A group of citizens dissatisfied with the rights that their children receive in the area of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton (HNK) founded the association Roditelji djece sa invaliditetom (“Parenting Children with Disabilities”) with the hope of increasing awareness among competent institutions of the issues children with disabilities face.
They met three years ago, and ever since then their life has been colored with new meaning. The love they feel for each other gives them strength, will, and faith. Arijana and Marko from Jajce both have disabilities, but their blindness does not hinder them from setting life goals which they bravely chase.
In light of the recent events, Balkan Diskurs has been working on a series about the challenges faced by Bosnian children with special needs and their families. These are their stories.
Mahmut is a nine-year-old boy with autism. His mother, Samija, noticed he was having problems when he was just one and a half years old. Until that time, he had been developing like any typical child.