THREAD We wish to issue a clarification to a tweet we made about Noam Chomsky 3 weeks ago. Then, we claimed that @quotes_Chomsky had denied July 1995 Srebrenica massacre, perpetrated by Serbian ultra-nationalists against 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men & boys.
While Chomsky has publicly acknowledged that the massacre took place, the controversy has to do with 2 aspects: his continued denial that this war crime constitutes genocide, & related support for @NatCounterPunch writer Diana Johnstone, an apologist for Serbian ultranationalism.
The @UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) found the Srebrenica massacre to be genocidal.
If we look to the Genocide Convention, we find that killings of Muslims at Srebrenica clearly violate clauses a, b, and c of Article II. icty.org/en/outreach/do…
If we look to the Genocide Convention, we find that killings of Muslims at Srebrenica clearly violate clauses a, b, and c of Article II. icty.org/en/outreach/do…
Yet in correspondence with @GeorgeMonbiot in 2011, Chomsky expressed that "The mass slaughter in Srebrenica, for example, is certainly a horror story and major crime, but to call it 'genocide' so cheapens the word as to constitute virtual Holocaust denial, in my opinion."
This perspective is a bit puzzling, given how similar crimes at Srebrenica were to mass-murders perpetrated by U.S. & Nazi militaries. Though Chomsky has made a great point in his career about distinction between "worthy" & "unworthy" victims, he may be engaging it himself here!
While he wrote a foreword to Edward Herman & David Peterson's Politics of Genocide (@monthly_review, 2010), which openly proclaims "case" of Srebrenica to be "extremely thin," Chomsky refused Monbiot's request 4 him to "distance [him]self" from such lies. monbiot.com/2012/05/21/218…
Chomsky's support for Herman and Peterson's historical revisionism dovetails with his public support for Diane Johnstone, a notorious @NatCounterPunch writer whose 2002 book Fools' Crusade (also published by @monthly_review) infamously downplays the truth about Srebrenica.
While Johnstone, a frequent @RT_com guest, has written columns lamenting that Serbian ultra-nationalist Radovan Karadžić was convicted over Srebrenica & expressing support for Le Pen, Chomsky in 2003 signed a letter describing Johnstone's Fools' Crusade as "outstanding work." 😒
While many of us have found Chomsky's approach to politics encouraging & inspiring, his lapses on Srebrenica & Bosnia are disturbing & demand accountability. Justice requires nothing less.
We recommend this critical review of a book by Chomsky on Kosovo: libcom.org/library/chomsk…
We recommend this critical review of a book by Chomsky on Kosovo: libcom.org/library/chomsk…
