I have recently learnt that I'm lucky enough to have the opportunity to go to Bosnia as a delegate for the charity "Remembering Srebrenica". I will be going at the end of February with the BBC to take part in a documentary to raise awareness of the monstrosities that happened there 20+ years ago. The documentary is part of a project to help teach young adults, especially those of my age. the history of the conduct period of the nineties, as the Srebrenica massacre happened the year of our birth.
Obviously thanks to my parents Bosnia will always be a very important part of my life, even though I have never been there, as my parents both played important roles in what happened. And of course they met and fell in love there... Leading to the birth of moi! Hence why all my life I have been called the Bosnia baby.
When I was younger my dad once tried to show me some footage he had of his experience and I remember becoming distraught over what I was seeing. I'm sure I will have the same reaction, as I am tearing up thinking about it now, but I believe that I will be even prouder of my parents for all their accomplishments.
The photos I have included in this post are from when my dad was with the United Nations in Bosnia, where he spent time in 1992 and 1993. My mother was also there as a delegate for the Red Cross, where she looked after Prisoners of War and helped achieve peace.
"Remembering Srebrenica is a British charity. It recognises that we have achieved a lot in terms of building a cohesive society here in the UK, but discrimination, promotion of hatred, extremism, and exclusion persist, and we must play our part, no matter how large or small, to create a better and safer society for all. Remembering Srebrenica is the organiser of the UK events for the EU-designated Srebrenica Memorial Day, which takes place annually on 11 July. It runs a tailored education programme called Lessons from Srebrenica, which sees groups of delegates visit Bosnia and Herzegovina. The aim is to teach delegates the lessons of the country’s grim past to better inform the present. Alongside this, the charity conducts an awareness raising campaign, which is aimed at countering discrimination and building stronger community relations." - http://srebrenica.org.uk/
Obviously thanks to my parents Bosnia will always be a very important part of my life, even though I have never been there, as my parents both played important roles in what happened. And of course they met and fell in love there... Leading to the birth of moi! Hence why all my life I have been called the Bosnia baby.
I don't know a lot about what happened back then, partly due I think to my parents not wanting to talk about it as a way of shielding us from the more evil side of the world. For this I am grateful as I grew up happy and naive, but now I believe it's time that I learnt more.
When I was younger my dad once tried to show me some footage he had of his experience and I remember becoming distraught over what I was seeing. I'm sure I will have the same reaction, as I am tearing up thinking about it now, but I believe that I will be even prouder of my parents for all their accomplishments.
The photos I have included in this post are from when my dad was with the United Nations in Bosnia, where he spent time in 1992 and 1993. My mother was also there as a delegate for the Red Cross, where she looked after Prisoners of War and helped achieve peace.
"Remembering Srebrenica is a British charity. It recognises that we have achieved a lot in terms of building a cohesive society here in the UK, but discrimination, promotion of hatred, extremism, and exclusion persist, and we must play our part, no matter how large or small, to create a better and safer society for all. Remembering Srebrenica is the organiser of the UK events for the EU-designated Srebrenica Memorial Day, which takes place annually on 11 July. It runs a tailored education programme called Lessons from Srebrenica, which sees groups of delegates visit Bosnia and Herzegovina. The aim is to teach delegates the lessons of the country’s grim past to better inform the present. Alongside this, the charity conducts an awareness raising campaign, which is aimed at countering discrimination and building stronger community relations." - http://srebrenica.org.uk/
