Youth Initiative for Human Rights has sent an appeal to president of Croatia, Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic, to take away medal from war criminals convicted for crimes committed during Croatia’s aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina.
YIHR’s report states that according to their knowledge president Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic hasn’t taken away medals from Dario Kordic, who was convicted in 2004 with sentence of 25 years in prison for war crimes he committed in Ahmici. Medals haven’t been taken from other five convicted criminals: Jadranko Prlic, Slobodan Praljak, Bruno Stojic, Milivoje Petkovic and Valentin Coric. They have reminded that the Initiative has sent incentives to subtract the medals in January this year to the State Commission for Medals and Recognition at the Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia and they haven’t got any response from them to this date.
The Initiative underlined that these medals are insult to the victims, shame for the Republic of Croatia and the burden on reconciliation process between the societies in the region.
On Monday, 16th of April it has been 25 years since crimes in Ahmici were committed by Croatian Defense Council (HVO) where 116 civilians of Bosniac ethnicity have been killed, amongst them 11 children. This crime is one of the worst committed by Croatian forces during conflict between Republic of Croatia and Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1993 and 1994 when Croatia had full control over forces of Croatian Defense Council (HVO).
