Activity report for the period May - Avgust 2020

As before, we bring a brief report on the activities of Women in Black in the mentioned period.

During this period, the amount of activities was reduced due to the pandemic virus COVID 19, one of the largest natural disasters that has ever aff ected the entire planet. State of emergency was imposed in Serbia, unconstitutionally, without Parliament, on March 15, 2020. COVID 19 pandemia was used as an excuse for mass violation of human rights, unlawful detentions, brutal suppression of independent media, political prosecution, intensifi cation of militarization of the state and the society and these tendencies continued after the end of state of emergency, May 6th 2020.

Street actions: In this reporting period we organized eight (8) events, and we also actively participated in other street actions:
- commemoration/marking important dates of crimes committed in our names;
- Feminist, anti-fascist, anti-war, anti-racist, anti-militaristic actions...

COMMEMORATION/MARKING OF IMPORTANT DATES OF CRIMES COMMITTED IN OUR NAME, AS WELL AS OTHER CRIMES AGAINST CIVILIAN POPULATION, DURING AND AFTER THE WARS, ON THE TERRITORY OF FORMER YUGOSLAVIA:

May 22th, Kruševac - We Remember Brave Resistance of Women!”
Women’s organization „Peščanik“ from Kruševac and Women in Black, Belgrade marked the 21th anniversary of the women’s protest against forced mobilization in 1999. This peace action, organized on the occasion of May 24th – International Day of Women’s Action for Peace and Disarmament, activists recalled the courageous resistance of women to mobilization and war in Kosovo.
In memory of that day, activists stood on the square holding banners with inscriptions:

On this occasion, in the main city square, was made by Aleksandra Beba Jelić (WIB activist) artistic play Women courage – transformation of pain into women’s active resistance.
In this action participated fi fteen (15) activists.

Women’s Association “Pescanik”, Women’s Network of Rasina District and Women in Black Network mark this day since 2014. The mentioned associations send an initiative every year to the City of Kruševac to declare May 24th the Day of Remembrance for the Revolt against Forced Mobilization in Kruševac and Rasina District in 1999.
In the initiative, among other things, it states: “In May 1999, several thousand mothers, sisters, wives and citizens marched day by day in the streets of the city demanding the end of the war in Kosovo and the termination of the mobilization of men. We still do not know who is responsible for 12,000 mobilized during 3 months and 52 dead people in Rasina district. We still do not know who is responsible for the immense losses, suff ering, and traumas of women caused by the forced mobilization of their male relatives.“ So far, the authorities have been silent about this initiative.

June 19th, Foča (Bosnia and Herzegovina) - “We Remember Women Raped in War in Bosnia and Herzegovina“
– On the occasion of the 19th of June - the International Day Against Sexual Violence in War, the action performed by War victims associations Foča 92-95 from Sarajevo.

The UN General Assembly declared June 19, 2015, the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in War. During the war, over 3,000 Bosniaks were killed in Foca, of whom one in three victims were women; Foča is at the very top of the scale in terms of the number of raped women; in Foča, girls were also raped, the youngest of whom was only 11 years old, it is stated in the invitation of the Foča Association 92-95.

The following activities were organized within this event:

In this event participated 50 persons and four (4) Women in Black Network activists.

Belgrade, 10. jul Srebrenica - “We will never forget the Srebrenica genocide“
- on the occassion of the 25th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, Women in Black and art collective ’Škart’ organized peace action in black and silence, in Republique Square.
Two banners were displayed during the standing:
We will never forget the Srebrenica genocide
Responsibility
Solidarity

The peace action wearing black and in silence was carried out on the Republic Square (near the monument), and consisted of the following segments:

The action lasted shorter than the planned time, it was held in a very tense atmosphere, both due to strict epidemiological measures, and primarily due to the attack of a fascist group of men.
They tried to stop the action, the fascists shouted: “Long live Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic”, “Srebrenica is not genocide”, etc. It is obvious that they were instructed by the regime to stop the peace action of Women in Black.

FEMINIST, ANTI-FASCIST, ANTI–WAR, ANTI–RACIST, ANTI–MILITARISTIC ACTIONS

Report on our activities in pdf.