A new podcast which tells the story of the Bosnian massacre from the perspective of survivors and relatives of those murdered has been launched.
Over six episodes, the
podcast called Untold Killing explores the events of July 1995, when more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslims were murdered in Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) academic Associate Professor Kim Sadique, chair of DMU’s Global Peace and Transnational Justice Research Group, has contributed to the podcast which was created by charity Remembering Srebrenica in partnership with production company Message Heard.
Kim, who is also chair of the East Midlands board of Remembering Srebrenica shares the testimony of genocide survivor Kada Hotić in the podcast.
She said: “Kada is a truly amazing, resilient and inspirational woman and it was an honour to be able to share her testimony. As an activist criminologist I am particularly concerned that learning translates into action. These podcasts were produced to raise awareness, memorialise the victims of the genocide and to educate, but most importantly for me, to move listeners to combat genocide denial, to challenge hatred in all its forms and to take action to build a stronger, more cohesive society".
"Some of the work being undertaken by the Global Peace and Transitional Justice Research Group at DMU focuses on genocide survivors' right to be heard; the pedagogy underpinning genocide education and the recording and archiving of survivor testimony. It is vital that we preserve victim and survivor stories so we can learn from them”.
“How can we ensure that 'never again' means never again if we don't understand the context in which such hatred was allowed to flourish and such atrocities allowed to be committed? This podcast series is an excellent resource for all to learn about Srebrenica and pay tribute to the courage and resilience shown under the most horrific circumstances.”
The podcast series covers months of detailed research, production, and interviews, both in the United Kingdom and Bosnia, where the brutal atrocity took place. Genocide survivors, academics, experts, and individuals from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) all lend their voices and expertise to the podcast.
Some 25 years after the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, many survivors continue to struggle to tell their story and many are still searching for the remains of those they lost in order to put them to rest. Each year on July 11th, a mass burial is held at the Srebrenica Memorial Centre where the remains of those found in mass graves are collectively buried.
Dr Waqar Azmi, chairman of Remembering Srebrenica, said: “My hope is that while listening to this podcast people, particularly young people, will learn what happened in Srebrenica and obtain a greater understanding of issues that will enable them to tackle hatred and intolerance in their own communities.”
Genocide survivor Kadefa Rizvanovic, who lost her husband and numerous relatives in the massacre, is among those who shared their experiences on the podcast. She said: “It is painful, extremely painful to remember those days in 1995 but I must do it, not just because of my loved ones and myself but because of the future generations, who must learn from what happened to us in Srebrenica and pave the path towards genocide prevention.”
The trailer of Untold Killing was released on July 11th, the anniversary of the genocide, and can be viewed
here.
The podcast, reviewed in the Daily Mirror as “shocking, moving and educational”, will be available to download and subscribe to on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google podcast.
Posted on Tuesday 3 November 2020