The Youth Initiative for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina (YIHR BH) is a branch of a regional network of nongovernmental organizations in the former Yugoslavia formed by young people to encourage youth participation in the democratization of their society.
In this podcast, Alma Masic, YIHR BH director, discusses their work on virtual memorials related to the mass atrocities that occurred in Bosnia in the 1990s and the significance of truth and memory in the region.
Virtual memorials, such as their current project Srebrenica Mapping Genocide, provide an educational tool that is accessible to audiences all around the world. The online memorials aim to “establish a basis for future research, studying, education, and so on, in a very reliable, objective, factual way.”
Masic further explained the importance of memory in the country, because denial remains about what really happened in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s. “We really have to start the process of facing the past, and the faster we accept it, the faster we acknowledge what really happened…the more we have a chance to move forward and move on.”
In addition to creating virtual memorials, YIHR BH brings together youth in the region. “Through watching movies, discussing the issues and human rights, spending free time together, and just developing this, the young people are breaking prejudice, learning about each other, and developing new relationships that will be very much needed in the future once they become decision-makers.”
Listen to the Podcast
[Download](/sites/default/files/Masic_ICTJ_Podcast_07312011.mp3) | Duration: 7:40mins | File size: 4.38MBSrebrenica - Mapping Genocide [trailer] from VIZUAL on Vimeo.
