On April 17, Prime Minister Wim Kok and the entire Dutch cabinet resigned in the aftermath of a report on the Srebrenica massacre. The report states that, in 1995, 8000 Muslim men and boys were separated from the women and slaughtered by Bosnian Serbs while 200 lightly armed Dutch troops assigned to protect them did nothing.

There is no difference between the actions of the Dutch government and that of the Gujarat government which also failed to protect the 2000 Muslims who were massacred there over the last two months. In fact, on April 21, the EU (European Union) stated that it will seek not only the removal of Chief Minister Narendra Modi but would urge his entire government’s dismissal since several ministers were also indicted by riot victims. The EU delegation has also said that “India cannot plead that the events in Gujarat is an internal matter as what has happened is a human rights issue as it was a kind of genocide and ethnic cleansing. And as a signatory of the UN Convention on Human Rights, it is forbidden to conduct such violence.”

In fact, both Chief Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee have openly blamed the Muslims as instigators of the violence, saying that they brought it upon themselves. That statement shows the anti-Muslim sentiment which has fueled the slaughter and explains the abstinence of the police, army, and the government - both Gujarat and central -in protecting its citizens.

It is the obligation of the Gujarat government, and I dare say the Indian government, to step down as did the Dutch government. And in addition, the perpetrators should be brought to justice in a U.N. tribunal should the Indian court system fail to do so. The U.N. tribunal for Bosnia is still prosecuting dozens of human rights violators including the former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic.

And on an interesting note, on April 11, 66 countries ratified the formation of the new International Criminal Court (ICC). The court, which will be based in The Hague, will have the authority to prosecute crimes committed after July 1, when the treaty formally enters into force. It will have jurisdiction over people charged with war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide, if their governments are unwilling or unable to try them.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A34610-2002Apr11.html

http://www.hindustantimes.com/nonfram/150402/detfro03.asp

http://www.tehelka.com/channels/currentaffairs/2002/apr/21/ca041902modi.htm

http://www.indian-express.com/full_story.php?content_id=1322

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/europe/newsid_1933000/1933144.stm

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Netherlands-Srebrenica.html

http://www.samachar.com/features/150402-sify.html