A road to the future
Srebrenica was the scene of the worst massacre in Europe since the Second World War and became the symbol of the tragedy in former Yugoslavia. 8000 men and boys, predominantly of Bosniac origin, were killed during three days in an area proclaimed safety zone by the UN. DRC have been engaged in returning refugees to rebuild houses and villages and providing livelihood opportunities in the area.
Hidajet Hasanovic
The farm is rural in every sense of the word. A muddy road leads to the main houses, one rebuild and one newly constructed and from the stables we are welcomed by the cows. The whole family receives us and some neighbours are approaching sending curious glances at the camera - but none with the same intensity and longing as the wife of Hidajet and his oldest daughter.
- The war was like a nightmare and Bosnia is still struggling to wake up. The war took everything, the lives of loved ones, the economy and everything we had build together.
My family fled and Serbs took over my father’s house. We were in refuge in different places, Tuzla and Sarajevo, among others - but there were too many of us and no prospects. I love this land and my river Drina and when DRC helped my father rebuild his house it was a new start for all of us. It was the turning point and we have now invested all our energy and resources into the effort of becoming self-reliant.
With the support and assistance of DRC, I eventually managed to get additional help, to rebuild my own house and maintain some tools and animals and reestablish our farm. I am very grateful that someone should provide me the help I needed to support my family, but at the same time the situation is difficult. Our farm is something out of the feudal age where everything is done by hand and the competition from places like Croatia is all about computers and technology. The future of this country is a membership of the EU – there is no other way.
I have two good hands, my love for the land and animals and the willingness to work hard - but I am still not able to compete on the same level. I want my children to have an education and make something for themselves, but it is a struggle even to put food on the table. The DRC provided a lot of help for a lot of people in Bosnia, but we will need the international community to direct us the last way into modern age and out of the shadow of war.
Ekrem Delic
Our four-wheel drive is stuck in the muddy track leading to the mountain villages of Srebenica until we are pulled out with the help of Ekrem and his tractor. He seems puzzled by the stupidity of his guests. When we get the chance to talk to him in front of his house the mask of disapproval dissolves, revealing a hardened yet humoristic and sensitive man.
When the Serbs arrived to gather the men, I went into the woods surrounding the farm along with my two brothers and my father – my father and one of my brothers were killed. We never found my brother - my father is buried right here on this hill.
DRC provided materials and financial support so that we could rebuild our house and stables. You might say that we are back where we started with 15 sheep and my wife’s homemade jam – but half the family is missing and only six of the originally 40 families living here have returned.
The main problem, apart from our dark memories, is the poor state of the road. Not many people can afford to be cut off and isolated during winter. I am proud to say that this problem no longer affects my oldest children – one daughter left to study at the university in Sarajevo and one is in Tuzla studying to become a nurse. Hopefully, the road will be improved, the villages will be reinhabited and the mistakes of our generation will be nothing but a bad memory when I become a grandfather.
