Much of the fighting that took place during the Bosnian war of the 1990s occurred in the country’s mountains, hills, and countryside. Once littered with landmines that led to the destruction and decay of the hiking trails and mountain huts that served to connect the country and its people, Bosnia and Herzegovina is now re-establishing itself as a hub for outdoor and adventure tourism as it invites people to return to its mountains to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Dinaric region.
We walk through life meeting people at every turn. We know that most are not there to stay, but each has a potential lesson to teach us about the world and about ourselves. There are those, however, who change the course of our lives forever. Those rare individuals who better your life, or even save it. Ordinary heroes. This is the story of a family of ordinary heroes who embraced my family and me in a time of need, and who love us for who we are despite the differences that may exist between us.
In the early ‘90s, no one believed that war would hit Sarajevo or that the Yugoslav National Army could turn into an enemy of the city’s people. For centuries, Sarajevo had been a multicultural city with its mosques, synagogues, and Catholic and Orthodox churches.
The fourth issue of BalkanThemes focuses on the challenges organizations and individuals face in dealing with human trafficking cases in the former Yugoslavia and beyond.
The third issue of BalkanThemes explores the work of organizations promoting LGBT-friendly dialogue in the Balkans, the struggle of three LGBT individuals in a conservative society and the state of LGBT rights across the region of the former Yugoslavia.
Around the globe, there are millions of reported cases of people who are missing or have disappeared. This first issue of BalkanThemes explores how governments and organizations are addressing this problem in the countries of the former Yugoslavia.