BalkanThemes A Publication

Volume 1 : Issue 1 Missing Persons

!!!About Balkan Diskurs !Introduction to BalkanThemes !Organizational Spotlight: International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP) !ICMP: Continuing Work in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by Anna Fontanini, Benjamin Lemerle and Stephanie Sugars

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Contents

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About Balkan Diskurs !Balkan Diskurs  is a non-profit, multimedia platform created and run by a regional n e t work o f j o urna l i sts , bloggers, multimedia artists, and activists who came together in response to the lack of objective, relevant, invigorating , independent regional media. In a media culture dominated by political interests, we are different. The work on our site connects themes across borders and p r o v i d e s f r e s h a n d independent views on issues that matter to all people in the countries of the former Yugoslavia. Our platform has no restriction on theme, but ultimately we are dedicated to t h e c e a s e l e s s effo r t o f challenging stereotypes and providing viewpoints on society, culture, and politics that cannot be found in other media. As such, some of our r e g u l a r t o p i c s i n c l u d e transitional justice, inequality, a n d huma n r i g ht s . We encourage the public to interact on our platform by commenting , submitting original pieces, or by  sending us a postcard. While our platform does not propose ready-made solutions to the many problems facing our countries, we do aim to make o u r r e g i o n m o r e understandable and more transparent—both for local and international audiences.

!Bosnia and Herzegovina !Croatia !Kosovo !Outside Focus: Libya !Macedonia !Montenegro !Serbia !Missing in Syria, by Stephanie Sugars !Missing Persons in Albania, by Anna Fontanini !Contributors !Citations

Introduction to BalkanThemes !BalkanThemes is a new initiative developed by volunteers at the Post-Conflict Research Center (PCRC). It aims to provide readers with up-to-date information on a variety of topics affecting the countries of the former Yugoslavia and the Greater Balkans region. Publications will provide insights into a variety of themes and topics pertinent to countries that have experienced conflict, with a specific focus on how these issues are developing across Southeastern Europe. Because topics of focus will often be global in nature, updates on countries outside of the former Yugoslavia will also be featured periodically. Given the recent conflicts, this issue of BalkanThemes features reports on missing persons in Libya and Syria in order to provide a contrasting and contemporary context in which the case of missing persons has evolved.

Each publication will be composed of approximately seven brief summaries on recent happenings in the successor states of the former Yugoslavia (namely Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia), as well as one or two featured articles that will explore the topic in greater detail in either a Balkan or external context.

We hope that you find BalkanThemes a useful tool as in your search to better understand modern topics within the context of the Balkans region. We invite any constructive feedback at info@balkandiskurs.com.

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Below: Coffins containing the remains of victims of the July 1995 Srebrenica Genocide are laid out for burial on 11 July 2014 in Potočari, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Photo by Taylor McConnell

Organizational Spotlight: International Commission o n M i s s i n g P e r s o n s (ICMP) !Around the globe, there are millions of reported cases of people who are missing or have disappeared[1]. Many of these people are the victims of armed conflict, human rights abuses, n a t u r a l d i s a s t e r s , h u m a n trafficking, organized crime and other tragic circumstances. !The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) was established in 1996 in response to the wars in the former Yug os lavia , to ensure the cooperation of governments in order to locate and identify those who have gone missing due to confl ict and human rig hts violations[2]. Since its inception, the ICMP has expanded its role in order to respond to other crises, such as natural disasters. It has pioneered the use of DNA as a means of mass identification and is active in many parts of the world. In 2013, the ICMP hosted the first conference[3], which specifically addressed the subject of missing persons, with presentations by many experts. The conference called attention to the problem of missing persons and urg ed for an i n t e r n a t i o n a l l y o r g a n i z e d method to the location and identification of the missing[4].

ICMP: Continuing Work in Bosnia and Herzegovina !On 31 May 2014, Post-Conflict Research Center (PCRC) representatives visited the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) – a Sarajevo based international organization whose work is crucial in providing evidence of the traces left by a war fought just twenty years ago. The ICMP was established by the initiative of U.S. President Bill Clinton in 1996 at the G-7 Summit in Lyon, France, with the support of several Western and European countries. According to its mandate, the Commission's primary mission is “to ensure the cooperation of governments in locating and identifying those who have disappeared during armed conflicts or as a result of human rights violations.” !At that time, it was decided that the headquarters of this new international organization would be established in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). The choice of this location, in the heart of the Balkans and only a few years after the end of the war (1992–1995), was a powerful statement. Nevertheless, the headquarters will soon move to The Hague to be closer to other international bodies whose work relates to international justice, such as the International Criminal Court and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). ICMP has conducted many of its activities not only in the Balkans but also worldwide, with the primary objective to assist governments, national actors, and NGOs in the location and identification of missing persons. !In that respect, the work of the ICMP in the Balkans has been remarkably successful. More than 70 percent of the 40,000 missing from the region have been accounted for. Klaudia Kuljuh, Chief of Cabinet for the Balkans Program at ICMP, views this as a testament to the commitment of families and communities to the identification of those lost. Ms. Kuljuh is not satisfied with this, however, stating, “99 percent cannot be considered success because there is still remains that one percent who don't know where their loved ones are.” Of the victims of the July 1995 Srebrenica massacre, for example, more than 1,000 are still missing. !New protocols for identification are being developed almost daily. The ability to collect DNA from bone fragments has enabled further identification of fragmented remains, and education on the process of blood and DNA analysis has led to a constant expansion of ICMP’s DNA database, which currently contains more than 91,000 blood samples. The expansion of the collection of blood samples is particularly important given the challenges associated with misidentification of remains by classical means, which include visual identification of clothing or belongings. !However, the Chief of Cabinet believes that there is much more work to be done. “Despite all successes,” she explained with frustration and disappointment, “when speaking to politicians, you realize how little they care.” Ms. Kuljuh’s work focuses on coordination with the state governments receiving ICMP's assistance. She believes that the government of BiH has failed to provide adequate psychological support to families. Politicians, she added, only offer support in the periods leading up to elections to further their own campaigns, giving money to small family associations. (continued on next page)

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Nearly 95 percent of ICMP employees are locally engaged staff, though almost all have received training abroad as there are currently no Bosnian faculties for forensic anthropology or forensic pathology. While there are now scholarships available in the Federation of BiH (the entity carved out in the Dayton Accords for ethnic Croats and Muslims) for forensic anthropology, ongoing processes of locating and exhuming mass graves across Bosnia are reliant on the presence of the ICMP. These individuals are crucial to the exhumation and identification process yet cannot be employed outside the organization, as their degrees are not recognized by the state. !ICMP's work in BiH is not yet finished. In the aftermath of the recent floods, bones were uncovered in two new locations. “Hopefully we will find more graves,” Ms. Kuljuh stated. Ultimately, ICMP wants the government to establish the capacity and political will to take over its work, continuing the exhumation, identification, and prosecution processes. !Many challenges still remain for BiH. Firstly, some war criminals are still seen as war heroes. The Chief of Cabinet stressed that rather than focusing on nationality, we must see humanity as a collective of humans. She emphasized that “each criminal has a name—it’s not about Serb, Croat or Bosniak,” and the individual, not the group, should be prosecuted for crimes. Secondly, challenges arise in identifying individuals whose entire families were killed during the war. !ICMP is also involved in assisting governments worldwide. The organization is present in Southeast Europe (BiH, Croatia, Serbia, Kosovo), South America (Chile, Colombia), and the Middle East (Iraq, Kuwait, Libya). ICMP has also helped identify missing persons in North America and Southeast Asia in the aftermath of natural disasters.

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!Bosnia and Herzegovina !Out of an estimated 40,000 people reported missing in the former Yugoslavia at the end of the conflict in 1995, 30,000 are from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)[5]. Over 70 percent of missing persons have been identified, most of whom are Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) but also include Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Serbs[6]. Approximately 10,000 people have yet to be found. BiH’s divided political and administrative structure, as well as a lack of political will, continue to hinder the process of identifying missing persons and implementing the Law of the Missing (2004), which is meant to address the management of central records, support the rights of family members of missing persons, and improve the tracing process[7]. Despite these obstacles, the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), the Missing Persons Institute, local organizations, government officials, and family members of the missing continue to make progress towards the recovery and identification of victims of the conflict. !The past month saw notable advancements through the recovery of bodies in Doboj, BiH and the remembrance and burials of family members in Srebrenica and Prijedor. After the recent heavy flooding in BiH, 11 bodies of Bosniaks killed in 1992 were uncovered from the village of Usora in the Doboj municipality[8]. The victims’ bodies were found with bullet wounds and their wrists bound in wire. July 11th marked the annual commemoration of the fall of Srebrenica, the only officially recognized act of genocide during the conflict. This year, 175 newly identified victims were laid to rest and grieved by family members[9]. On 20 July 2014 in the northwestern town of Kozarac, 284 victims from the recently discovered mass grave of Tomašica near Prijedor were buried[10]. The remains of over 430 individuals have been found at Tomašica. Witnesses say that around 1,000 people were tossed into the pit, many of whom were later dug up and relocated to conceal evidence of atrocities[11].

Croatia !According to data from the International Commission for Missing Persons, over 5,500 individuals from the Republic of Croatia went missing during the period from 1991- 1995[12]. The Government Commission, formally known as the “Commission of the Government of the Republic of Croatia on Detained and Missing Persons,” established in 2005, has been responsible for conducting excavations at approximately 143 mass grave sites and over 2,000 individual sites, and has identified over 3,380 missing persons. As of October 2013, 1,684 people are still registered as missing with the Government Commission[13].

In 1995, during “Operation Storm”, which lasted only 36 hours, Croatian forces began an offensive to reclaim the Krajina region, which had been under Serb control since 1991[14]. Throughout this time, over 250,000 Serbs fled the country and approximately 240,000 became internally displaced[15]. 677 civilians were killed according to the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Croatia.

As of June 2014, media reports state that 1,281 bodies of Serb victims have been exhumed in Croatia, but only 858 have been identified[16].

5Kosovo !More than 1,700 people are still missing in Kosovo following the end of the war in the late 1990s. In recent months, the United Nations has called for enhanced cooperation from the Serbian and Kosovar governments in locating and uncovering mass graves from both ethnic groups[17]. Currently, at least 500 of the missing persons are ethnically Serb, while the remainder are Albanian Kosovars. In early June 2014, a mass grave was discovered in the Rudnica Quarry in Serbia, where 45 bodies have since been found and are presumed to be those of Albanian Kosovars[18]. It is expected that the remains of another 250 individuals in surrounding areas have yet to be uncovered[19]. Talks are ongoing, with the assistance of the EU, to improve relations between Belgrade and Pristina, yet little has been discussed in regard to missing persons from either side of the conflict[20].

Below: Experts begin to excavate a suspected mass grave site in Rudnica, Serbia (Photo via Associated Press)

Outside Focus: Libya !The issue of missing persons in Libya relates not only to the violent uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011[21], but also to victims killed by security services during Gaddafi’s rule. Estimates for the number of missing persons vary[22]. Shortly after the conflict, the newly created Ministry for Martyrs and Missing People estimated that around 4,000 - 5,000 individuals went missing during Gaddafi’s 42-year rule, with 20,000 - 25,000 people missing as a result of the conflict. However, in January 2013, the latter of these numbers was reduced to 2,100[23].

Initially, progress in dealing with this issue was slow as the country was ill-equipped to deal with the problem, but the international community has since taken steps to help the country locate and identify missing persons[24-26]. The International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) has led the way, conducting a training course for a Libyan delegation in February 2014[27], which also resulted in a commitment for further cooperation between the ICMP and Libyan ministries and institutions[28]. The first remains from mass graves in Libya were identified in ICMP labs in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina in June 2013[29].

Macedonia !In 2001, insurgents of the Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA) attacked government forces of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The NLA represented a militant faction of Albanian Macedonians, who made up approximately a quarter of the total population of FYROM, demanding greater autonomy and respect of minority rights for Albanians in Macedonia. Eleven months of fighting left around 150-250 people dead and nearly 140,000 internally displaced. No verifiable numbers were published, but it is estimated that 70 civilians were killed in the conflict, 60 of whom were Albanian and 10 of whom were Macedonian. According to data provided by the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), 23 people went missing in 2001, of which 13 are still missing[30].

A human rights report released by the Council of Europe in April 2013 called for the chief prosecutor of Macedonia to reopen the so-called “Neprosteno” case, named after the kidnapping and murder of 12 ethnic Macedonians and one ethnic Bulgarian by NLA rebels near the north-western city of Tetovo[31]. Two years earlier, the Macedonian parliament dropped several high-publicity war crimes cases, including the “Neprosteno” case. It is suggested that these cases were dropped due to political arrangements between the dominant ruling party the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE) and its junior coalition partner, the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI), which was formed by several former NLA combatants. On 24 July 2014, a monument to the Neprosteno kidnapping victims was unveiled, with attendees from the Interior Ministry and leading political parties[32].

Montenegro !Montenegro, in comparison to other Balkan nations, was “only marginally affected by the war,” thus resulting in fewer missing persons cases[33]. However, there are reported cases of Montenegrin police transferring Bosnian citizens to the de facto authorities in the Republika Srpska[34]. The most well-known example of such a transfer took place in 1992, when 83 Bosniak civilians were deported from Montenegro to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) — to this day the fate of at least 34 of those civilians remains unknown[35]. In 2008, the Montenegrin government agreed to compensate the 193 family members and survivors affected by this deportation to account for its role in the handover of refugees to RS forces[36]. Moreover, in 2012 the Montenegrin Appellate Court ruled that the conflict should be considered an international event and that perpetrators could be prosecuted for war crimes even though there were no armed conflicts in Montenegro in 1992. Following this decision, a retrial of nine Montenegrin police officers and government officials was initiated but was since adjourned[37].

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Serbia !A 2008 report from the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) indicated that the Republic of Serbia is still actively searching for its citizens who went missing within the territories of Croatia, Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), as well as for citizens of the Republic of Croatia—ethnic Serbs—whose relatives live in Serbia[38]. To address the issue of missing persons, the Republic of Serbia launched an investigation with the ICMP in Belgrade. The missing Serbs were mainly victims of Operation Storm in August 1995 in Croatia[39], and of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during and after the conflict in Kosovo in 1999[40].

In the case of Operation Storm, the bodies of 1,281 Serb victims have been found over the past 13 years, and 858 bodies have since been identified[41]. Additionally, approximately 800 Serbs were killed by the KLA in the late nineties[42]. More recently, the governments of the seven states of the Former Yugoslavia have been urged to sign a declaration to work together and more intensively on the issue of missing people across the region. Out of 40,000 people missing as a result of the Balkan wars, 13,000 remain missing[43].

The involvement of the government of the Republic of Serbia in searching for, exhuming, and identifying missing persons is considerable, but surely could be increased a great deal. In a 2012 publication, Amnesty International stated that it believes the War Crimes Prosecutor in Serbia should open an investigation into the Ministry of Interior police payroll under the general’s control[44]. Indeed, Serbia has recently been implicated in operations aimed at concealing the remains of Kosovo Albanian victims. Despite this fact, however, the Serbian Ministry of Interior has been increasingly involved in the exhumation and identification process of the Serbian-caused casualties and has steadily become more cooperative.

Left: Searchers dig for human remains at a mass grave site near Lake Peručać, Bosnia

and Herzegovina !Right: A member of the

search team displays a victim's digital watch found near

Lake Peručać, Bosnia and Herzegovina !

Photos by Velija Hasanbegović

Missing in Syria, by Stephanie Sugars !To be missing in Syria is all too often considered to be one of two things: dead or detained. More than 99,000 Syrians have disappeared during the almost 40 months of ongoing conflict, according to new statistics released by the Department of Statistics[45] and the Democratic Republic Studies Center in June 2014[46]. While based on data collected by the Committee of Syrian Revolution Martyrs and the Local Coordination Committees, the Syrian Center for Statistics and Research, the Syrian Human Rights Violations Center, and Damascus Centre for Human Rights Studies, this is still just an approximation[47]. In May 2013, similar estimations of persons missing due to the conflict ranged from 10,000 to as high as 120,000. Much of this disparity can be attributed to the refusal of Syrian authorities and various armed opposition groups to provide statistics regarding how many they have detained, as well as the status and fates of many of these detainees. Additionally, there are currently no independent monitors or third party actors that are allowed access to detainment facilities. !A 'missing person' is, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross, someone whose whereabouts are unknown to his/her relatives and/or who, on the basis of reliable information, has been reported missing in connection with an armed conflict, internal violence or disturbances, or natural catastrophe[48-49]. Unlike with the death of a loved one, when someone is missing there is no opportunity for closure and families are left in agony, fraught with anxiety about the fate of their fathers, mothers, brothers, children, and friends. For many, the uncertainty amounts to a form of psychological torture. !Unfortunately, 'enforced disappearances' are common in Syria and constitute a sizable portion of missing persons in the state. Defined in the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance as “the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of the State... followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person,” enforced disappearance is a war crime under international law[50]. !Both Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch believe that the majority of detainees in Syria are being held under conditions amounting to enforced disappearance[51-52] . Anwar al-Bounni, a veteran defense lawyer and human rights campaigner in Damascus, stated that in Syria the goal is to “terrorize the society and dry up the revolution. The regime focuses on arresting peaceful activists to turn it purely into an armed conflict”[53]. Indeed, enforced disappearance is being employed as a deliberate strategy to terrorize families and communities and to spread a fear capable of crippling resistance and silencing dissent. !When someone is a potential target, the threat is constantly looming overhead, casting a shadow over everyday life. International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) spokeswoman Rina Kamal spoke to the difficulties of identifying potential targets of enforced disappearance, as people from everywhere and from all walks of life, have been among those taken[54]. A 2013 Huffington Post article reported that people—often peaceful opponents, civil society leaders, defense lawyers, doctors, and aid workers—are seized from homes, offices, checkpoints, and even off the street, and have disappeared without a trace[55]. !Assad government forces do not hold a monopoly on these tactics, however, and children are not immune to its use. On 30 May, 153 teenage boys aged 13-16 were kidnapped by ISIS forces as they were returning to their homes in the mostly Kurdish town of Ain al-`Arab (Kobani in Kurdish) near the Turkish border after taking their exams in Aleppo[56]. While they reached Aleppo without incident, the convoy of about 10 minibuses was stopped upon their return and taken to a religious school in Manbej, for “lessons in Sharia and jihadist ideology.” While two boys escaped and 15 others were released in mid-June, the vast majority are still there. Their families desperately await any news on the condition of their children and pray for their release after more than a month of detainment. (continued on next page)

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! Families are often left without any information on the status of their family members. To alleviate some of this uncertainty, the Damascus office of the ICRC regularly requests information from the Assad government as well as opposition groups about individuals detained by their forces, with about 1,300 requests submitted in 2013[57-58]. While partial replies on 271 detainees were received and forwarded to the families, the status of many others remains unknown. Those detained without proper documentation are at far greater risk of torture and maltreatment, often being held in secret detention facilities[59].

From 15-19 June, a delegation from Syria, consisting of Syrian Commission for Transitional Justice (SCTJ) staff and headed by Dr. Radwan Ziadeh, visited Bosnia and Herzegovina[60]. Organized and planned in cooperation with the International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP), the central purpose of the visit was to learn about the Bosnian experience in the field of transitional justice, especially in addressing enforced disappearance. The delegation was briefed on the experiences of Bosnia in establishing courts, developing legislation to support and protect victims, memorializing and commemorating victims, and adhering to international human rights law, conventions, and agreements. This visit indicates a commitment to the identification of missing persons in Syria and brings hope for a successful transition following the cessation of violence.

The Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic issued a report in June stating “the conflict in Syria has reached a tipping point, threatening the entire region. With warring parties in unrelenting pursuit of the illusion of a military victory, violence has escalated to an unprecedented level. For perpetrators of crimes, there is no fear or thought of consequence”[61]. Under these conditions, it is impossible to use the expertise of ICMP to begin the long process of finding, exhuming, and identifying the dead, and thus, families of the missing will have to bear the heavy weight of uncertainty of their loved ones' fates for some time to come.

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Missing Persons in Albania, by Anna Fontanini !The issue of missing persons in Albania can be better understood if divided into two categories.

The first category can be considered political as it includes political opponents from the Communist regime, political dissidents of the current government, and combatants and civilians who disappeared during and after the Kosovo war (1998-1999). The second category is a result of the post regime society, where regulations, social care and employment opportunities are absent and corrupt politicians rule the country, which results in the hideous contemporary phenomenon of human trafficking.

No precise data exists regarding the current number of missing persons in Albania, and the new, nominally democratic, government does not appear ready to open this chapter. The identification of missing persons is a fundamental step in the process toward reconciliation in a post-conflict society.

Albanian society has been experiencing rights violations and abuses by the ruling class[62]. People have been subjected to forced disappearance, tearing families apart and leaving their loved with only the hope of seeing the missing walk through the door again someday. This is contributing to a growing sense of mistrust toward the government and feelings of insecurity among citizens.

The issue of missing persons deeply affects the psychology of post-conflict societies. Families that have lost a relative are often unable to think about anything other than the current whereabouts of their relatives and what may have ultimately happened to them. The process of grieving a loss is a necessary step towards the acceptance of such a tragedy. For many, however, the grieving process can only begin once one is able to bury a body, and, as long as this painful chapter remains open, widespread reconciliation remains at a standstill; mothers searching for their children may be unable to forgive unless they can lay their children to rest in a dignified manner. (continued on next page)

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Contributors !Anna Fontanini Benjamin Lemerle Jemma Hoare Jennifer MacNeill Juliette Ganne Matthew McEveety Stephanie Sugars Taylor McConnell Thomas Van Vynckt Yeree Woo !Design/Cover !Taylor McConnell

The identification process is also an important tool in the establishment of facts that can later be used as evidence in court proceedings. Combating impunity is necessary in the prevention of future atrocities.

Under the Communist regime of the leader Enver Hoxha (1994-1985), repression of political opponents and religious representatives was a regular practice. During this time, an indeterminate number of people went missing. Throughout his 40-year reign, religion was banned, travel forbidden and private property outlawed. Any resistance to his rule was met with brutal retribution, including internal exile, long-term imprisonment or execution.

Following Hoxha’s regime, a more “democratic” repression towards political opponents continued with President Sali Berisha: since 1992, numerous critics of the government have been harassed, tried, imprisoned or, in a few cases, physically attacked by unknown assailants—usually without any response from the government.

A large number of persons also went missing during the Kosovo war, including Kosovar Albanians, Serbs, and members other ethnic groups. Investigations have shown the credibility of allegations concerning approximately 400 Serbs who went missing after the war and who were transferred from Kosovo to Albania where their internal organs were harvested and transported out of the country[63]. Since 2003, reports show that Albania is a source country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labour, including forced begging[64]. Albanian victims are trafficked primarily to Greece, but also to Italy, Macedonia, Kosovo, Spain, France, the U.K. and other Western European countries, as well as within Albania. Available data indicates that more than half the victims of trafficking are under the age of eighteen[65].

The new Government of Albania has improved the legal framework necessary to reduce the flow of trafficked children, but it must develop a national child protection system aimed at combating the poverty that drives such exploitation.

During a June 2014 interview with the head of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) program in Libya Muhamed Duraković, I asked about the procedures needed to begin the location and identification of missing persons in a country. In order to operate, he explained, ICMP must be invited by the country’s government. Mr. Duraković underlined that Albania has never requested ICMP collaboration, nor has it started the identification process of its own accord. This begs the question: why is the government unwilling to undertake this process? Of course, “no government wants to share personal information about its citizens,” Mr. Duraković explained. “If a government can do this job on its own, it will.

Citations !1. http://www.ic-mp.org/?resources=the-missing-an-agenda-for-the-future-conference-report 2. http://www.ic-mp.org/about-us/history/ 3. http://www.ic-mp.org/?resources=the-missing-an-agenda-for-the-future-conference-report 4. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/new-approach-urged-in-hunt-for-missing-millions/1446/ 5. http://www.ic-mp.org/icmp-worldwide/southeast-europe/bosnia-and-herzegovina/ 6. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/bosnian-lessons-in-search-for-the-missing 7. http://www.ic-mp.org/wp-content/uploads/2007/11/lawmp_en.pdf 8. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/bosnia-finds-11-war-dead-after-floods 9. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2689059/Families-lay-175-newly-identified-Sreberenica-victims-rest-town-marks-19th-anniversary-Europe-s-worst-

massacre-World-War-Two.html 10. http://www.ic-mp.org/press-releases/prijedor-burial-of-284/" \l "more-2141 11. http:/uk.reuters.com/article/2014/07/20/uk-bosnia-burial-idUKKBN0FP0JY20140720 12. http://www.ic-mp.org/icmp-worldwide/southeast-europe/republic-of-croatia/ 13. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/croatia-19-bodies-exhumed-14-identified 14. http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6a7d70.html 15. http://www.unhcr.org/42f38b084.html 16. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/croatia-exhumes-18-serbs-killed-in-operation-storm 17. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/un-group-demands-urgent-act-on-missing-persons-in-kosovo 18. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/new-remains-discovered-in-kosovo-mass-grave 19. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/serbia-searches-new-mass-grave-near-raska 20. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/un-group-demands-urgent-act-on-missing-persons-in-kosovo 21. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn21086-libyan-plan-to-trace-mass-graves-and-missing-people.html 22. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8787727/Libya-mass-grave-found-in-Tripoli.html 23. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jan/08/libyan-revolution-casualties-lower-expected-government 24. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-17429113 25. http://www.icrc.org/eng/where-we-work/africa/libya/facts-figures-libya-long.htm 26. http://unsmil.unmissions.org/Default.aspx?tabid=5293&language=en-US 27. http://www.ic-mp.org/press-releases/libyan-delegation-completes-course/ 28. http://www.ic-mp.org/press-releases/libyan-minister-gadur-visits-icmp/ 29. http://www.scotsman.com/news/world/dna-lab-identifies-first-bodies-from-libyan-mass-grave-1-2973564 30. http://www.ic-mp.org/icmp-worldwide/southeast-europe/ 31. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/relatives-demand-reopening-of-macedonian-missing-persons-case 32. http://www.skopjediem.com/-latest-news/22970-monument-to-people-kidnapped-in-neprosteno-village-in-2001-unveiled.html 33. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/missing-person-s-families-left-in-the-dark 34. http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR05/001/2012/en/0a33c2c7-c145-4958-a8d1-b946b569c6aa/eur050012012en.pdf 35. http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR05/001/2012/en/0a33c2c7-c145-4958-a8d1-b946b569c6aa/eur050012012en.pdf 36. http://www.refworld.org/pdfid/45a24f4e2.pdf 37. http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/EUR05/001/2012/en/0a33c2c7-c145-4958-a8d1-b946b569c6aa/eur050012012en.pdf 38. http://www.ic-mp.org/icmp-worldwide/southeast-europe/republic-of-serbia/ 39. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/croatia-exhumes-18-serbs-killed-in-operation-storm 40. https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_download.php?id=663560593737070&eid=ASvzBEKDm4jewE2oPRXIWrTE1xmaD8SPcahNqnAvUQtGj8b

98ohmyoAugCDOn5ogK2k&inline=1&ext=1406019984&hash=AStOMst0o3tUcmDp 41. www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/croatia-exhumes-18-serbs-killed-in-operation-storm 42. https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_download.php?id=663560593737070&eid=ASvzBEKDm4jewE2oPRXIWrTE1xmaD8SPcahNqnAvUQtGj8b

98ohmyoAugCDOn5ogK2k&inline=1&ext=1406019984&hash=AStOMst0o3tUcmDp 43. www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/process-of-search-for-missing-persons-needs-acceleration 44. https://attachment.fbsbx.com/file_download.php?id=663560593737070&eid=ASvzBEKDm4jewE2oPRXIWrTE1xmaD8SPcahNqnAvUQtGj8b

98ohmyoAugCDOn5ogK2k&inline=1&ext=1406019984&hash=AStOMst0o3tUcmDp 45. http://www.syrianobserver.com/News/News/New+Statistics+Estimate+Over+230000+Dead 46. http://drsc-sy.org/tag/إحصائيات-الثورة-السورية/?lang=en 47. For information about the Committee of Syrian Revolution Martrys, visit www.syrianmartyr.com; the Syrian Center for Statistics and Research at

www.csr-sy.org/?l=1; the Syrian Human Rights Violation Center at www.vdc-sy.info/index.php/en/about; and the Damascus Centre for Human Rights Studies at dchrs.org/english/news.php.

48. http://www.icrc.org/eng/assets/files/other/model-law-missing-0209-eng-.pdf 49. http://www.icrc.org/eng/where-we-work/middle-east/syria/ 50. http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/ProfessionalInterest/disappearance-convention.pdf 51. http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/syria/report-2013#section-142-12 52. http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/syria0712webwcover.pdf 53. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/17/syria-enforced-disappearances_n_3294010.htm 54. http://www.syriadeeply.org/articles/2013/10/2511/dead-detained-private-hell-families-syrias-missing/ 55. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/17/syria-enforced-disappearances_n_3294010.htm 56. http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/06/30/syria-isis-holds-130-kurdish-children 57. http://www.icrc.org/eng/assets/files/annual-report/current/icrc-annual-report-syria.pdf 58. http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/update/2013/09-30-syria-missing.htm 59. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9618263/Fears-for-thousands-of-missing-Syrians.html 60. http://www.iamsyria.org/syrian-commission-for-transitional-justice-visits-bosnia-and-herzegovina.html 61. http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/HRBodies/HRCouncil/CoISyria/A-HRC-26-CRP-2_en.pdf 62. http://www.hrw.org/legacy/summaries/s.albania963.html 63. http://www.hrw.org/news/2008/05/04/kosovoalbania-investigate-postwar-abductions-transfers-albania 64. http://gvnet.com/humantrafficking/Albania.htm 65. http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/123361.pdf

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