A problem increasingly burdening BiH: Children running away from home because parents do not communicate with them

In just the last few months, Bosnia and Herzegovina has been shaken by at least three cases of minors running away from home, writes the BiH news agency Patria. And this problem is becoming more pronounced in BiH year after year.

The latest to go missing was Armina Kovač from Donji Vakuf on Saturday evening. She went out with her friends and has been missing ever since. Friends and acquaintances do not consider her a confrontational person, she didn't cause problems, so no one understands what could have happened to her that night.

A few days earlier, in Brčko, a young man from Vrbanja, Croatia, Antonio Kovačić (17), was found. Both Bosnian and Croatian police had been searching for him for several days. He left home without explanation, writing to his parents not to be angry with him.

Vedrana Cuca from Tarčin also left home in October last year because she had bad grades at university. The search lasted for days, and she eventually contacted her terrified parents from Sarajevo.

Nada Uletilović, a professor of pedagogy and psychology from Banja Luka, warned in an interview with the agency Patria that, unfortunately, there are more and more such cases in BiH. In today's world, she says, it is clear that it is not easy for parents to raise a child, given all the social influences such as the internet, the street, relatives, but it is not impossible if parents make an effort.

Uletilović: It is difficult to raise a child, but not impossible

- There are phases in children's lives when they want to be more adult than their parents. However, if we have worked on raising children from their early childhood, this period can be overcome more easily than if we have not raised the child on time - says Uletilović, adding that the period of raising children begins even before school, practically, when parents notice that the child is observing their actions.

- It is not good to have a completely firm hand, just as it is not good to let children do whatever they want. A child must have boundaries that they should not cross. But, first and foremost, parents must build a friendly relationship with their children. There must be trust between parents and children. Without it, it is impossible to achieve progress - believes Uletilović, adding that an environment where trust prevails is more pleasant for both the child and the parents, writes Patria.