 2024 lower house election. "Wolf warrior" Xue Jian, the Chinese Consul General in Osaka, in effect endorsed the Reiwa Shinsengumi Party candidate. Xue Jian, China's Consul General in Osaka. The report notes that this was only one instance of China's public diplomacy extending its influence into Japan's domestic politics. One worrying conclusion reached in the study concerns the cultural proximity of East Asian democracies to China and Russia. According to the study, this may make them more receptive than other democracies to illiberal Chinese and Russian narratives that challenge the liberal international order. It adds, "This calls into question the assumed alignment of East Asian democracies with the US-led liberal democratic order." The authors of the report do not explain how they came to this provocative conclusion. I would certainly like to see comparative research to either confirm or challenge it. After all, some segments of the citizenry of the United States and Europe have completely bought into Russian narratives. If the conclusion is true, what is it about the cultural values and thought processes of East Asians that makes them different? In any event, China, Russia, and other authoritarian regimes are clearly determined to exploit divisions in democratic societies. Trade wars present them with an environment that makes their task all the easier. The question becomes how to counteract illiberal narratives and other forms of subversion designed to exploit domestic dissatisfaction in democracies. Author: John Carroll
