I had heard his story before. In fact, I had read and re-read it dozens of times already. But, as I listened to Ahmed Ustić’s Death March story, there was no way of quelling the strange paralysis that I had felt when I first read the account of this young man’s horrifying six-day journey for survival.
One would think that art and post-war wounds were not so connected. Aida Šehović, a Bosnian-born artist based in New York, disagreed and, for the past 15 years, has proven that art can help in post-conflict recovery.
In 2020, the Post-Conflict Research Center (PCRC) and the Srebrenica Memorial Center began organizing a summer school for young people in Srebrenica. The first one, entitled ‘Dealing with the past to rethink the future’, was held in the period from July 8 to 13, 2020, while the second, called ‘Truth. Justice. Prevention.’, lasted from July 6 to 13, 2021.
This July, as part of the program marking the 27th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, in cooperation with the Srebrenica Memorial Center, the Post-Conflict Research Center (PCRC) is organizing the third edition of the Srebrenica Youth School in Srebrenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina).
The story could have started like this: I have one child, a son, the apple of my eye, my pride and joy. The story could also have started like this: we live our “happily ever after,” and our two kids are chasing their dreams. Life is nice, comfortable. He has a job and I take care of the kids and the house. We are happy. It even could have started like this: I have a mother and a sister. We are inseparable. We could chat over a cup of coffee for hours.
Personal documents, clothing, and photos which belonged to Azem Delić, a father killed in the Srebrenica genocide, were recently donated to the Srebrenica Memorial Center, along with a belt he made before his murder for his son Muhamed. “The items belong to the Srebrenica Memorial Center because they speak most about those killed if they are close to them,” said Azem’s surviving son, Muhamed Delić.