Ganic Story Lauded by Bosnian Press

An IWPR report on Bosnia’s attempts to extradite a Bosnian Muslim politician has been singled out by media in the region for providing an objective, insightful account of a highly-charged issue.

The article, Bosnia’s Ganic Extradition Bid Under Scrutiny, reported by IWPR Hague reporter Rachel Irwin, was widely republished in Bosnia.

The piece, published in mid March, looked into a complex legal battle brewing between Serbia and Bosnia after a wartime member of the Bosnian presidency, Ejup Ganic, was arrested on March 1 in London at Serbia’s request.

Serbia wants to try him in Belgrade for alleged war crimes committed against Yugoslav army soldiers in Sarajevo in 1992.

“Media in Bosnia and Hercegovina republished this article because it was a rare opportunity to see an unbiased view on the arrest and [possible] extradition of Ejup Ganic.”
Natasa Krsman, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Nezavisne novine

Bosnia, on the other hand, had claimed the arrest in Britain and Serbia’s extradition request were illegal and demanded that Ganic be returned to Bosnia, where he would be put on trial if there is sufficient evidence for the indictment to be issued against him. At this stage, Bosnia is only conducting an investigation into Ganic’s case.

Irwin’s article focused on flaws legal experts identified in Bosnia’s request. They pointed out that only a country which has already issued an indictment against someone can demand his or her extradition; and that an investigation alone does not provide sufficient grounds for the extradition request to be met.

The article, editors in the region told IWPR, provided a new and interesting insight into the whole case.

The report was picked up by the Bosnian Serb news agency SRNA; the largest Bosnian newspaper, Avaz daily; the largest newspaper in Republika Srpska, Nezavisne novine; the very popular 24hour news portals Sarajevo-x and BiH vijesti; as well as the news portal in Republika Srpska, Banjalukalive.

Dubravka Blagojevic, editor-in-chief of the SRNA agency, said IWPR’s report provided a “fresh and different view” of the story.

“The article also looked into complex legal issues related to the requests for extradition and that was one of the main reasons we decided to republish it,” Blagojevic told IWPR.

Natasa Krsman, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Nezavisne novine, said Irwin’s article provided much needed, objective information.

“Media in Bosnia and Hercegovina republished this article because it was a rare opportunity to see an unbiased view on the arrest and [possible] extradition of Ejup Ganic,” she said. “The credibility of the report and its content was guaranteed by IWPR’s good reputation as a reliable source.”

In a separate development, an Australian artist is preparing a performance piece after being inspired by an IWPR article.

When actress and playwright Kym Vercoe traveled to Visegrad in 2008, she spent time admiring the scenery and the 500-year old stone bridge across the Drina river – the same one she read about in the famous Ivo Andric novel The Bridge on the Drina.

“The work I make is about accountability, acknowledgment and also giving voice to people who become hidden in our society.”
Kym Vercoe, actress and playwright

On returning to her home in Australia, she did some research on the picturesque little town. One article that came up was Visegrad in Denial Over Grisly Past, written by IWPR journalists Rachel Irwin and Edina Becirevic in December 2008.

The article examined how more than a decade after the Bosnian war, few Serb residents are ready to confront the horrors that were perpetrated there.
The story described the crimes committed by Bosnian Serbs in the town during the 1992-95 conflict - including the mass murder and rape of Bosniak civilians - and silence that surrounds the subject.

Vercoe described the IWPR article as a “reality check” for her.

As a way to process what she experienced in Visegrad – and what she learned afterwards - Vercoe is creating a performance piece due to premiere in Sydney this October.

While the show is not yet finished, she says it will be a “story-telling piece”, and will include a variety of media, including video, and hopefully also a live music component, for which she is working with a singer from Sarajevo.

“The work I make is about accountability, acknowledgment and also giving voice to people who become hidden in our society,” Vercoe explained. “So I guess these sentiments are driving me again now.”

Vercoe returned to Visegrad in May for further research and to pay tribute to those killed during the war. Her feelings, however, continued to be complicated.

“In Visegrad, the past has been whitewashed,” Vercoe said. “This helps to explain why as a tourist in 2008, I assumed that Visegrad was always a predominately Serbian town and there was no major campaign [of ethnic cleansing] there. Can you believe how wrong I was?”