Jan 22,2021
Today, the public is officially presented with the results and outcomes of the first stage of the project aimed at documenting the experiences of children during Srebrenica siege and genocide, and carried out by the Srebrenica Memorial Center and the War Childhood Museum. The two institutions have formed a joint collection, which doubles as the first collection on childhoods affected by the Srebrenica siege and genocide, as well as an important contribution to documenting genocide from children's perspective. The project's multidisciplinary team included anthropologists, psychologists, historians, with representatives of both institutions involved in the activities. The project was headed by Lejla Hairlahović of the War Childhood Museum and Hasan Hasanović of the Srebrenica Memorial Center.
“We are honored to have had the opportunity to work on this project, as we believe it carries enormous significance, and not only in the context of documenting the Srebrenica genocide, but in the context of documenting genocide from children’s perspective in general,” said Amina Krvavac, the Executive Director of the War Childhood Museum, also adding that it was a pleasure to work with the dedicated and motivated team of the Srebrenica Memorial Center.
The War Childhood Museum's methodology, which was used for the project, set the foundation for future documenting and exhibiting activities regarding the experiences of children during the Srebrenica siege and genocide. The collection acquired in the course of the project belongs to both the SMC and the WCM who will be using the material in their future exhibitions, presentations, and similar activities.
“We are grateful to the War Childhood Museum for welcoming this cooperation. As a Museum that received numerous important international awards and accolades, as well as showed what a team of professionals united in one goal can do, we can see clearly that there are many things we can learn from their example. They have proven themselves friends to our institution, and their approach to researching war in BiH, as well as beyond, has shown that a narrative based on truth, facts, and personal stories can be made accessible and understandable to the world,” added Emir Suljagić, the Director of the Srebrenica Memorial Center.
“Over 100 people who have their own families today, and many of whom still live in Srebrenica or in its vicinity, have expressed the wish to have their memories and keepsakes become a part of this collection, but also showed great courage by agreeing to come and share their experiences in front of the camera. This project resulted in 70 hours of video material and close to 100 documented keepsakes and memorabilia, predominantly letters and photographs, but also several rare, personal items which were preserved, including a sweater, a jacket, a rucksack, and such,” clarified Hasan Hasanović, the Srebrenica Memorial Center’s Curator.
The excerpts of the recorded video testimonies are available in the video prepared by the Srebrenica Memorial Center: https://youtu.be/SSMLKzpvhUQ.