,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bahd ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #bf 7legislative day1 ,june #bd71 #bjbe,mrs4 ,shaheen 7for herself and ,mr4 ,wicker7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to designate ,july #aa as ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,srebrenica ,genocide ,remembrance ,act of #bjbe4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,united ,states and the ,european ,community recognized the ,republic of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina as an independent state on ,april #g1 #aiib1 and the ,united ,nations admitted the ,republic of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina as a member on ,may #bb1 #aiib4 7#b7 ,during a campaign of aggression throughout ,bosnia and ,herzegovina during the ,bosnian ,war from #aiib to #aiie1 ,bosniaks comprised the great majority of victims of systematic campaigns of war crimes1 crimes against humanity1 and genocide conducted by ,serbs in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and ,serb paramilitary forces with the support of the ,government of the ,federal ,republic of ,yugoslavia4 7#c7 ,the ,senate passed ,senate ,resolution #acd in the #ajith ,congress expressing the sense of the ,senate that1 from ,april #aiib to ,november #aiie1 ,serb forces committed aggression against the ,republic of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and genocide against ,bosniaks1 with direct support from authorities in ,serbia4 7#d7 ,a primary objective of ,bosnian ,serb leadership1 supported by the ,government of the ,federal ,republic of ,yugoslavia1 was to establish an ethnically homogenous ,serb state within ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 known as ,republika ,srpska4 7#e7 ,serb forces1 under the command of subsequently convicted war criminals ,ratko ,mladic and ,radovan ,karadzic1 made a concerted effort to control the town of ,srebrenica and surrounding areas1 which had strategic importance to the ,serb campaign to create a ,republika ,srpska state from the inviolable territory of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina4 7#f7 ,the exclusion of the ,bosniak ethnic identity as an option for registrants in ,yugoslav censuses1 including the #aiia census1 has complicated attempts to conduct a complete investigation of the crimes committed against ,bosniak victims in ,srebrenica1 surrounding areas1 and across ,bosnia and ,herzegovina4 7#g7 ,beginning in #aiib1 the humanitarian situation in ,srebrenica and surrounding areas deteriorated1 with ,serb forces placing embargoes on food and critical supplies1 which resulted in mass starvation and civilian deaths4 7#h7 ,in #aiic1 the ,united ,nations1 pursuant to ,security ,council resolutions #hai and #hbd1 designated the towns of ,srebrenica1 ,sarajevo1 epa1 ,gorade1 ,tuzla1 and ,biha1 in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 as safe areas1 but failed to demilitarize or protect the designated areas1 including that of ,srebrenica in #aiie1 despite the deployment of the ,united ,nations ,protection ,force 7,,unprofor7 to ,srebrenica4 7#i7 ,upon entering ,srebrenica in ,july #aiie1 ,serb forces deported ,bosniak women and girls in buses after torturing and raping many of them1 following a nearly yearlong siege and starvation of the town and surrounding areas4 7#aj7 ,serb forces separated military-age men and boys from other civilians in ,srebrenica4 7#aa7 ,in ,july #aiie1 more than #h1jjj ,bosniak men and boys were tortured and killed in and around the town of ,srebrenica1 including those men and boys that attempted to form a column and flee ,srebrenica for safety but were attacked and killed by ,serb forces4 7#ab7 ,the ,united ,nations ,convention on the ,prevention and ,punishment of the ,crime of ,genocide1 adopted at ,paris ,december #i1 #aidh1 defines genocide as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy1 in whole or in part1 a national1 ethnical1 racial or religious group1 as such3 7a7 ,killing members of the group2 7b7 ,causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group2 7c7 ,deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part2 7d7 ,imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group2 7e7 ,forcibly transferring children of the group to another group4 7#ac7 ,the ,srebrenica genocide remains the biggest single event of mass extermination in ,europe since the end of ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#ad7 ,the bodies of executed ,bosniak men and boys were dumped into mass graves1 which were subsequently dug up by ,serb forces and moved to secondary or tertiary sites in an attempt to hide evidence of the genocide that was committed against ,bosniaks4 7#ae7 ,remains of some of the victims of the ,srebrenica genocide are still being discovered4 7#af7 ,in #aiic1 the ,united ,nations established the ,international ,criminal ,tribunal for the former ,yugoslavia through ,resolution #hbg1 succeeded by the ,international ,residual ,mechanism for ,criminal ,tribunals1 which investigated1 prosecuted1 and passed judgement on international crimes committed during the breakup of the former ,yugoslavia1 including during the ,bosnian ,war and the ,srebrenica genocide4 7#ag7 ,in ,november #aiie1 the peace agreement known as the ,dayton ,accords was concluded by the presidents of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 ,croatia1 and ,serbia to end the war in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina4 7#ah7 ,the ,dayton ,accords resulted in the adoption of a new constitutional regime that created #b entities1 the ,federation of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and the ,republika ,srpska1 in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina4 7#ai7 ,in a #aiii report on the fall of ,srebrenica1 the ,united ,nations expressly recognized that the international community must accept its share of responsibility for failing to stop the ,srebrenica genocide4 7#bj7 ,serbia issued an apology for crimes committed by ,serb forces during the breakup of the former ,yugoslavia1 including in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and at ,srebrenica and surrounding areas1 but did not recognize the mass murders in ,srebrenica as genocide4 7#ba7 ,in #bjjd1 the ,government of the ,republika ,srpska entity issued an apology for crimes in ,srebrenica and acknowledged the deaths of some1 but not all1 victims and did not recognize the mass murders in and around ,srebrenica as genocide4 7#bb7 ,in #bjae1 the ,russian ,federation vetoed a resolution at the ,united ,nations ,security ,council condemning the mass murders at ,srebrenica as genocide4 7#bc7 ,since the ,dayton ,accords were concluded1 political leaders in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina such as ,milorad ,dodik have undermined regional stability by engaging in genocide denial and spreading false information about the war crimes1 crimes against humanity1 and genocide that took place during the ,bosnian ,war4 7#bd7 ,some political leaders have declined to categorize the mass murders at ,srebrenica as genocide and continue to engage in harmful ethno-nationalist dialogue4 7#be7 ,in #bjba1 the ,high ,representative1 who oversees the civilian implementation of the ,dayton ,accords1 outlawed genocide denial in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina4 7#bf7 ,the ,european ,union ,force in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina 7,,eufor7 oversees the military implementation of the ,dayton ,accords as a successor to the ,stabilization ,force1 the ,,nato-led multinational peacekeeping force that was deployed to ,bosnia and ,herzegovina following the ,bosnian ,war4 7#bg7 ,the ,united ,states and the international community have made significant efforts to uphold peace and stability in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and recognize the ,srebrenica genocide1 including by supporting the work of local1 national1 regional1 and international nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations that preserve the memory of the victims of the ,srebrenica genocide4 #c4 ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide 7a7 ,in ,general ,chapter #a of title #cf1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #adi4 ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide 7a7 ,designation ,july #aa is ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide4 7b7 ,recognition ,all private citizens1 organizations1 and ,federal1 ,state1 and local governmental and legislative entities are encouraged to recognize ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide through proclamations1 activities1 and educational efforts to-- 7#a7 pay tribute to the families of the more than #h1jjj ,bosniaks who were killed in ,july #aiie1 the ,bosniak communities in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 and the diaspora2 7#b7 condemn the genocide perpetrated in ,srebrenica and surrounding areas and the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina during the ,bosnian ,war2 7#c7 encourage continued efforts in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 ,southeast ,europe1 and the world to counter efforts to undermine respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and to promote respect for all ethnic and religious groups2 7#d7 acknowledge the role of the ,high ,representative in promoting truth about the ,srebrenica genocide and maintaining peace and stability in ,bosnia and ,herzegovina2 7#e7 condemn the denial of the ,srebrenica genocide1 which has been recognized as genocide by the ,international ,criminal ,tribunal for the former ,yugoslavia and the ,international ,court of ,justice1 and condemns attempts to revise the history of the ,bosnian ,war2 7#f7 reaffirm support for the multi-ethnic and multi-confessional culture and territorial integrity of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina as the people of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina pursue further ,euro-,atlantic integration2 7#g7 condemn inflammatory rhetoric1 including that which is meant to destabilize ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and the broader region1 stoke ethnic tensions1 and promote social divisions related to denying the ,srebrenica genocide2 7#h7 call on the international community to continue to work toward the sustainable return of ,bosniaks consistent with ,annex #g of the ,dayton ,accords throughout ,bosnia and ,herzegovina and to ,srebrenica1 including by condemning ongoing violence and discrimination against1 and attempts to disenfranchise1 ,bosniaks2 7#i7 encourage continued political reconciliation in the ,government of ,bosnia and ,herzegovina1 including the judicial system1 including through the strengthening of democratic institutions and educational institutions2 7#aj7 recognize that barriers to political or social reconciliation remain so long as national1 regional1 and international actors engage in genocide denial and ethno-nationalist rhetoric2 and 7#aa7 further call on the international community to continue educating current and future generations on the ,srebrenica genocide1 to promote recognition of the ,srebrenica genocide1 and1 within all the legal means provided by law and consistent with respect for human rights1 to refute and deter those who continue to deny the facts of the ,srebrenica genocide4 4 7b7 ,technical and conforming amendments ,the table of sections for chapter #a of title #cf1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #adi4 ,national ,day of ,remembrance for the ,victims of the ,srebrenica ,genocide4 4