At the beginning of 2015, I read a story on Balkan Insight about 170 Serbs, 90 from Kosovo, who were welcoming in another New Year at Krnjača, the last remaining collective centre for refugees in Serbia’s capital. During the wars in the former Yugoslavia, many ethnic Serbs fled from their homes in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo. In 1999, […]

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the first step towards building a better future is one which takes us back to the past. It is necessary for everyone to come back and confront the past events that have characterized them, both as individuals and as part of a collective. Journalists, in particular, should seek and determine the truth behind past events, in […]

Reporting on topics related to Serbia’s wartime past has decreased in Serbia in recent years, including coverage of trials for war crimes and for victims of war crimes and their families. Since the mandate of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has ended, and international pressure has weakened, serious issues relating to Serbia’s wartime past have been […]

My participation at the study visit to Buchenwald Memorial Center as a part of the project „Learning lessons from a violent past for a peaceful future” was exceptional experience for me, both, as an individual and as educational expert with significant experience in this field. What is the role and the responsibility of education when dealing with the difficult past […]

It will be difficult to forget the image of a scared face and the testimonies shared with me by a Roma woman who was a victim of wartime and post-war sexual violence in Kosovo. During the war, she was raped by Serb military combatants. Two weeks after the war ended, her house was targeted by ethnic Albanian, uniformed men who […]

"Justice for war crimes in Montenegro is still at its beginning. There was almost no responsibility for Montenegrin citizens who committed crimes during the conflict”. I can still remember these words from the report presented to the Security Council in mid-December by the Chief Prosecutor of the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for The Hague, Serge Brammertz. It is well […]

Photo: Igor Jeremić “To remember a crime, name its perpetrators and show respect for the victims in a dignified way, is our responsibility. But being aware of that responsibility lies at the center of our national identity”. This was a statement of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel during her visit to the largest Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz in Poland. Since […]

Photo: www.dnevnikdianebudisavljevic Director Dana Budisavljević, on human kindness, crimes, the female perspective and common country, on the occasion of the Belgrade premiere of her film “Dnevnik Diane Budisavljević” (Diary of Diana Budisavljević). The screening of the film, opening in Belgrade as part of the festival “Slobodna Zona”, is sold out. Another screening is scheduled, and attracting a lot of interest. […]

‘I am sorry I did not get the chance to ask Caco: ‘Why did you do it, Caco, my son? Why did you do it to the man who loved you? Why did you do it to the man who neither wanted nor could hurt you”, said Momčilo Šalipur, the father of killed Predrag, who was killed. Author: Edvin Kanka […]

Politicians still largely (ab)use the word ”peace”, and even more frequently the word ”war” in the public space on a daily basis. Both of these words appear in the media as part of the coverage of topics related to victims of war, disabled war veterans, reports on persons who were killed or wounded by a mine in the remaining mine […]

The past defines the present that we live in Our country is trapped, we have no understanding of democracy, our society is poisoned, our educational system is degraded, our legal system is inefficient, our minorities are discriminated, and the media is under constant attack. As I sit and read the news about events which occupy the public’s attention, I can’t […]

Photo: Jasmina Spasić The citizens of Serbia associate October, the tenth month of the year, with the anniversary of the liberation of their capital in WWII. The liberation of Belgrade, on October 20th 1944 ended the 1287-day-long German occupation of the capital of Yugoslavia, fought for by units of the National Liberation Army (the Yugoslav Partisans) and the Red Army. […]