As until now, we present a short report on the activities of Women in Black in the mentioned period, and if you are interested in getting more detailed information, you can find them on our website www.zeneucrnom.org or write us by email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
In advance we thank you in solidarity.
Street actions: in the reported period, street actions were under the sign of the campaign to proclaim July, 11th as the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, of commemorations / marking significant dates of crimes committed in our name, as well as under the sign of actions of feminist character.
Campaign – “July, 11th, Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica – proclaim” – The campaign was begun in February 2009 after the adoption of the Resolution on July, 11th – Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica by the European Parliament. The pressure campaign is directed at institutions so that July, 11th is proclaimed as the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, as well as to Serbian citizens in order to raise public consciousness, to encourage compassion and respect for, as well as solidarity with, the victims of the Srebrenica genocide.
A protest requesting that July, 11th is proclaimed as the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica was organised from February 2009 on in Belgrade, in front of the Presidency of Serbia, on the 11th of each month.
In the reported period, we organised protests in front of the Presidency the Republic of Serbia: May, 11th and June, 11th. The Parliament of the Republic of Serbia passed on March, 31st 2010 the Declaration Condemning the Crime in Srebrenica. Since the Parliament of Serbia, by the above-mentioned Declaration, did not proclaim July, 11th as the Day of Remembrance of the Genocide in Srebrenica, thus not fulfilling the requests of Women in Black (with the support of 100 non-governmental organisations from Serbia), nor of the Resolution of the European Parliament, we kept on protesting on the 11th of each month.
May, 9th, Belgrade: On the occasion of May, 9th – Day of victory against fascism, we visited the memorial park ‘Topovska šupa’, the former concentration camp on Autokomanda in the centre of Belgrade in sign of remembrance for the victims of fascism during the Second World war, especially of the suffering of the Jewish and Roma population in occupied Serbia in the years 1941 and 1942. On the place of suffering, the artist Saša Stojanović, together with Women in Black activists performed the artistic-activist action ‘Lesson of antifascist history’. On the same occasion, we also directed to the government in Serbia the appeal ‘Antifascism is my choice’ to stop clerical-fascist tendencies in Serbia, which manifest themselves the most through institutionalised ghettoisation and discrimination of the Roma population, rehabilitation of fascist collaborators from the Second World War, equalising and relativising of fascism and antifascism, erasing memory of the antifascist past, impunity of violence towards Others and Different people, first of all towards the members of LGBT population, human rights defenders, etc.
May, 14th, Belgrade: On the occasion of the Global Action Week Against Small Arms, the artist Saša Stojanović, together with Women in Black activists, performed on Republic Square the performance ‘Farewell to arms’. The entire action was held in the context of the international campaign of IANS network (International Network on Small Arms), of which Women in Black are members.
May, 24th, Belgrade: On the occasion of May, 24th – International Day of Women’s Actions for peace and disarmament, we organised a peaceful action on Republic Square, under the name “Food, not arms” about feminist alternatives to militarism and militarisation. Around fifty activists of Women in Black Network of Serbia took part in the action.
July, 7th, Belgrade: activist-artistic action ‘One pair of shoes – one life’ was carried out on Knez Mihailo’s street, the main street in Belgrade, and consisted of the donation of shoes with messages to the victims of the genocide in Srebrenica. This action represents the first phase of a campaign for the raising of a permanent monument in Belgrade, to the memory of the victims of the Srebrenica genocide.
On this occasion, a few hundred shoes were gathered from the whole country, and the entire action will be continued by gathering 8,732 pairs of shoes, which corresponds to the official number of people killed in the Srebrenica genocide. The action was thought out and realised by Women in Black, together with many engaged artistic associations and artists.
July, 10th, Belgrade: ‘Don’t forget the Srebrenica genocide – responsibility and solidarity’, stand-in on the Republic Square on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica. Around one hundred activists of Women in Black Network from the whole country took part in this action.
Confronting the past / transitional justice – feminist approach
This is one of the most important activities of Women in Black. It is composed of many segments: street actions, workshops, lectures, various models of transitional justice from the feminist perspective, cooperation with related organisations in view of joint actions (campaigns, consultative meetings).
Visiting the places of crimes committed in our name: In the reported period, we were present at the commemoration of crimes in the following places in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH):
Zvornik, June, 1st, BiH: in May and June 1992, on the territory of the municipality of Zvornik, Serbian armed units subjected Muslim civilians to torture – around 700 men, women, and children. Eight activists of Women in Black Network were present at the burial organised by the families of the victims and laid down a wreath with the inscription ‘Don’t forget the crime in Zvornik’.
July, 8th, 9th and 10th, Nezuk – Potočari/Srebrenica, BiH: Participation of some twenty activists of Women in Black Network of Serbia and international volunteers in the peace march ‘To Freedom via Route of Death’ from the village of Nezuk near Tuzla to Potočari. After the occupation of Srebrenica in July 1995 by Serbian armed units under the command of the war criminal Ratko Mladić, Bosniak civilians, escaping the atrocities, tried to find safety by taking the mentioned path. Unfortunately, the majority were killed, and a very small number reached safety. The march, more than 110-kilometre long, represents above all recognition for the victims of the genocide, as well as remembering the mass and terrible crimes; this is an act in building a culture of remembrance, solidarity and compassion. During the march – in which thousands of people took part, above all from BiH, but also from the entire world – memories of the survivors were evoked, like its own kind of history lesson. The march ‘To Freedom via Route of Death’ otherwise has been taking place since 2005, and it is worth mentioning that Women in Black are the first civil society organisation from Serbia which organised a collective departure for the March.
July, 11th, Potočari, Srebrenica, BiH: On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the Srebrenica Genocide, 71 activists of Women in Black Network from the whole country took part in the commemoration and burial of 775 Bosniak people killed by Serbian armed units during the genocide. On this occasion, we laid down a wreath ‘We will never forget the genocide in Srebrenica’ in the Memorial Centre in Potočari.
July, 31st, Kozarac, BiH: The inauguration of the memorial for the murdered inhabitants of Kozarac during the 1992-5 aggression. Indeed, Kozarac was attacked in May 1992 by the YNA (Yugoslav People’s Army) and by the forces of local Bosnian Serbs. During the summer of the same year the city and its surroundings were plundered, and the inhabitants who had survived were driven out and/or deported by force in three concentration camps (Omarska, Keraterm and Trnopolje). The monument is raised as remembrance to the 1,200 killed, while more than a thousand inhabitants of Kozarac are still considered to be missing. Five Women in Black activists were present at the inauguration of the memorial, on the invitation of the members of the association ‘To peace via the heart’ from Kozarac.
August, 1st, Bihać: Visit to the memorial cemetery for the people killed in the concentration camp of Omarska; the visit was organised by Majka Mejra Dautović, a peace activist and the mother of a son and a daughter killed in the mentioned camp.
Women's solidarity for the punishability of war crimes: actions of women's solidarity, mutual support, exchanges and cooperation in the region with the aim of building a just peace, of creating models of transitional justice from the feminist perspective.
In this period, we organised the following visits and exchanges of women from the Association of Families of Disappeared and Killed:
- June, 1st, in Zvornik;
- July, 10th and 11th, in Srebrenica and Potočari;
- July, 30th and 31st, in Kozorac, in the Association ‘To peace via the heart’;
- August, 1st and 2nd, in Bihać.
In this period, we also met with families from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina with whom we follow the trials at the Special Court in Belgrade.
Artistic engagement in confronting the past / in transitional justice
In this period the practice of joint work and cooperation with artistic associations, professional theatres, artists engaged in artistic framing of women's opposition to the war, war crimes, repression, and violation of human rights. In this period, the following activities were carried out:
Artistic-activist initiative on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide:
One pair of shoes – one life: this is the first phase of a campaign aiming at raising a permanent monument in Belgrade, to the memory of the victims of the Srebrenica genocide. The action was carried out on July, 7th in Belgrade (on Knez Mihailo’s street – the main street of the city, a pedestrian zone) and during the action, a few hundreds of shoes were collected. The action was inspired by the international initiative, in which Women of Srebrenica participate. Precisely because of their participation and in solidarity with them, we organised the action, but adaoted it to the political and ethical context of Serbia. The action of shoes donation is articulated on several levels: as a process of addressing the victims and the community of the victims; the action is participative and directed to Serbian citizens, calling them to build together with us a permanent monument which we express solidarity with and responsibility towards the victims of the genocide, not only in the legal sense, but also in culture, science, art, education, and politics. The action is also a process of addressing the Serbian state with the request of granting a location for the building of a permanent monument, by which the state would acknowledge the dignity of the victims of the genocide and of those who stand in solidarity with them, and contribute to the establishment of the rule of law and of the political culture of the punishability of crimes.
The continuity of the action will be realised through the initiative to establish a permanent monument to those murdered in Srebrenica, consisting of 8372 pairs of shoes, on a location yet unknown in Belgrade, and it was suggested that this permanent monument be built on the place which symbolises the suffering of victims and antifascist heritage.
In the framework of this initiative, the following activities were held:
- 12 work meetings: in Women in Black offices, 12 work meetings in the period from late May to August 2010 (May, 30th, June, 6th in Vrdnik, in Voivodina, on the meeting of Women in Black Network, June, 10th, 17th, 23rd, 29th, 30th; July, 2nd, 6th, 7th, 14th and 27th) and 138 persons participated in the meetings.
- Collecting shoes: in the period from July, 1st to 6th in the Centre for Cultural Decontamination, while activists from the Women in Black Network were in the same time collecting shoes in the whole country and then brought them in Belgrade on July, 7th;
- Street action, July, 7th in Belgrade: in which several hundreds of people took part.
The initiators of the action are, besides Women in Black: Ana Vilenica, performer, Biljana Rakočević, artistic photographer, Branimir Stojanović, psychoanalyst, Centre for Cultural Decontamination, Dah Theatre from Belgrade, The Team on Duty of the Art Clinic from Novi Sad, Milica Tomić, artist, Saša Stojanović, visual artist, Škart, Belgrade.
Women in Black will inform the national and international public in due time, and information about it are available on Women in Black website.
- Documentary film “The Women of Srebrenica speak”: produced by Women in Black (2008) and directed by Milica Tomić, 17-minute long. The relatives of those killed in the Srebrenica genocide gave testimony about the genocide, addressing Belgrade and Serbian citizens on the occasion of the thirteenth anniversary of the genocide, when the film was first shown in Belgrade, on the Republic Square. The film is composed of talks with the relatives of those who were killed or disappeared in the genocide, and the entire material was shot in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the immense support of the Citizens’ Association ‘Women of Srebrenica’ whose head office is in Tuzla (BiH).
In the framework of joint activities of Women in Black Network of Serbia, members of the Network organised on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica showings of the film followed by discussions about confrontation with the past, civic responsibility and solidarity in the following towns:
- June, 16th, Vlasotince: the film was shown in the Cultural centre, and the showing was organised by SOS Telephone for Women and Children Victims of Violence from Vlasotince. It was attended by 54 persons and was followed by a public lecture at which the following activists spoke: Anelija Najdenov, Centre for Cultural Affirmation from Dimitrovgrad, Nevena Kostić, Women for Peace from Leskovac and Miloš Urošević, Women in Black activist from Belgrade.
- June, 21st, Dimitrovgrad: film showing and discussion organised by the ‘Centre for Cultural Affirmation’ from Dimitrovgrad which took place in the council room of the Dimitrovgrad Municipal Council. 27 women were present. The panellists were Nevena Kostić from the NGO “Women for Peace” from Leskovac and Svetlana Šarić from SOS Telephone for Women and Children Victims of Violence from Vlasotince and the moderator was Anelija Najdenov from Dimitrovgrad.
- June, 18th, Ečka near Zrenjanin: the showing took place in the local council of Ečka and was organised by the Network of Roma Women of Banat region / Women in Black Network. 21 activists of the mentioned Network were present, from Ečka, Zrenjanin, Pančevo and Novi Bečej. The discussion after film was led by Ljiljana Radovanović (Women in Black Belgrade) and Nevena Kostić (Women for Peace, Leskovac).
- June, 23rd, Niš: the showing and discussion took place in the Alternative Cultural Centre (ACC). The showing was attended by twenty people, mostly young people, and the showing was followed by a discussion in which the panelists were Nevena Kostić and Nada Dabić.
- June, 29th, Kruševac: the showing of the documentary film and the discussion after it were held in the Town Hall of the city of Kruševac with the participation of 18 women, politicians, members of the Council for Gender Equality, activists of Peščanik, as well as people interested by the film showing. The panellists were: Miloš Urošević and Nataša Lambić, Women in Black Belgrade, Nevena Kostić, Women for Peace from Leskovac, while the moderator was Jelena Memet, activist of the Women’s Association Peščanik.
- June, 29th, Novi Sad: the initiative was organised by the Peace Group Esperanca, with the support of the artistic association ‘Art Clinic’ and the showing and discussion took place in the Town Hall of Novi Sad. The following persons took part in the discussion: the councilwoman Jasmina Nikčević, Nada Dabić, Staša Zajović, Women in Black activists, and around forty people were present at the showing and public discussion.
Transitional justice – feminist approach – Video activism: with the aim of improving the visibility of the effects of various models of transitional justice, particularly the one from the feminist perspective, promoted by Women in Black (WiB), we created during the year 2010 a group of video activists who trained for shooting, cutting, digitalising and posting on the internet video and audio material gathered during regular activities of Women in Black, in order to make this material, in the form of short films, available to the wider public, with the aim of promoting in this way a change of the value system and of ideas of peace, justice and solidarity in society.
In the reported period, the group for Video activism held approximately twenty work meetings in Women in Black offices. The following videos were made:
Documentary film “Don’t forget the genocide in Srebrenica” (14:19): In May, June and July, video and audio material was chosen and used in the mentioned film. The final version was made around July, 20th. The film consists of Women in Black street actions linked to Srebrenica, sequences from the actions of the Association of Women of Srebrenica from Tuzla, statements by activists, etc. The film was posted on Women in Black website and will be translated in English in the following period.
Video presentation “Gordana Stoilković – revolution from within” (3:10) is a film in sign of remembrance to the deceased activist of Women in Black and Women for Peace from Leskovac Gordana Stoilković, and is composed of her photographs, quotes and videos which describe her activist engagement. The promotion of the video presentation was held on June, 11th in Kukavica near Leskovac on the occasion of the anniversary of Gordana Stoilković’s death.
Video presentation “Biljana Kovačević Vučo – from vulnerability to protection” (9:20) presents one segment of the work of human rights defender Biljana Kovačević Vučo who died in April 2010. The film is an homage to Biljana, one of the most significant antiwar activists and human rights defenders in the last twenty years in ex-Yugoslavia. The work version began on the basis of quotes and video and audio recordings of events and interviews, and the participation of Biljana Kovačević Vučo in the numerous activities organised by Women in Black.
‘Farewell to arms’ (03:37): documentary film about the performance of the artist Saša Stojanović, with the support of Women in Black activists, on the occasion of the Global Action Week Against Small Arms (May, 14th).
‘A lesson of antifascist history’ (02:51): documentary film about the artistic-activist action carried out by the artist Saša Stojanović, together with Women in Black activists, in the Memorial Park Topovska Šupa, the place of a concentration camp during the Second World War.
March, 8th – In solidarity for our rights (04:14): the documentary film was made during the training for Video activism and consists of recordings of street actions organised by Women in Black on March, 8th 2010.
Filming events: in the reported period, activists filmed all the important activities of Women in Black. It was shown that the quality of shooting is not inferior in any way to the one of a professional and that activists are, after an excellent training, able to “catch” the meaningful moment of an action and to use the image for activist purposes. All events were filmed, not only street actions but also educative programs, book launches, etc.
Internet distribution of the films: it is envisaged in the project that all the finished films are posted on the internet, translated and subtitled in English, from June to December 2010. In addition, the preparations for the internet distributions of the films were carried out – a page for video activism was created on Women in Black website, on which the films and video presentations that have been finished until now are posted.
The exceptional importance of activities connected to video activism is not only in technical-aesthetical qualification but also in the strengthening of autonomy and self-preservation of the group and network.
‘Crossing the line’ – theatre representation performed by Dah theatre; the representation is based on texts from the book ‘Women’s Side of War’ published by Women in Black (2007) in Serbian, in Albanian (2008) and in English (2009).
The representation was directed by Dijana Milošević and performed by actresses Sanja Krsmanović-Tasić, Ivana Milenović, and Maja Mitić.
In this period the following representations were performed, followed by the promotion of the book ‘Women’s Side of War’ and discussion about the importance of confronting the past, especially from a feminist viewpoint:
Šabac, June, 7th: the representation was performed in the National Theatre, in the presence of 30 persons and members of Dah Theatre as well as Staša Zajović from Women in Black took part in the discussion.
Kruševac, June, 10th: the representation was performed in the National Theatre in Kruševac, in the presence of approximately 200 persons, mostly women, and members of Dah Theatre and Women in Black activists from Belgrade (Staša Zajović and Ljiljana Radovanović) and of the Association ‘Peščanik’ from Kruševac participated in the discussion that followed.
Inđija, June, 24th: the representation was performed in the Cultural Centre, in the presence of around fifteen persons, and members of Dah Theatre participated in the discussion that followed the representation.
Punishability of crime – way towards a just peace: following the trials at the Special Court - at the Council for war crimes in Belgrade.
Trial for the crime in Zvornik: during the Serbian aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina, in May and June 1992, in the region of the municipality of Zvornik, the defendant Grujić Branko from Mali Zvornik (President of the Temporary Government, President of War Headquarters and War Secretary) and Branko Popović (known as well by the name of Marko Pavlović) from Sombor (commander of the Headquarters of the Territorial Defence Forces, member of the War Headquarters) subjected to torture civilians of Muslim nationality – around 700 (according to the charge of the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia) men, women, and children – from the villages of Klisa, Đulići, Grbavci, Kučić Kule, Grebe, Šetići and then killed them in Gerina klanica.
The trial began on November, 10th 2008.
In this period, the following appearances in court took place:
May: 17th, 18th, and 19th.
June: 28th and 29th.
Trial for the crime in Lovas: members of the JNA and of the paramilitary formation “Dušan Silni” killed in October 1991 around 70 Croatian civilians in Lovas. From the very beginning, in April 2008, activists of the Women in Black Network have been following the trial. In this period, the following appearances in court took place:
May: 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th, and 28th.
June: 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 25th.
In the reported period we followed fifteen (15) appearances in court.
Women, peace, and security – feminist-antimilitarist approach
In the framework of our continuous work on the feminist approach of security, on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 ('Women, peace, and security'), we initiated a high number of diverse programmes.
In the reported period, we carried out the following activities:
Educative activities: workshops, panel discussions, seminars:
Lecture and discussion About the legal status of human rights defenders and concrete security measures provided to human rights defenders by the UN Declaration on human rights defenders (Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by the UN General Assembly on March, 8th 1999). The document was presented as well as the limits and possibilities of its implementation in Serbia, where defenders are faced with difficulties in their relations with states organs, and are especially exposed to attacks by non-state actors, which are the consequence of a lack of political will to break with the very serious burden of the recent past. In the discussion that followed, activists exchanged their experiences from practice and spoke about concrete suggestions for improving the position of defenders, such as a network of direct legal help.
The lecture was held by Katarina Jozić, jurist of the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights/YUCOM from Belgrade in Vrdnik on June, 4th in the framework of the Work meeting of Women in Black Network of Serbia, with the participation of 30 activists.
- Workshop: About the militarisation of protest – about the security of Women in Black street actions, that is, about the continuity of repression against activists of Women in black, whether by the state, or by non-state actors, about the ways in which activists experience the current militarisation, as well as about suggestions for demilitarisation; the workshop was held in Vrdnik on June, 5th, on the meeting of Women in Black Network.
From traditional to feminist concept of security – educative seminars consisting of workshops, lectures, video presentations and documentary films. Each seminar lasts three days and seminars have and interactive and interdisciplinary character, giving equal value to activist experience and academic knowledge.
In this period the third regional seminar took place:
June, 11th, 12th and 13th, Kukavica near Leskovac: 36 activists from Leskovac, Vlasotince, Niš, Pirot, Dimitrovgrad, and Belgrade took part in the seminar.
The following workshops and lectures were held:
- 'Security seen by the eyes of women' – positions and experiences of women on the field coordinated by Ivana Vitas and Staša Zajović;
- Demilitarisation of security – human security, gender dimension of security – Resolution 1325 coordinated by Marijana Stojčić and Maja Pešić;
- Women not/gladly go to the army – About militarisation and emancipation by way of participation of women in armed forces – towards a feminist-antimilitarist concept of security coordinated by Ivana Vitas and Staša Zajović;
- Significance of civil democratic control over armed forces – NATO pact and Serbia coordinated by Gordana Subotić and Nataša Lambić;
- Experiences of feminist-antimilitarist concept of security – Power point presentation of women's groups working on the gender dimension of security, coordinated by Saša Kovačević and Miloš Urošević.
During the seminar, the following documentary films and presentations were shown: about human security and gender dimension of security: documentary film 'Belvil' and video presentation (20 minutes) and video presentation 'Union association of women in the informal economy' (15 minutes), about women in the Zapatist movement, about Wangari Maathai, environmental activist who received the Nobel Peace Prize, about experiences in the implementation of the Resolution 1325 in Kosovo, about global and regional networks for peace, justice and security, etc.
Work teams / groups of Women in Black dealing with the questions of security carried out the following activities in this period:
Activist research working groups
For monitoring the process of the National Action Plan (NAP): about the process of drafting the NAP for Resolution 1325 (whether the mechanisms of drafting the NAP satisfy the criteria of participation, visibility, inclusiveness of the mentioned process by the implementers of the drafting of the NAP). Two work meetings were held: May, 31st and June, 12th, in Leskovac. In late August, the treatment and analysis of the survey was done.
For drafting the document 'Propositions and suggestions for drafting the National Action Plan on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1325 in Serbia':
The mentioned document was adopted on March, 13th 2010 at the work meeting / workshop organised by Women in Black in Belgrade, and which was preceded by numerous work meetings. The document is 21-page long and was posted on Women in Black website in Serbian and English. In the reported period, members of the work group uniformed the mentioned document at several regional and international conferences.
Monitoring of activities of state institutions connected to the NAP 1325: with the aim of following and controlling institutions connected to Resolution 1325, we actively participated in numerous conferences and work meetings, reporting about this later on both to the Women in Black Network and to relevant international organisations and institutions. Brief information about this are in the ‘International politics’ section of this report.
Campaign and lobbying for amending laws – legal initiatives and recommendations of Women in Black in conformity with the Women in Black resolution ‘Women, peace, security’ (2005), as contribution to the creation of a framework of rule of law, politics of punishability of crimes and violence, culture of responsibility and human rights. In this reported period we addressed the following competent institutions, with a request for the changing and/or abrogation of specific laws and among the activities in this sphere, we single out:
- Law on redirection of means/Law on the confiscation of property acquired by organised crime and war crimes: this is a request for access to the way of spending means collected on the basis of the mentioned Law, with a proposition about directing a part of the means to social and humanitarian activities, as well as in project of peace, non-violence, and intercultural solidarity;
- Campaign for the monitoring of the work of the Commissioner for equality: in March and April 2010, Women in Black organised, together with a group of non-governmental organisations, a public campaign against the political manoeuvres of the ruling coalition (first of all of the Democratic Party/DP), in other words against the imposition of their candidate, who did not fulfilled the conditions prescribed by the Ban on Discrimination. Given the fact that it concerns an extremely important independent institution (Citizens' Commissioner), which should promote human security (minority rights, etc.), the mentioned group of NGOs protested against the illegitimate action of DP. The campaign was continued during this reported period as well, with a request to acquit the Commissioner for Equality of her functions, since she not only did not react on the case of serious discriminative practices (especially in the case of Roma people) but also violated the Law on the prohibition of discrimination connected to conflict of interests (according to the article 28 subsection 5 of the Law on the prohibition of discrimination, which categorically forbids the performing of ‘professional activities’ during the exercise of the function of Commissioner, etc.). Women in Black joined the request to acquit the Commissioner of her functions which was submitted by the Coalition Against Discrimination.
- Initiatives for amending and/or abrogating laws: the work group prepared in this period propositions for the amendment and/or abrogation of the following laws: Law on the rights of defendants in custody of the International Criminal Tribunal and of their family members (better known as the Law on financial help for Hague defendants and for their families). This work group is coordinated by: Dijana Miladinović.
- Campaign ‘Women ask’: peaceful initiative of Women in Black launched for the first time on the fifteenth anniversary of activity of the group (October 2006) for 15 years of non-violent antiwar opposition in Serbia. The current campaign is renewed with additional questions (19 questions) and addressed to twenty competent institutions in Serbia with the request that answers and data about the deeds connected to war and war criminals (number of victims in the 1991-99 wars; number of people called up by force, of invalids, of mass graves, as well as data about the criminal persecution of men from Serbia who refused to go to war or who deserted the battlefields, about violence against women as a consequence of war violence, etc.) to be made available. The campaign is a constitutive part of WiB human and feminist concept of security, integrated in our resolution ‘Women, peace, security’.
Researches about the gender dimension of security:
Women as economic migrants in countries of the European Union: Pilot research about the link between integration processes in Serbia and the gender division of work, especially after the abolition of visas for Serbian citizens in EU (December 2009); the pilot research deals with the impact of the mentioned processes on the security of women (work, economic, health, etc. security), as well as with questions connected to the feminization of labour migration, etc.
The preparations were done during the spring 2010 and the research will be carried out during the summer 2010 and coordinated by Ivana Vitas, Marina Vlaisavljević, Valentina Dobrosavljević and Dušanka Stojković while ten more activists from the Women in Black Network in the whole country participate in the research team.
Civil society activists in EU countries and economic migrants in EU countries: pilot research about the work rights of migrants, about protection mechanisms, about gender, class and inter-cultural support and solidarity between civil society activists and migrants in EU countries. The pilot research encompasses above all activists of the Women in Black Network, as well as related networks in Italy, Spain, Great Britain, and Sweden. The research is coordinated by Staša Zajović and Mirella Forel (Spain).
Activist-artistic engagement in creating a feminist-antimilitarist concept of security: work groups are composed of Women in Black activists, the artist Saša Stojanović and members of the artistic association 'Art Clinic' from Novi Sad held 4 meetings in May (June, 24th and 26th) about the aesthetic shaping promotional material, about street actions connected to demilitarisation, etc. In the reported period, street actions were organised, which are reported on in the section of the same name, promotional material was also made (leaflets, postcards) about the gender dimension of security and about human rights defenders. The coordinator of this segment is Marija Vidić.
Publishing activity:
Dictionary of security: it has 32 pages, and consists of 73 entries connected to traditional, human and feminist-activist concept of security, made in the framework of the educative program ‘Women, peace, security – From a traditional to a feminist concept of security’ which is taking place from 2009 to 2011.
With the aim of realising the above-mentioned activities, the work groups held 20 work meetings: in May (14th, 16th, 23rd, 27th, and 31st), in June (8th, 10th, 12th, 16th, 23rd, 28th, and 30th), and in July (12th, 15th, 16th, 21st, 23rd, 26th,28th, and 29th). More than twenty activists take part in the work groups.
Networks, coalitions – mutual support and solidarity
Women in Black started or actively participate in numerous regional networks, coalitions and councils, in the activities of related organisations in order to strengthen mutual support, solidarity, civil society and democracy in Serbia and in the whole region.
In this period, many activities were carried out, among which we single out the following:
Women in Black Network of Serbia: work, consultative meetings, educative programs.
Work meeting Women in Black Network of Serbia
Vrdnik, Vojvodina, June, 4th, 5th, and 6th:
30 activists from 10 Serbian towns participated (Belgrade, Leskovac, Kraljevo, Dimitrovgrad, Vlasotince, Pančevo, Zrenjanin, Novi Bečej, Novi Sad and Niš), from Croatia (Mali Lošinj) and Greece (Athens).
In the framework of this timetable, the following activities were held:
- About the legal status of human rights defenders: held by the jurist Katarina Jozić from the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights/YUCOM from Belgrade
- Showing of the documentary film about Biljana Kovačević Vučo ‘From vulnerability to protection’
- Panel discussion, June 4th and 5th: ‘Civil society and activism: Challenges – now and here’ with Bojana Genov (Women’s Network of Croatia) and Ljiljana Živković (Women’s group Mali Lošinj, Croatia), the moderators were Snežana Tabački and Staša Zajović.
- Workshop: About the security of Women in Black street actions, that is, about the militarisation of protest, about the continuity of repression against activists of Women in black, whether by the state, or by non-state actors.
- Discussion about the activities of the Network in the previous period and about the activities in the following period, facilitated by Nevena Kostić and Ljiljana Radovanović.
Meeting of Women in Black Network: Velika Plana, August, 26th, 27th, 28th, and 29th
54 activists from Serbia (from the following towns Niš, Pirot, Dimitrovgrad, Leskovac, Kruševac, Velika Plana, Belgrade, Pančevo, Novi Bečej, Zrenjanin, Novi Sad, Vlasotince), as well as from Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (1), Montenegro (3, from Kotor and Pljevlja), Croatia (1) and Spain (1).
Beside the usual activities at the meetings of the Network: five (5) workshops: Joint evaluation of the work of Women in Black Network in the previous period (Biggest successes and challenges...what make us stronger and keeps us going, and what weaken us?); Suggestions for improving the work of Women in Black Network, coordinated by Snježana Nježa Mrše; Analyse of and discussion on the joint activities in the previous period; Agreement on the joint activities of the Network in the following period and evaluation of the meeting of the Network, coordinated by the Network activists, the following activities were also held:
- Presentation of the realised documentary films and power point presentation
(Women in Black work group for video activism)
- Lecture and discussion: Crisis and neoliberal globalisation in Spain, impact on society, feminisation of poverty and responses of the social movement. Feminist-antimilitarist alternatives for a different economy – of solidarity and care...
Lecturer: Mirella Forel, Women in Black activist, Seville, Spain
Panel discussion: Where does feminism go today – here and elsewhere?
Panellists: Mirella Forel (Spain), Adriana Zaharijević (Women’s studies and Women in Black, Belgrade), Memnuna Nuna Zvizdić (Women to Women, Sarajevo, BiH), Jelena Višnjić (Voice of Difference, Belgrade), Ljupka Kovačević and Ervina Dabižanović (Anima, Kotor, Montenegro), Dušica Popadić (Incest Trauma Centre, Belgrade), Lino Veljak (Faculty of Philosophy, Zagreb, Croatia)
Moderator: Staša Zajović
Promotions of books:
- Montenegro Regtime, by the author Ervina Dabižanović, who presented her book
- ‘Becoming Woman, by the author Adriana Zaharijević – the book was presented by Miloš Urošević, Women in Black, Belgrade
- A Lucky Child, by the author Thomas Buergenthal; Rastko Pocesta, human rights activist from Belgrade, spoke about the book
- ‘Culture and Transformation of Serbia: Citizens’ Value Orientations in the Changes after 2000’ by the authors Zagorka Golubović and Isidora Jarić.
Dr Zagorka Golubović, anthropologist, Belgrade, spoke about the book and research.
Moderator of the promotions and discussions: Marija Perković, Novi Sad.
Horizontal networking – Women in Black Network of Serbia: educative-activist programme which has continuously developed since January 2007 with the aim of broadening the WiB Network, of decentralising the work of the Network, of strengthening the cooperation among groups acting within the Network, starting joint initiatives, acquiring additional knowledge connected to specific questions in accordance with the needs expressed by activists. In this period, an international antimilitarist-feminist conference was held:
Antimilitarist-feminist conference “All for peace, health and knowledge – nothing for armament”: Belgrade, May, 24th and 25th, Centre for Cultural Decontamination. The conference was organised by Women in black on the occasion of May, 24th – International day of women’s action for peace and disarmament. 50 people took part in the conference: from 12 towns in Serbia (Belgrade, Bečej, Vlasotince, Ilok, Novi Bečej, Pančevo, Leskovac, Kruševac, Lazarevac, Novi Sad, Niš, Zrenjanin), from states of ex-Yugoslavia – Macedonia (Skopje), Croatia (Zadar and Mali Lošinj), Montenegro (Pljevlja) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (Tuzla and Živinice), as well as from – USA (San Francisco), Australia (Melbourne) and Greece (Athens).
In the framework of the conference, the following activities were carried out:
The workshop “Militarism and alternatives” which was coordinated by Nataša Lambić and Staša Zajović.
The workshop was composed of two parts: About the connection between militarism and patriarchy and about the ways militarist values permeate society, about how military values are transmitted to all spheres of life, through tradition, family, media, school, language, fashion and sport.
The second workshop, “Important historical dates and historical enemies” dealt with the imposed cultural models that create a climate of fear, insecurity, closeness and distrust, in which diversity is being presented as a threat and danger; “historical enemies” constructed in this way are one of the most important justifications for the existence of the army and for the creation of a climate in which war becomes justified and the only possible solution.
Thereafter was shown the Argentine film “The Take” by Avi Lewis and Naomi Klein. The film deals with the non-violent taking over some factories by workers who worked in them, and who then lost their job, as well as with their combat for social justice and return of dignity.
After the film was organised the panel discussion “Internationalist solidarity against militarism and neo-liberal globalisation”, dedicated to the situation of workers, as well as to the questions of economic insecurity, social endangerment and creation of solidarity alliances.
The following persons participated in the panel: Zagorka Golubović, anthropologist (Belgrade, Serbia), Atena Atanasiu, anthropologist (Athens, Greece), Jelena Veljić, student in sociology (Belgrade), Sabina Talović (Bonafide, Pljevlja), Tina Pavlović, Tereza Kaurinović and Kristina Kaurinović (students in sociology from Zadar university). The panel was moderated by Mia Kuzmanović, journalist from Novi Sad. 50 people from the following towns took part in the panel: Belgrade, Vlasotince, Novi Bečej, Pančevo, Leskovac, Srebrenica/Tuzla, Novi Sad, Zadar, Kruševac, Pljevlja, Lazarevac, Niš, Skopje.
The participants spoke: about the discrimination of women – immigrants in Greece, about student protests in Croatia which gave some results (university fees were cancelled for the first year of studies), about the example trade-union activism of workers, about solidarity of “Jugoremedija” from Zrenjanin/Vojvodina, where, but also about the absence of solidarity in the student movement in Serbia, etc.
In this panel discussion, it was confirmed that a fair globalisation can be built only on solidarity, solidarity alliances and relationships among people, regardless of ethnic, religious and other differences.
Women’s non-violent resistance to militarism: continuation of the activities of the previous day, which concern militarism. After the discussion, a number of power point presentations about global feminist-anti-militarist initiatives was shown: Greenham Common (Women’s Peace Camp against nuclear bases with cruise missiles, in Great Britain) and Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom/WILPF, the International Women in Black Network, the Ruta Pacifica from Colombia, etc.
Visit of the Museum of Yugoslav History: exhibitions: “Yoko, Lennon, Tito – one conceptualistic action” and “Women’s side,” about the position and role of women in socialist society.
Promotion of the book ‘Culture and Transformation of Serbia – Citizens’ Value Orientations in the Changes after 2000’ by the authors Zagorka Golubović and Isidora Jarić. Dr Zagorka Golubović spoke about the book and research. The event was organised by activists from Women for Peace Leskovac and WiB Belgrade, author Zagorka Golubović and Valentina Vukosavljević-Pavlović spoke in the presence of around forty people.
Campaign of solidarity with the Roma population: after the murder of the 17-year-old boy D.S. on June, 10th of which B.J. (17 years) is suspected, violence against the Roma population escalated after a group of locals, under the excuse of mourning the boy’s lost life stoned members of the Roma minority, destroyed their properties, and harassed them for days. Without a reaction from the state in due time. Because of threatened safety, freedom of movement and right to education of the Roma population Women in Black organised, together with other civil society organisation, a campaign of solidarity: they organised visits to the village of Jabuka on June, 17th and July, 30th; addressed several appeals to competent organs, sent reports on the situation in the village of Jabuka to national and international networks, etc.
Mouvement of Roma solidarity Stop deportation – action of solidarity against the deportations of the Roma population in France: a number of work meetings were organised in WiB offices about the organisation of the protest which took place on September, 4th in Belgrade.
In this period, educative activities with the Network of Roma Women of Banat region, Voivodina were also organised:
May, 28th Novi Bečej: Showing of the film “Buds of wrath” – Ten days with RAWA – Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, in the Association of Roma people. Fifteen activists of the Women’s Roma Network of Banat from Novi Bečej, Zrenjanin and Pančevo were present. The discussion about the film, the activities of RAWA, as well as about women’s solidarity was coordinated by Nataša Lambić and Miloš Urošević, Women in Black, Belgrade.
July, 20th, Novi Bečej: Educative seminar ‘Interethnic and intercultural solidarity’ in the framework of which were organised the workshops: ‘Equal but different – about stereotypes and prejudices,’ ‘coexistence in differences’ and ‘my identities and I.’ The seminar was held in the Association of Roma people and twenty activists of the Network of Roma Women of Banat region from Novi Bečej, Zrenjanin and Pančevo participated in it. The workshops were coordinated by: Nataša Lambić and Staša Zajović, Women in Black, and Jelena Veljić and Aranđel Bojanović, Antifa, Belgrade.
Campaign of solidarity with the monthly journal Republika: the editorial board of one of the most significant journals – which has been promoting for more than 20 years values of democracy, peace, non-violence, and solidarity – is exposed to police repression because of its solidarity with the works of the factory of medical equipment ‘Jugoremedija’ from Zrenjanin, Voivodina, who managed after a fight of many years succeeded in getting rid of the control of criminal elements that are trying to re-establish control on the factory. Women in Black initiated an international campaign for the cessation of repression on the journal Republika, as well as on its editor Nebojša Popov, antiwar activist and one of the most distinguished intellectuals in the region.
News Bulletin ‘Solidarity is our strength’: from January 2009, Women in Black publish every month in Serbian (translation and edited from the English language) a bulletin containing news from the entire world about the violation of human and women's human rights, campaigns of solidarity in which Women in Black participate. With the aim of strengthening global solidarity and mutual support, the bulletin is distributed first of all in the Women in Black Network of Serbia, as well as in other regional networks. The bulletin is coordinated by Nataša Lambić and Saša Kovačević.
Feminist mapping of town – research-activist project – gathering of sources about the history of women in the local environment or community, of their contribution to cultural, political, and economic history, and especially of the opposition of women to the war, during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The stimulus for the project is the experience that resulted from the work on the project “Prominent Women of Novi Sad” through various models of feminist mapping of town, by Gordana Stojaković, the coordinator of the project.
In this period, three meetings of the working group for feminist mapping within WiB Network were held in Niš and Belgrade.
International politics: active participation in international conferences, in global actions of solidarity, exchange of visits, etc. We mention some of those activities:
May, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th: Reaching out to make a change, international conference organised by Swedish foundation Kvinna Till Kvinna, held in Bečići, Montenegro. At the conference, WiB activisits (Snežana Tabački and Staša Zajović) had a video presentation ‘Secularism is a women’s question’, the participation of Staša Zajović at the plenary session ‘Activists from the entire world searching for future challenges for the women’s movements’ and coordinated the workshop ‘Regional peace processes from the gender perspective,’ etc.
May, 10th, Belgrade: lecture ‘Women in the zapatist movement’, which was held by Silvia Marcos, sociologist, feminist theoretician and activist from Mexico; the lecture and discussion in WiB offices were attended by 25 people.
May, 17th and 18th, Orhid, Macedonia: participation in the First Regional Conference of the Sections of Women in Metal Industry in South-Eastern Europe organised by the trade unions of Macedonia, Spanish trade union Comisiones obreras and the foundation ‘Pau i solidaritat’, trade union activists from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia and Serbia took part in this conference, while WiB activist (Staša Zajović) was invited as a guest and participant in the debate on solidarity.
May, 19th and 20th: Zagreb Pride/Gay pride; four WiB activist, besides participating in the Gay pride, also visited the Centre for Women’s studies in Zagreb.
May, 22nd, Kotor: Women’s peace politics, Confrontation with the past/transitional justice – feminist approach, day-long lecture by Staša Zajović, organised by the Centre for Women's and Peace Education Anima, with the participation of around ten students from various Montenegrin towns.
May, 20th – 23rd, Jahorina, Bosnia and Herzegovina: participation in the international conference ‘integrated security of human rights defenders’ organised by the Swedish foundation Kvinna till Kvinna and the Cure Foundation from Sarajevo.
May, 22nd and 23rd, Berlin, Germany: Participation in two debates held in the framework of the exhibition Theatre of Peace organised by the Neue Geseelschaft für Bildende Kunst and Women video Letters. The topic of the first debate (May, 21st) was engaged antiwar art and the cooperation of WiB with artists, as well as video activism as a specific connection of art with activism. As an illustration, the short films “March 8th, 2010,” “The crime in Strpce,” and “Antifascist March, November 9th, 2009” were shown. On the following day (May, 22nd), our activist participated in the framework of the same exhibition in the panel about militarisation of society and creation of war atmosphere, in which she spoke from the activist perspective about the example of ex-Yugoslav society.
June, 2nd, Belgrade, Centre for Cultural Decontamination: Meeting of UNIFEM office in Belgrade – exchange/discussion between women’s organisation and UNIFEM about the activities of women’s organisations from Serbia, aiming at getting acquainted with and identifying the priorities in the field of women’s human rights and improving gender equality.
Belgrade, June, 7th, UNDP: On the occasion of the international action ‘Global open Day 1325’ a work meeting of the members of the Regional Women’s Lobby/RWL was held, meeting in which the members of the mentioned lobby, Staša Zajović (WiB) and Sonja Biserko (Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia) talked with UN representatives about Resolution 1325, as welll as about the National Action Plan for Resolution 1325 in Serbia.
Belgrade, June, 22nd: promotion of ‘Culture, others, women’ published by the Institute of Social Research, Zagreb and the Croatian Philosophical Society. The following people presented the book which is a collection of essays by several authors from BiH, Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia: Svenka Savić, Philosophy Faculty of Novi Sad, Milena Dragićević-Šešić, Faculty of Dramatic Arts of Belgrade, Ildiko Erdei, Philosophy Faculty of Belgrade, Ana Maskalan, Institute for Social Research of Zagreb, and Lino Veljak, Philosophy Faculty of Zagreb. The promotion was organised by Women in Black and held in the Centre for Cultural Decontamination.
June, 25th, 26th and 27th, Skopje, Macedonia: international conference ‘Women in peace building in the Western Balkans – 10 years of the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 / Learned lessons from the implementation of Resolution 1325’; the conference was held on June, 25th and a meeting of the Regional Women’s Lobby for Peace, Security and Justice/RWL was held on June, 26th and 27th; the meeting was attended by two WiB activists, also members of the mentioned RWL.
Belgrade, 25th and 26th: Training about lobbying organised by Impunity Watch.
August, 1st to August, 11th – Kuća Seka, Brač (Croatia) – Active women’s holidays, eleven activists of the WiB Network of Serbia (Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Novi Bečej, Vlasotince, Leskovac, Velika Plana, Pljevlja).
August, 9th to 19th, Mali and Veliki Lošinj (Croatia) – School of active citizenship: youth summer camp organized by the Centre for healthy growing up ‘I go too’ from Mali Lošinj, in cooperation with Women in Black from Belgrade and the group ‘Taboo’ from Vukovar, Croatia; some twenty young people (mostly secondary school pupils) from Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina participated in this programme about human rights, overcoming stereotypes and prejudices, non-violent communication, and in media workshops.
August, 24th to 31st, Belgrade/Velika Plana/ Serbia: visit of Mirella Forel, Women in Black activist from Seville, to Belgrade and Serbia; in the framework of the visit and besides the lectures, Mirella met with activists from WiB Network, experiences were exchanged and joint activities were agreed upon.
August, 31st, Belgrade: work meeting about activities connected to Resolution 1325 in UNDP offices in which representatives of UNIFEM (Erika Kvapilova and Asya Varbanova), Women in Black and of the Helsinki Committe for Human Rights in Serbia.
In this period, tens of international activists as well as researchers visited Women in Black, while a number of international volunteers stayed for several months in Belgrade, actively participating in the organisation and realisation of WiB activities: Noëmie Duhaut and Bojan Bilić, London, Christina Morus, USA, and Atena Atanasiou, Greece.
The report was prepared by: Staša Zajović, in cooperation with Miloš Urošević, Nevena Kostić and Nataša Lambić.
Belgrade, September 2010.
