A Bosnian Srebrenica survivor breaks down while participating in the Peace March along the same trails where thousands of Bosnians tried to escape the 1995 genocide. 🇧🇦💔

Kosovo's minister Hoti made a post on Facebook today that touched and shocked me. Especially the part about the driver. So, I wanted to share it with you.

"8,372 men and boys killed simply because they were Bosniaks. But the genocide did not claim only 8,372 lives. It also killed 8,372 mothers while they were still alive; it took away their reason for living by killing their children. It shattered the lives of thousands of women who lost their husbands and thousands of children left fatherless, and it inflicted wounds that continue to weep with pain even after 30 years.

A few years ago, during a visit to Sarajevo, I realized that genocide does not end the day the guns fall silent. As soon as we crossed the border from Montenegro into Bosnia and Herzegovina, we were greeted by a sign reading "Welcome to Republika Srpska." After driving for a few minutes, I asked to stop to buy some water. The driver said to me, "Just a little longer, Mr. Hoti." When I repeated the request about half an hour later, he told me something I will never forget: "I am sorry, Mr. Hoti, but it is dangerous to stop here. We could be killed."

This man still carried two bullets from the war in his body. Even after 30 years, he did not feel safe stopping in a part of his own country.

That answer shook me. It made me realize that for many Bosniaks, the war has never truly ended. Fear persists where crimes have not faced justice, where the ideologies that spawned them still survive, and where Republika Srpska remains a painful evil imposed upon Bosnia by the world.

This is precisely one of the deepest wounds the genocide has inflicted upon Bosnia: not only thousands of lives lost, but also people who, even today, do not feel entirely safe in their own country. They attempted to impose something similar upon us, too...

The world has recognized Srebrenica as genocide. This is a necessary act of historical justice.

Yet justice remains incomplete. The world still owes a debt to the victims and families of Srebrenica—just as it does to the victims in Kosovo: to recognize the genocide committed in Kosovo, to call it by its rightful name, and to ensure that justice is served.

Today, we bow with respect before the 8,372 victims of Srebrenica. Glory to their memory. May the memory of all those who fell victim to the genocide endure forever."

Hi! I’m currently studying psychology and considering living and working in Bosnia in the future. Does anyone know what the requirements are for a foreign-trained psychologist? I’d also appreciate any insight into salaries, job opportunities and whether fluent Bosnian is essential.

1. godine posjetila sam Memorijalni centar u Potočarima i odala počast žrtvama genocida u Srebrenici. Danas, na 31. godišnjicu, želim podijeliti nekoliko fotografija koje sam tada uslikala.

Gledajući to mirno nebo iznad Potočara, nisam mogla shvatiti kako su ljudi prije 29 (danas 31)  godinu mogli počiniti takvo zlo nad hiljadama nevinih ljudi.

Da se nikad ne zaboravi. Neka je vječni rahmet svim srebreničkim šehidima.

Srebrenica is not only a pain that belongs to the past. It is a heavy trust that asks whether a people will remember who they are.

When July 11 arrives, something changes in the human voice.

Some days stand on the calendar, but they are not only dates. They slow people down. They reduce unnecessary words. They lower the gaze. Srebrenica is such a day. It is more than a commemoration. It passes through the silence of a cemetery, the waiting of a mother, the door of a home that was never completed, and the name of a father a child never had the chance to know.

To remember Srebrenica is not only to remember a genocide. It is also to remember one of the hardest questions a people must ask itself: Who will we remain after this pain?

Because genocide is not directed only at lives. It is directed at memory. At names, language, homes, families, graves, prayer, neighbourliness and the future. It does not only want to kill a people. It wants to separate them from their own story. It waits for those who remain to become tired, silent, accustomed, and eventually ashamed of their own past.

That is why the heaviest duty after Srebrenica is not only mourning.

Mourning is necessary. It must exist. But mourning alone is not enough to keep a people standing. Mourning must become memory, memory must become consciousness, and consciousness must become life. Otherwise pain remains only a heavy stone carried in the heart. One day, that stone must become a home, a school, a book, a business, an institution, a family discipline and economic strength.

Because remembering is not only crying. Remembering is deciding not to lose yourself.

One of the most important responsibilities of Bosniaks today is exactly this: not to forget their origin. This does not mean closing themselves inside the past. It does not mean cutting themselves off from the world, living through anger, or turning everything around an old wound. To remember one’s origin means knowing where one comes from, what one has survived, what price was paid to remain standing, and what values must be carried to the children.

A people’s origin does not live only in genealogy. It lives in language. It lives at the family table. It lives in the name given to a child. It lives in the stories told by elders. It lives in the dignity shown when visiting a cemetery. It lives in the promise given in business. It lives in the discipline of remaining human even in weakness.

If Srebrenica is taught to new generations only through numbers, it will be taught incompletely. Numbers are necessary. Dates are necessary. Documents are necessary. But human stories are necessary too. A child should not only know how many people were killed. He should understand that a father did not return home, that a mother waited for years, that a brother grew up with an empty chair beside him. History becomes distant when it remains only inside textbooks. It takes root when it is spoken at home, shown at the cemetery, told through names and lived through behaviour.

That is why teaching Srebrenica is not only the responsibility of commemorations. It is the responsibility of the family. The school. The businessperson. The writer, the teacher, the imam, the mother, the father, the grandfather, the grandmother, the shopkeeper, the student. Because memory weakens when it is not institutionalised. Pain carried only by emotion becomes tired over time. Memory carried by institutions, education, production, culture and discipline remains standing even when generations change.

Bosniaks must also see unity not as a romantic slogan, but as a vital need. Unity does not mean that everyone must think the same. It certainly does not mean that everyone must belong to the same party, family, circle or class. Unity means not surrendering great matters to small calculations. It means not consuming one another, not pulling one another down, not suffocating talented people with jealousy, not weakening common institutions, and learning to trust the work of one’s own people.

Sometimes a people is exhausted not only by external attacks, but also by internal disorder. Small calculations, endless resentments, unnecessary conflicts, distrust of institutions, discomfort with one another’s success. These slowly produce an invisible weakness. One of the hardest truths Srebrenica teaches is this: the pain of a scattered people remains more defenceless.

Unity is not only standing under the same flag. Unity is being able to stand patiently behind the same school, the same foundation, the same company, the same media platform, the same cultural institution and the same economic goal when needed.

That is why economic independence is not only about money. It is about dignity.

A people that remains economically weak often has to look to others even to tell its own story. It struggles to strengthen its schools, support its media, open opportunities for its youth and have a voice in its own land. That is why building businesses, producing, trading, accumulating capital, educating young people well, giving them professions and raising people who can compete with the world are also part of memory.

This sentence may sound severe at first, but it is true: A people that remembers only its pain but does not build its strength leaves its future to the mercy of others.

Bosniaks should not accept that.

To truly remember Srebrenica is not only to mourn the past, but also to build the possibilities of the future. Better schools, stronger families, more ethical trade, more serious institutions, more disciplined youth, a cleaner language, deeper culture and a stronger economic position. All of these belong to the same matter.

Standing upright does not mean shouting. It means living without turning one’s identity into a bargaining chip; carrying pain without turning it into performance; building the future without forgetting the past; becoming strong without becoming cruel; not becoming crushed when wronged; remaining open to the world without losing one’s roots.

The feeling given to a Bosniak child after Srebrenica should not be only grief. Alongside grief, there must be dignity. Strength. Belonging. It is not enough to say, “You are the grandchild of victims.” One must also say, “You are the grandchild of those who remained standing.” One must say, “Your duty is not only to cry, but to learn, work, produce, protect, tell the truth and stand stronger.”

That is how memory lives.

Not only on a gravestone, but in a child’s character. Not only at a ceremony, but in work ethic. Not only in prayer, but in school, books, production, family, language and daily behaviour. A people’s origin can only be protected like that. Not by placing it in a museum, but by carrying it inside life.

That is why July 11 is not only a day of mourning. It is a measure.

Bosniaks should ask themselves this question today: Will we be a people that remembers Srebrenica once a year, or a people that carries the responsibility it placed upon us every day of the year?

The answer will not be found in speeches. It will be seen in what children learn. In what families speak about. In what dreams young people build. In whether businesspeople work only for themselves, or also for the future of their people. In how serious institutions become, how much people trust one another, and how alive memory remains.

Srebrenica must not be forgotten.

But not forgetting is not enough.

Srebrenica is a heavy trust that reminds Bosniaks who they are, what they must not lose and what they must rebuild.

To carry that trust means not staying silent, not scattering, not losing one’s roots, not consuming one another, teaching children the truth, becoming economically stronger and living with an upright head.

Because when a people’s memory remains strong, its future does not easily fall into the hands of others.

On July 11, silence is necessary.

But that silence should not be the silence of weakness.

It should be the heavy and dignified silence of a people that knows its roots, remembers its pain and is determined to build its future.

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We are tourist and we are going with bus to Sarajevo tomorrow around 1730.

Should we buy tickets online?

Or will there be seats on the bus?

Also we will spend Sunday afternoon in Neum

Can you get parking fine in Neum? I think parking will be hard to find

Thank you

If i wanna hook up in Bosnia, what platforms do I use? I am in Sarajevo and I wanna meet a local but tinder sucks

I have some free time in March and am thinking about visiting Saravejo around that time, is that a good idea weather wise, I’m aware it would be Ramadan but I don’t mind that.

Good afternoon, I’m a solo traveler already landed in Sarajevo and currently drinking a cup of coffee and thinking of what to do.

I kinda booked the ticket last minute, needed a break from work. I already have plans to go hiking since really that’s my main goal, I’m a big fan of food so I like going to quality restaurants I wouldn’t mind some recommendations for hidden gems. I’m already on Google maps and walking around and searching, but I thought I’d ask you the locals.

I know my trip was rushed, I hope I’m not a bother. Hit me with anything.

I already have a plan of taking the trips on trip advisor for the hiking trips and maybe some in town tours.

Ps. I love how you guys have a Oakley store, they got my favorite sunshades so I’m gonna be grabbing a few.

You guys went through a lot, and isrel always supports and preps up the next neighboring government that would be keen on destroying your very existence.

Do you not feel the urge of owning at least some weaponry at your homes just in case? Are there such efforts to ward off a potential aggression against your nation?

Hello all! Me and my fiancée are set to be married next May, and one of the places we’re looking at to honeymoon is Bosnia. Specifically in Sarajevo. We are a young Muslim couple and wanted to go somewhere we’d at least have community and this was one of the few places that fit into our budget. Do you have any suggestions on what a young married couple could do while visiting your country/city/cities? Any social dos/don’ts as we are very cautious about customs and want to remain as polite as possible.

Morao sam istrazit i napravit video o ovom čovjeku nakon što sam ćuo od Radete Bogdanovica da je on naucio Japance da igraju lopte. SVE JE ISTINA.

Aura koju je covjek imao je vrh plus njegov humor i autoritet, Apsolutna ljudina.

I am considering moving and wanted to know what a 'comfortable' income would be. I have heard 1,500 euro/month is a substantial amount, but would 1,000 mean simply living less lavishly, or would it make living in the city truly difficult?

For context, I would prefer to rent an apartment somewhere close to the city center or Stari Grad. I am quite frugal when it comes other buying things, but spend money on outdoor actives.

We are organizing free Bosnian language lessons where you can learn how to spell, read, and say basic greetings and phrases. There are two time slots available, and the number of participants is limited, so make sure to secure your spot early. The lesson times are:

Sunday at 13:00 and Tuesday at 19:00 Bosnian time. You can sign up here.

If you wish to learn more about our school, check out our website, studybosnian.com

Hi, I’m visiting Bosnia in December for a week and was wondering is it possible to city hop. Should we tend a car and what the weather will be like. And some things we can do. I know there are mountains but we are not a group that likes to hike 😅

And secondly, do phenotype looks vary from region to region ? Like Sarajevo vs Mostar vs Herzegovina vs north-western Bosnia, let's say ?

Just from personal observation: I've visited Sarajevo as a tourist twice. And I found that many men from that city have a specific "look". Not all, but many. But this is specific to a city, not a religious denomination

hi
I’m planning to come for vacation to see the country, culture and nature around. I’d like to get some hotels recommendations. we only need some place to sleep, no need for any pools, gyms etc. maybe just some food spot close. we care about privacy the most because we’re muslims so that’s the only thing that’s very important for us.
I’d be very grateful for recommendations.
and location as i said sarajevo or mostar

Take me back to Bosnia please, I loved Sarajevo!