Under the slogan “Bravely and courageously from the Drina to the Sava”, the International Day of Combating Sexual Violence in War was marked today in Foča.
The commemoration began in front of the “Partizan” sports hall, where women were raped and killed during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, making Foča recognizable as the largest place of systematic rape and abuse of Bosniak women. According to the data of the Association of War Victims “Foča 92-95”, more than a thousand women were raped in that city, and 586 of them were killed.
The President of the Association, Midheta Kaloper, recalled that overnight the Partizan hall became a facility for the rape and torture of Bosniak women from Foča and its surroundings, emphasizing that this is only one of the dark spots in this city, state, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the world where women are organized and raped and tortured. She called for a clear line to be drawn between human and animal.
“There are no words that can describe the fear, humiliation, mental and physical torture that the captured Bosniak women went through while they lived through slavery in the Foča camps. Thank you on behalf of the girl who was only 11 years old when she was gang-raped, on behalf of many others who had the same fate, in the name of all of us who decided to speak publicly and in the name of those who did not have the opportunity to speak, whose voice languished in one of the mass graves or the bed of the cold Drina,” Kaloper said.
She emphasized that, unfortunately, the lesson from Bosnia and Herzegovina and the suffering of women was not enough, so even today numerous tortures are carried out against women in the world, and especially at this moment against the women of Ukraine.
A message was sent from Foča today to speed up the prosecution of the perpetrators of the crime, provide a legal framework for the protection of victims’ rights and support the fight against stigmatization, which was also pointed out by Alen Muhić from the “Forgotten Children of War” Association in his poignant address, stressing that this day reminds to the crimes committed against Bosnian women.
“I am a child whose story has traveled all over the world, and it begins in Foča. My mother is a survivor of wartime sexual violence. Here, in this city, where today I stand responsibly, courageously and bravely. She is someone’s daughter, friend, sister today trapped in stigma , in injustice. She is a woman who was killed by a rapist, unfortunately my biological father, who is walking freely in the streets of Foča today. His name is Radmilo Vuković. Remember it well, because the next time you see him, just remember that he is only one in a series of criminals who he did not respond or was acquitted due to corruption and irresponsibility in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s judicial institutions,” said Muhić, whose struggle began when he was nine years old and learned that he was adopted.
And on this occasion, he pointed out the need to adopt adequate legal frameworks that would guarantee the rights of children born from sexual violence. He called on representatives of the legislative and executive authorities in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to jointly offer and vote on the best set of rights for children born as a result of the war.
The commemoration of the International Day against Sexual Violence in War continued with a peaceful walk towards the main square, where all murdered and raped women were honored. White roses were lowered from the bridge on the Ćehotina River as a symbol of innocence, respect and attention, and the program continued in the Aladža mosque complex.
