Srebrenica Genocide 30 Years on | Survival, Loss, and the Ongoing Fight for Justice with Selma Jahić

Selma Jahić was born in 1988 in Srebrenica and grew up nearby in a village called Blječeva. During the war years from 1992 to 1995, she and her family stayed exclusively in Srebrenica and the surrounding area.In August 1995, Selma came to Vienna after being expelled from Srebrenica in July 1995, a time during which she lost many family members. Since then, she has been living in Vienna. She completed her schooling in Austria and trained as a media designer.She currently works as a content manager for a public institution. In her private life, Selma is very active as an activist and has been deeply involved in memorial work related to the genocide against the Bosniaks for several years.On 11 July 1995, in the town of Srebrenica declared a United Nations "safe area" two years earlier—over 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were systematically murdered by Bosnian Serb forces. At the time the worst atrocity committed on European soil since the Second World War.Despite rulings from international courts, including the ICTY and the ICJ, formally recognising the massacre as genocide, denial and political manipulation continue to distort the truth. Over 8,300 victims have been identified, yet the remains of more than 1,000 are still missing.Truth, accountability, and recognition of the genocide are essential for reconciliation and lasting peace in the Western Balkans.For this episode of Diasporas Speaking, I speak with Selma Jahić, who, together with her brother and mother, survived the Srebrenica genocide. She shares her family’s story of survival, loss, and the ongoing fight for justice and remembrance.