In the shadow of a diplomatic war

Photo: Rade Vilimonović At the moment of publication of the EU Progress Report for Serbia in which Serbia was requested, among other things, to ”demonstrate stronger commitment to the resolution of the war crimes legacy and foster mutual trust and reconciliation”, there was an ongoing verbal war between Serbian and Croatian politicians. By reacting to a provocation of […]

Croatia – Facing the past

I was in Ahmići (Bosnia and Herzegovina) with around twenty activists from human rights organisations from Croatia, and then we also honoured the victims in Trusina (Bosnia and Herzegovina). There was a warm welcome in Ahmići, and the local population’s message was as follows: ”You were brave to come here. We thank you for sharing our pain.”

How do we remember March 24, 1999?

The war in Kosovo started at the beginning of 1998 as the bloody end of a long political crisis in Kosovo, which paralysed the life in the former southern Serbian province, especially following the rise of Slobodan Milošević to power at the end of 1980s. After several unsuccessful diplomatic initiatives of the international community to end the[…]

To Women Who Cannot be Cast into Oblivion

As you walk the street of Kosovo, it is easy to compile a booklet with a variety of men’s names given to these streets. The blue street signs seem to be by chance in harmony with the stereotype that blue is the colour of men. Whereas streets named after women could perhaps fill an A5 page. Statues,[…]

Ten years of the Republic of Kosovo

AUTHOR: MILOŠ ĆIRIĆ Nota bene: When it comes to the history of the Republic of Kosovo, there are many years that might be called the beginning of the fight for the independence of Kosovo. Such efforts, could be seen as one long and painful process that was accompanied by mass suffering of Kosovo Albanians throughout history, are[…]

A moratorium on the past?

”The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, stated during his visit to Croatia that Croats and Serbs do not have conflicting interests regarding the future and suggested a six-month moratorium on discussions regarding topics from the past”. (N1 about the Globus interview, February 6, 2018). The President of Serbia also mentioned the moment of epiphany he had in[…]

If Albanian and Serb historical textbook narratives remain staunchly divided, what needs to change?

Where the educational system remains divided along ethnic lines, history teaching is shaped to fit the underlying ethno-nationalist ideology of the time. In Southeastern Europe, this is not just true for BiH. Between 2016 and 2017, the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society (KFOS) funded a young historian from Sarajevo, Narcisa Semić, to conduct research into the situation[…]

Facts from The Hague

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) will close its doors after 24 years, leaving behind a heritage that the countries in the region have to find a way to deal with. The Tribunal was the first international court after Nürnberg and Tokyo, which processed war crimes. During more than two decades of its work,[…]