DID YOU KNOW?  -- Three years before the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide, Serbs torched Bosniak villages and killed at least 3,166 Bosniaks around Srebrenica. In 1993, the UN described the besieged situation in Srebrenica as a "slow-motion process of genocide." In July 1995, Serbs forcibly expelled 25,000 Bosniaks, brutally raped many women and girls, and systematically killed 8,000+ men and boys (DNA confirmed).

17 December, 2007

DARKO TRIFUNOVIC: SREBRENICA GENOCIDE DENIER

Update: "You may ask again Dr. Trifunovic to clarify why he was expelled from the diplomatic service of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2001. (only after expulsion he became self proclaimed expert on terrorism writing mostly against Bosnia and Herzegovina) ..." - commented by Edin.

PHOTO: Darko Trifunovic, disgraced Srebrenica genocide denier and falsifier of history, in this undated photo. Courtesy New York -based Bosnjaci.net Magazine.

Srebrenica genocide denial is the most dangerous obstacle to the lasting peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and yet - it is a 'weapon' of choice for hate-mongerers. One of them is Darko Trifunovic who likes to think of himself as a "terrorism expert" or "specialist in terrorism and security studies" and is obsessed with only one specific kind of terrorism: "Islamic terrorism." However, a closer look at his activities reveals that he is far from being expert on anything, and can most accurately be described as a fringe conspiracy theorist and disgraced denier and justifier of Genocide in Srebrenica - nothing more, nothing less.

Tip: As an alternative to inaccurate, out-dated, and out-of-context taken analysis of Srebrenica victims' numbers used by deniers, please read our Frequently Asked Questions, including Srebrenica Numbers (Quick Facts), and DNA Analysis from the ICMP.

Mr Trifunovic's manufactured stories about "Islamic terrorism in Bosnia-Herzegovina" and his obsession with Islamic terrorism in general is rather biased and one-sided; he conveniently avoids to acknowledge judgments against the Serb terrorists (Generals Stanislav Galic and Dragomir Milosevic) who were sentenced by the International Criminal Tribunal to lengthy prison sentences for terrorism that claimed lives of 12,000 citizens of Sarajevo - including 1,500 Sarajevo children. In the 1992-95 war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Serb side was responsible for 85% of the crimes, but that doesn't stop Mr Trifunovic from falsifying facts, manufacturing stories, and justifying genocidal crimes of former Serb leader Radovan Karadzic (see Radovan Karadzic and Srebrenica Genocide).

The Association of Bosniaks in the Netherlands has reacted angrily at Mr Trifunovic's denials of Srebrenica genocide and has encouraged survivors of genocide to file a lawsuit against Mr Trifunovic. Srebrenica genocide denial is a hate crime in many European countries which Mr Trifunovic regularly visits to feed media and government officials with his hatred inspired propaganda (there is a protest letter available in the Bosnian language here).

Recently, the Congress of North American Bosniaks (CNAB), issued a letter to the organizers of the "11th European Police Congress" requesting Darko Trifunovic to be excluded from the forthcoming Congress. In this letter, CNAB stated, quote:

One of the speakers scheduled for the Panel Session “European Counterterrorism Strategies - Detection, Financing, Prosecution” is Dr. Darko Trifunovic from Belgrade. The Congress of North American Bosniaks (CNAB)... is sternly protesting to the organizers of the 11th Congress, requesting that Dr. Darko Trifunovic is excluded from the forthcoming Congress.... Dr. Trifunovic is the author of the scandalous “Report About Case Srebrenica Case (the first part)”... which he conveniently omitted from his Congress' biography.

Of course, Darko Trifunovic ommitted this information from his "biography" attempting to hide his Srebrenica genocide denial background. His report was discredited as a fraudulent attempt to deny the facts and was rejected by the international courts and by the Office of the the High Representative for Bosnia-Herzegovina. In the letter, CNAB explains, quote:

On the page 34. of that report, Trifunovic concludes his 'analysis' of the number of Bosniak men and boys who disappeared during the events surrounding the Bosnian Serb take-over of the United Nations ‘safe area’ of Srebrenica with the 'finding' that Armed Forces of the Republic of Srpska (VRS) might have executed only less than 100 of "Muslim soldiers".

Moreover, Trifunovic went even further with his Srebrenica genocide denial and justification of killings by concluding that, quote:

As a consequence, the remaining figure in the missing list would be the number of Muslims soldiers who were executed by Bosnian Serb forces for personal revenge or for simple ignorance of the international law. It would probably stand less than 100.

As an alternative to Darko Trifunovic's make-belief stories, one might read Srebrenica Genocide Questions and Answers: Responding to the Growing Assault on Truth and Memory, containing factual judgments from the International Criminal Tribunal at the Hague, the International Court of Justice, and other credible sources. Of course, Mr Trifunovic conveniently avoids acknowledging judicial facts issued by the highest international courts.

There you have it. Darko Trifunovic's techniques of attempting to present himself as credible individual seem rather childish, because no survivor of genocide will sit quiet while Mr Trifunovic is humiliating victims of Srebrenica genocide. As a conspiracy theorist by occupation, Mr Trifunovic should know better, and he should start disclosing "full resume" about his background. As CNA rightfully protested, quote:

It is mind-boggling that such an 'expert' in, and proponent of, the genocide denial and the psychological warfare of hate mongering could have been invited to speak to European policemen, interior and justice ministers, members of parliaments about the “European Counterterrorism Strategies". He who himself is an 'expert' defender of Serbian terrorism of violating all applicable international conventions.... He is part of the notorious Belgrade state-security apparatus and locales, admitted even by the Serbian Government members to be behind Serbia's active violation of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Mladic in Belgrade etc.). With other readily available details about his other extremist activities and involvements, one has to ask: what is the real agenda here?

But, a closer look at Darko Trifunovic, as well as people and institutions he associate himself with, reveals even more disturbing picture.

He works at the University of Belgrade (Faculty of Security Studies), and the official website of this Faculty features Srebrenica genocide denial links prominently displayed on its front page. For historical reasons, we have made a screenshot of their web site (see on the left) just in case they change their links in the meantime. Judging from the links promoted on their web site, we can only show our disgust at what these "academics" teach students in Serbia. It seems little has changed in Serbia in terms of extremist propaganda being promoted and thaught on Belgrade universities. No wonder Slobodan Milosevic's propaganda is still active (
see example of Serbs misusing photos of Srebrenica genocide mass graves by portraying them as mass graves of Serbs), which is the propaganda of the sickest dimensions.

One of the featured links at the Mr Trifunovic's "Faculty" is (not surprisingly) "The International Strategic Studies Association" - a global group of conspiracy theorists (also on record as Srebrenica genocide deniers and justifiers) who are trying to present themselves as highly skilled "terrorism experts" and "media analysts." They even designated Darko Trifunovic as their Serbian representative. These kinds of obscure occupations, not requiring any education or diploma, are favorite choice for opinionists attempting to gain credibility, e.g. Srebrenica genocide deniers Edward S. Herman and David Peterson enjoy refering to themselves as "media analysts," while another Srebrenica genocide denier - Milivoje Ivanisevic - liked to think of himself as a "researcher" and "statistician." Even Holocaust denier David Irving enjoyed refering to himself as a "historian" (more on him ad Deborah Lipstadt's blog). There you have it.

Darko Trifunovic's propaganda is not confined only to the walls of the Faculty of Begrade and Serbia's government institutions. His manufactured stories about the "Islamic terrorism in Bosnia" and the Srebrenica genocide denial go well beyond the walls of this disgraced "Faculty".

He is also actively involved with the Serbian Unity Congress lecturing "Serbian Caucus Congressmen" about individual crimes committed by Croats and Bosniaks. Of course, Mr Trifunovic failed to mention that the Serb side was responsible for 85% of the crimes in 1992-95 Bosnian war, as well as the fact that only Serb side committed genocide. Mr Trifunovic conveniently left that fact out.

Mr Trifunovic has been also feeding his stories to the various government agencies, or "strategic partners" which include (as noted on the "Faculty's" web site): Serbia's Army, Serbia's Ministry of Internal Affairs, Serbia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Serbia's Security Information Agency, and also to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republika Srpska. He

As CNAB noted in the letter: "Being such hate monger and denier of aggression and genocide, culturocide, ecocide, ethnocide, urbicide and elitocide, his place is with those who deny Holocaust and other war crimes - behind the bars, and not on the same podium with European Commission Vice President and Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security, Franco Frattini. It would be a mockery."

We suggest a different approach - let him "blow the wind;" his credibility has already been shattered in pieces by his blatant Srebrenica genocide denial. He has done irreparable damage to himself and to the people he claims to represent.