“The name Srebrenica will forever be associated with some of the darkest acts of the 20th century. A measure of justice is finally being served for the victims in courts in The Hague and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as the perpetrators of this atrocity, including Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic, are now being called to account for their actions. We know that Srebrenica’s future, and that of Bosnia and Herzegovina, will not be held back by its painful recent history. The United States rejects efforts to distort the scope of this atrocity, rationalize the motivations behind it, blame the victims, and deny the indisputable fact that it was genocide. The United States stands with the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina and grieves again for the loss of so many loved ones. Our hearts and deepest sympathies are with them, and we pledge our enduring commitment to support their aspirations for a better tomorrow.” A statement read during the 17th Memorial in 2012 in Srebrenica release by President Barack Obama
In 2012 I learned about the March of Peace in Bosnia and Hezegovina on the Women for Women International UKs website, I signed up not entirely sure what I was in for. The March of Peace is a 3 day's March covering 120 Km through Bosnia and Herzegovina. It takes its marchers from Nezuk to Srebrenica commemorating the victims of the 1995 genocide.
After meeting the team from WFWI at the Vienna airport we connected via a short 30 minute flight to Sarajevo. Upon our approach to the Sarajevo airport it dawned on me just how close to home the Balkans really are; through the eyes of an American they seem worlds away...
Once we were all settled in, in Sarajevo, we began the process of getting to know each other as a team, and learning about the work WFWI does in the country. Our team was a mix of people hailing from the UK, the USA, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Germany, Croatia backgrounds. It was immediately apparent to me that the diversity of perspectives brought by the various nationalities was going to make for a very interesting several days. We were able to explore Sarajevo together for 2 full days and we were taken by its beauty and history. Our first days we got to know each other, WFWI country leaders in Sarajevo, and begin to get to know our team,
During our time in Sarajevo we were able to explore the majestic city. It is difficult to believe that not long ago at all this was a city was under siege. We visited the old quarter, the sight of the assassination which began the first World War, and war tunnel which linked the besieged city to the outside world.
Onwards we travelled towards Nezuk, the starting point of our March. The March is done in reverse from the once safe town of Nezuk towards Srebrenica where the massacre occurred, symbolically putting an end to that terrible chapter. In 1995 thousands of men and boys fled into the hills searching for the safe town of Nezuk while they were hunted by the Serbian troops. The March of Peace in 2012 took us only 3 days, while in 1995 the refugees, if they survived, took as long 3 to 4 months.
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| 2 sweet little supporters in Nezuk who came out to show their support before we took off on the march. |
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| Bosnian coffee made by local supporters. Talk about fuel efficiency for athletics! I wish all races had this! |
On our first day we were greeted by locals who came out to show their support, by handing out cups upon cups of Bosnian coffee. Unlike American athletic events where there is energy food, we walked powered by local coffee and sugar cubes.
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| Our marching team after our first day, with our hostess Fatima. |
Upon the completion of our first day our spirits were high arriving into the delightful farm of our hosts, a local rural couple. They provided us with a sumptuous dinner with the freshest tomatoes and cucumbers directly from their farm. We slept like footsore babies.
The second day of the march took us through the bucolic country side, but also Serbian occupied territories. We were beginning to get to know the other walkers, and were feeling much less like foreigners. We were being immersed in the warmth of the Bosnia people.
Many were walking in honor of family members whose remains had been found only in 2012. Others were walking in honor of friends, or love ones who have not yet been found. As we continued past mass graves, and mass secondary graves, our eyes were opened to the true horrors which the Bosnian people faced under the command of Serbian General Mladic.
-There was a young man, 25 years old who fled as a child with his mother and planted his roots in Ohio as a refugee, but he was back in 2012 to bury his father.
-We met another man, who was walking with his Bosnian cousin who had lost family. When Yugoslavia fell he joined the Croatian forces to fight for Bosnia and was captured by the Serbian army, only to be rescued by the International Rescue Committee, rehabilitated, and was offered Spanish or American citizenship. Upon the acceptance of American citizenship, he was given the option of Atlanta or Seattle, and was pushed towards Seattle as the representative thought it would better suit him. He now lives and works successfully there.
-Our guide was the only one of his 3 brothers to survive and it took him and his friends over 100 days to get to safety. Of the group of 12 in which he fled only he and one other survived.
-Another friend walking with us had lost a cousin.
-Our driver was lucky enough to get out with his mother as a young boy on one 1 of 15 buses set up by an International Aid Organization.
These are only some of the stories which come to mind through the flood of stories and personal experiences that were recounted to me over our 3 day journey.
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| Another two sweet little supporters who came out along our march. |
During our final two nights we slept with the same host family, in the city of Srebrenica. We once again were greeted with the habitual warmth and kindness of the Bosnian people.
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| Enjoying our post march drinks in Srebrenica with our new friends. |
Our third day the March ended in the cemetery of Poticari, where thousands are buried and thousands of graves were awaiting the remains of those who were found in 2012. By the third day the heat and fatigue began to catch up with us, but we finished along side new friends we had made and arrived into the cemetery with feelings of mixed emotion. Those who participated from Bosnia and Herzegovina were greeted by emotions which I can't conceive having never been through the horrors of which they have. We as foreigners were looking at a cemetery and were being faced, many of us for the first time, by the monstrosities of war, and how our governments were too late to step in.
We quickly went back to our host families house to clean up and head to our dinner. Srebrenica had a bitter sweet feeling in warm July air, as many locals were celebrating the completion of the march while mourning the death of their compatriots. WFWI provided me, as a foreigner, with the possibility to experience this unique commemoration with new friends, both local and foreign, in a way that truly drove home the magnitude of the impact of this horror.
The following morning was a Bosnian day of mourning, during which mass burials and funerals were held for the families and victims of the 1995 genocide. We visited the cemetery in the morning, but many of us returned to the home of of our hostess to watch the ceremony from television as we were not be able to understand the language. With the help of translation we were consumed with emotion and our hearts ached for the Bosnian victims and their families.
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| A chilling sight, 17 years after the massacre, in Srebrenica. |
The following morning we arrived at the WFWI training offices in Sarajevo which proved to me the most important of my Bosnian experiences. For me to see first hand the results of the work of Women for Women International was extraordinarily gratifying. I saw women whose lives seemed to have been destroyed by war, genocide, and other atrocities being given a second chance at a fulfilling and meaningful life, a life that I may have taken for granted for myself. I was particularly surprised and touched that these women's husbands took the time to come and thank us for our support. .
I had to return to Spain so this is where my Bosnia and Herzegovina journey ended. However, after seeing first hand I have since become more involved. In August I threw a party at our restaurant in NYC, and have continued to raise awareness through my attempts to do 12 adventures in 12 months.
For those of you considering participating in the March of Peace I highly encourage it. It's not only a physical challenge that is achievable for all fitness levels,but also an incredibly eye opening experience to see the country and the history through the eyes of those who lived it. In my opinion this is a once in a lifetime experience.
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