Potočari-Srebrenica: Literary event 'Homeland Lives in Language' held

(Patria) - On the occasion of the International Mother Language Day, a unique literary event "Homeland Lives in Language" was held on Saturday, February 15, 2025, in front of a full Congress Hall of Hotel Han Potočari Srebrenica. The book "Time Flies, I am a Pilot", a collection of works by children from Srebrenica, and two books by Bosnian-Swedish writer Amela Džinić-Isanović – "We Learn, But We Don't Play" and "Grandpa Tells You" were presented to the Srebrenica audience.

Young women from Srebrenica, students of Behram-begova Madrasa Tuzla and the Faculty of Philosophy at the University of Tuzla, also spoke about their literary works, sending a message that the denial of the Bosnian language, systematically carried out by the authorities of the Bosnian entity of RS, cannot prevent the existence of that language – it has been alive for centuries despite attempts to ban or rename it.
Meliha Habibović-Herić, the editor of this publication, spoke about the collection of literary works by children from Srebrenica. She emphasized that young people in Srebrenica expect not to be alone in their struggle.

- Young people in Srebrenica want to learn, progress, and develop, like their peers in the free world, but unfortunately, they face prohibitions. They cannot call their language Bosnian. They are deprived of basic human freedom. We want to point out to the world that in the city where genocide was committed, we are suffering from classic apartheid today, said Professor Habibović-Herić.

The organizer of this literary event, BMG Bosanska medijska grupa, launched a cultural project in partnership with Hotel Han Potočari at the beginning of 2025, within which it will organize a series of attractive events throughout 2025, aiming to highlight the importance of cultural and linguistic identity. Azra Pargan, director of BMG Bosanska medijska grupa, says about the project:

- We want to encourage Bosnian society to provide people in Srebrenica with the opportunity to live in conditions similar to those in big cities, with access to cultural events. Throughout 2025, our organization, in cooperation with Hotel Han Potočari, will organize about ten events: promotions, round tables, exhibitions, conferences... The first meeting with the audience in Srebrenica showed that people outside Srebrenica live in a kind of delusion, believing that Srebrenica is an abandoned city.

We had about fifty young people at the promotion, eager for socializing, learning, and proving themselves, said Azra Pargan.

Presenting her books "We Learn! But No – We Play!" and "Grandpa Tells You", Bosnian-Swedish author Amela Džinić-Isanović emphasized the importance of learning and preserving the mother tongue. She recalled the fact that the Bosnian language was the first among regional languages to have its dictionary, authored by Muhamed Hevaji Uskufi. She pointed out that the current bans on using the name Bosnian language in one of the BH entities represent an attempt to destroy the language, but that the language lives within the people, among its speakers, and that it has survived decades of denial before:

- It is impossible to ban the Bosnian language. It existed and will exist as long as its speakers exist. Our task is to develop it, preserve it, and show the world that in the 21st century in Europe, there are still bans on using the mother tongue, concluded Amela Džinić-Isanović.

The organization of cultural events in Srebrenica has a particularly important significance and role. BMG Bosanska medijska grupa initiated the idea for cultural institutions and individuals from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina, homeland countries, and the diaspora to present some of their program content in Srebrenica during 2025. BMG Bosanska medijska grupa has made itself available to be a partner in these events, together with Hotel Han Potočari.

Speaking about this project, writer Mehmed Pargan emphasized that decades of pressure on Bosniaks in Srebrenica have serious consequences, but they also develop a strong spirit of protest against discrimination and apartheid, and that individuals and cultural institutions have an obligation to stand with those who are discriminated against:

- Srebrenica is our sacred place, and we all owe it something. The first genocide in Europe after World War II was committed in Srebrenica. The genocide against Bosniaks obliges every Bosniak, as well as every well-intentioned and humane person, to do what is in their power to mitigate the consequences of the genocide. The idea of BMG Bosanska medijska grupa to contribute to strengthening cultural life in Srebrenica is of particular importance, and I am convinced that cultural institutions and individuals from all over Bosnia and Herzegovina and the region will support it. We asked ourselves if poetry makes sense after Srebrenica.

Yes, after Srebrenica, poetry makes sense. We need to say that civilization hears and remembers. In the city where genocide was committed, those who celebrate the perpetrators of genocide forbid the victims to speak their language. We can define this as the twilight of modern civilization, said Mehmed Pargan.