Subject: IGC Protest Letter: ORF’s Role in Spreading Genocide Denial via Peter Handke

April 17, 2025

Subject: IGC Protest Letter: ORF’s Role in Spreading Genocide Denial via Peter Handke

On April 15, 2025, the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation (ORF) aired an episode of its

program Cultural Monday featuring controversial author and Nobel Prize laureate Peter

Handke—a known denier of the Srebrenica Genocide, revisionist of court-established facts,

and glorifier of convicted war criminals.

[Interview link: https://www.sn.at/kultur/literatur/peter-handke-srebrenica-es-brudermord-

176914228]

In the interview, Handke stated, among other things, “I don’t care about the genocide. I think

it was fratricide.”

This interview comes in the same year that marks the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica

Genocide, in which more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were systematically murdered by

Bosnian Serb forces under the command of Ratko Mladi?. The genocide has been formally

recognized and condemned by both the International Criminal Tribunal for the former

Yugoslavia (ICTY) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Despite these legally binding verdicts and the overwhelming body of evidence, Handke

continues to propagate denial, distortion, and glorification of genocidal policies—actions that

not only reject international law but inflict deep, ongoing psychological harm on survivors and

families of victims. As documented by genocide scholars and experts, denial is not merely an

opinion—it is the final stage of genocide. It ensures impunity, emboldens perpetrators, and

perpetuates cycles of violence.

It is also well-documented that during the aggression against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Handke

openly supported the nationalist, expansionist Serbian regime led by convicted war criminal

Slobodan Miloševi?. As a result, Handke has been declared persona non grata in Sarajevo and

Tuzla, cities that bore the brunt of brutal, ethnically motivated campaigns.

By giving airtime to Handke, ORF is not merely reporting on controversy—it is platforming

an ideologue who denies established genocide, mocks the memory of victims, and actively

contributes to the erasure of historical truth. Doing so in a state-funded media space is a

violation of journalistic ethics and an affront to international norms of human rights and

dignity.

This is not just a media oversight—it is a moral failure.

The Institute for Research of Genocide Canada (IGC) strongly condemns ORF’s decision to

give a platform to an individual who denies genocide, revises judicial facts, glorifies warcriminals, and justifies crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina—thus aligning itself with

the ideological architects and executors of those crimes.

We demand:

• An unconditional public apology from ORF to the victims of the Srebrenica Genocide

and all survivors of Serbian nationalist aggression.

• A full review of editorial standards and accountability mechanisms to ensure that hate

speech, historical revisionism, and genocide denial are never again normalized on

public broadcasting platforms.

• A commitment to balanced coverage that centers the voices of survivors, scholars, and

human rights advocates when reporting on sensitive historical topics.

The IGC has formally notified the relevant authorities in Canada, the United Nations, and the

European Union regarding this uncivilized and dehumanizing interview and will continue to

monitor the situation closely. We call on all democratic institutions and responsible media

outlets to reaffirm their commitment to truth, justice, and the dignity of all victims of genocide.

Sincerely,

Dr. Emir Rami?

Director, Institute for the Research of Genocide Canada