For more than a hundred years of turbulent history, Sarajevo and its inhabitants have kept the Sarajevo Haggadah, a written collection of Jewish regulations and traditions, from wars, arson, and theft. Its home is the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which the Haggadah has had to leave several times in order to be preserved.
Unity in diversity and mutual tolerance have always been present as a modus vivendi in Bosnian society, even during desperate times. The story of two religious leaders in Tuzla testifies to this, as they found a solution to a common issue, despite their differences. They had the same issue which was bigger than the differences between them – the question of human lives and death. And the solution to this issue was the mass burial of the victims of the massacre at Kapija, which was a mutual proposal by Muhamed effendi Lugavić and fra Petar Matanović.
This image of Meliha Varešanović, captured by British photographer Tom Stoddart, went all around the world. It has become iconic – a classic of reportage. Yet back in 1994, while people overseas were opening their morning newspapers and talking about the beautiful women in the picture, Meliha was just thinking about how to survive another day.