Brita Shares - Bosnia Peace March 2015

To mark and commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, this July 2015 Women for Women International brought together a group of supporters to travel to Bosnia to participate in the 3 day peace march covering 120km retracing the steps of the 15,000 men trying to flee Srebrenica to the safe zone of Tuzla.

The history of WfWI in Bosnia

Women for Women International was first set up during the Bosnian conflict and has since helped over 40,000 women in Bosnia to learn new skills and access resources to improve their livelihoods. Many of these women are women from Srebrenica, so as an organisation we are very invested in the area and in ensuring that the conflict and its consequences are not forgotten.

Even though I have now been to Srebrenica and to Bosnia multiple times, what happened there never fails to move me on the deepest level. 8,732 men were killed in the space of a week. Over 1,000 bodies are still missing. This year we buried 136 bodies. An estimated 20-50,000 women were raped in the conflict overall and many women were held in forced pregnancy camps.

This is why the Peace March that has been taking place annually since 2005 is a really important event where survivors, families of the victims and those who want to show solidarity come together to support each other and very importantly, ensure that the world does not forget about the atrocities that took place 20 years ago.

This year an estimated 7,000 people participated. Many of them have been doing the march every year since it first started. Two years ago, I did the march for the first time (see here for my blog) and I met a young man who told me his sad story, both his parents had been killed in the genocide. He had been a year old, so he does the march every year in honour of his parents. I met him again this year – he had broken his ankle 10 days before the march but that did not deter him, even though the route is very hilly and challenging to walk. He tells me he still does not have a job, because you can only get jobs if you have money to pay for it...so he has set up his own blog and earns a little through the advertising he gets. That is the reality in a country with a 40% official unemployment rate. I meet a 17 year old boy who had come from Austria and lost his grandfather and uncle – everyone, no matter how old or young has a story to tell.

A helping hand from strangers 

On the third day, the walking and the heat is taking a toll on us. We are walking over 8 hours each day and it is 40 degrees. When we stop for a rest, a man comes and gives us cold cartons of juice - we all think it is the best juice we have ever had because we have been marching for 6 hours and only drinking lukewarm water - so this juice is a huge gift. We are all so touched by his kindness and go to thank him again and take a photo. He tells me that in his tiny village of 5 houses over 120 people were killed including his sons and his wife - he also shows us his foot which looks like it had been sliced in half and sown back together - I choke with the grief and the fact he has shown us such kindness! I realise yet again what it means to the people of Bosnia to see international solidarity and know that we care.

So many times, when the hill is particularly steep, or the river wide, we receive a helping hand from strangers. The sense of solidarity crosses any language barriers and we feel connected in the grief and in our determination to do what we can to ensure this never happens again.

When we arrive in Srebrenica, a sea of white tombstones greets us - and scattered in between women praying for their loved ones - so much grief in one place - it is overwhelming.

Looking to the future - we must not forget 

There is so much press and international attention because it is the 20th anniversary - but for the women and men who have lost their loved ones, it is just another year and another anniversary that reminds them of their loss and the unspeakable atrocities that occurred in Srebrencia 20 years ago - we must not forget - we must remember, - every year. It is my hope that this Peace March will continue to grow in size and will continue to attract international attention and that it will become a symbol that unifies us in our determination for this not to happen again. It is one way of demonstrating your values and your beliefs - of saying I care and I am against violence and war no matter what - and we need this more than ever before! For all of us.

Brita Fernandez Schmidt is Executive Director of Women for Women International - UK