The death of former Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic on August 27, 2026, at the age of 84, while serving a life sentence in The Hague, has sparked mixed reactions, particularly in Serbia, where some have expressed what critics call glorification of his legacy. Mladic was convicted for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, and was a central figure in the armed forces of the Bosnian Serbs during the Yugoslav wars (1991–2001). His death has raised questions about the effectiveness of the international justice system in holding individuals accountable for such crimes and the limitations of that system. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), established by the UN Security Council in 1993, was created as a continuation of the post-Nuremberg era of international justice. This tribunal revived the idea of international penal justice after the Nuremberg (1945–1946) and Tokyo (1946–1948) trials, which were crucial in rebuilding societies affected by World War II. Although these trials had their flaws, such as the lack of attention to the Holocaust in Germany and the complete acquittal of Emperor Hirohito in Japan, they introduced legal charges that could address extreme violence without harming the accused, thereby preventing future conflicts. The Cold War and the rivalry between the USSR and the United States hindered the development of an international penal system free from political influence or distrust. The collapse of the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc also had a significant impact on the former federal state of Yugoslavia, exposing nationalist tensions in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia that were contrary to the country's earlier federal structure. Like the Nuremberg trials, the ICTY held Mladic personally responsible for his role in the Srebrenica massacre, one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century. His trial, which took over six years to conclude, resulted in a life sentence on November 22, 2017. The process was marked by the slow pace of international justice, as Mladic had evaded capture for over 16 years before being arrested in 2011. His sentence was later confirmed on June 8, 2021, by the International Mechanism, the successor to the ICTY, which was tasked with closing remaining cases from the ad hoc tribunals. The scenes of mourning and nostalgia surrounding Mladic's repatriation to Belgrade raised questions about the reach of international justice. Despite his severe convictions, Mladic's remains were received with political and military honors, highlighting the complex relationship between judicial truth and collective memory. A crowd of supporters gathered to honor Mladic, who was closely associated with the nationalist vision of "Great Serbia." The contrast between Mladic's label as the "butcher of the Balkans" and the honors he received underscores the challenges of transforming judicial truth into a shared memory. While justice establishes individual responsibility, memory is a collective and often contested concept. The efforts of civil society, including historians and journalists, are essential in shaping a factual narrative that can evolve over time and influence collective attitudes. International justice lays the groundwork for memory, but it does not fully create it.