All crime is wrong, but that which is motivated by hatred of a particular characteristic of the victim – whether it is their race, language, religion or gender is particularly destructive. Hate crime has devastating consequences for victims and their families, with far-reaching significances on communities both locally and globally.
The Bosnian war from 1992 to 1995 is a case in example that is still fresh in many people’s minds. In Bosnia, before the war, the Muslims, Serbs and Croats communities lived in relative peace and harmony. Up until the Bosnian crisis, when the Serbs expel the Croats, Muslims and smaller nationalities from their native areas in an effort to make the regions purely Serbian, in a state-sponsored policy of 'ethnic cleansing'. Many of the Serbian war criminals are now behind bars or are currently awaiting trial.
The inherent power of hate crimes is frequently underestimated and poses a cardinal threat to the basic fabric and cohesion of a society. Former Mufti of Bosnia Herzegovina, Shaykh Prof Mustafa Ceric, who was in Bosnia in the thick of the Bosnian war and has been instrumental in the peacebuilding efforts in Bosnia, will share his experiences and wisdom in challenging hate and rebuilding the Bosnian society. He will also discuss how the religion of Islam is completely antithetical against the ideology of hatred, but instead Islam promotes the concept of peaceful coexistence, reconciliation and peacebuilding.
