Troll of the Month: Miroslav Kraljević, the mayor of Vlasenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Balkan Troll of the Month is an individual, a group of individuals or a media outlet that spreads hate based on gender, ethnicity, religion, or other diversity categories. The Balkan Troll is selected based on hate speech incidents identified across the Western Balkan region.

Miroslav Kraljević, the mayor of Vlasenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina, publicly praised and glorified convicted war criminals Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić during a public speech. Both Karadžić and Mladić have been sentenced to life for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and its Residual Mechanism.

Following this, Vlasenica Municipality Info Portal and other media picked up and reported on Kraljević’s speech, referring to the aforementioned war criminals as “famous names that deserve great respect.” As a result, media outlet Detektor.ba – focused primarily on investigative journalism and in-depth reporting – reached out to several individuals seeking statements and comments on the event. Mirzet Redžić, a representative in the Vlasenica Municipal Assembly, said that this was a bad move when tensions in the country were rising.

The outlet also reported a statement by Murat Tahirović, president of the Association of Victims and Witnesses of Genocide, who announced that he will file a report with the relevant prosecutor’s office. Following the High Representative Valentin Inzko’s decision to introduce an amendment to the Criminal Code in Bosnia and Herzegovina which included a ban on the glorification of war criminals and denial of war crimes back in July 2021, such violations can be criminalised.

Alongside this, the media outlet reported that Miroslav Kraljević, a former commander of a special platoon, was charged in the past with the persecution of Bosniak civilians in Vlasenica. Specifically, unlawful detention, murder, sexual abuse, torture, disappearances and other inhumane acts committed during 1992 and 1993. Furthermore, Kraljević was also reported for inappropriate behaviour during the election campaign, but the report was dismissed as unfounded, and Kraljević was elected to the same position for the third time.

The glorification of war criminals and appraisal of war crimes continues to plague the Balkans especially in Bosnia and Herzegovina where certain high political figures and ranking individuals, use their platforms to glorify convicted war criminals and undermine criminal acts and the Srebrenica genocide. Indeed, most recently, the president of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, has been sentenced to a year in prison for defying the rulings of the top international official Christian Schmidt, in charge of overseeing peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina following the war. Dodik has on numerous occasions and persistently downplayed the Srebrenica genocide, often referring to it as ‘fabricated’. Having high-ranking officials like Dodik and Kraljević use their platforms to glorify internationally convicted war criminals and downplay acts of war crimes  is incredibly dangerous. In a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country like Bosnia and Herzegovina, the fabric of a war-torn society remains fragile, especially when there is still a lack of reconciliation and accountability for war crimes and genocide. Speeches like Kraljević’s only serve to deepen divisions among ethnic groups and sow seeds of hate within society. Instead, these officials should be using their platforms to promote reconciliation, and a forward-looking vision for a multiethnic society living in piece. Furthermore, if these officials violate the rules in place and glorify war criminals, they should be held accountable for it.