The three lessons of Srebrenica

[Eugene]

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/07/11/the_three_lessons_of_srebrenica/

The three lessons of Srebrenica

By Swanee Hunt | July 11, 2005

TODAY, 50,000 people are expected to crowd into the Bosnian village
of Srebrenica, for a 10th anniversary that's no celebration. July 11
is a day of mourning for Bosnians as they commemorate the worst
atrocity in Europe since the Holocaust. On that day, the Serb militia
separated more than 7,000 unarmed Muslim men and boys from their
families, brutally murdered them, and threw their bodies into mass
graves. "Never again," we had said. We were wrong. And we'll be wrong
again unless we learn three key lessons.

First, the Srebrenica massacre demonstrates that genocidal aggression
requires well-reasoned military intervention. Americans assured the
Dutch that, if they would commit peacekeepers as a tripwire around
the UN-designated ''safe haven," the United States would lead forces
to come in with air support to stop a Serb onslaught. Instead, we let
ourselves be held back by a ''dual key" arrangement, whereby NATO
would not take action without the UN's affirmation.

more...

[eridani]

1. The other lesson is that it's just peachy keen--

-to have US mercenaries orchestrate the slaughter of 10,000 in the Krajina by Croatians and expel everybody else. And that it's merely coincidental that one incident is news and the other isn't.

[Vladimir]

2. Two things

Firstly, this is for obvious reasons a bit personal. I am sorry, for what its worth, that this sickening attrocity was comitted. After so many years of living together, we should have all known better, and it is a shame beyond words that we didn't.

Secondly, the problem with using Srebrenica to promote the cause of intervention is, as eridani correctly points out above, that intervention is always done for political, not humanitarian reasons. And some victims therefore become more worthy than others... that is why I am almost an absolute anti-interventionist.