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SARAJEVO, October 10 (FENA) - Every country has problems when it comes to respecting human rights, there is no country that does not face these issues, and the fact that one in three women in the world have experienced sexual violence speaks plenty of this problem, said President of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Foundation Kerry Kennedy in Sarajevo today, attending a high-level meeting on "The European Union, the future of the Western Balkans and Human Rights - Tell the truth to the powerful."
Kennedy pointed out that there are problems and concerns regarding the treatment of people in prison, which is why she believes that everyone should work together to establish a more peaceful and better environment.
But for her, the bigger question is what Europe can learn from the experiences of the region, noting that Sarajevo, in particular, can teach Europe and the United States, but also other countries, knowing that hatred is spreading rapidly.
“We see this in the actions of Boko Haram in Nigeria, the actions being carried out by ISIS members, the spread of Islamophobia across Europe, but also in the rise of anti-feminist groups and in statements by US President Donald Trump. Sarajevo is a city that knows what happens when hatred reaches its peak,” she added.
“Bosnia and Herzegovina has felt it through history,” Kennedy says, and it is a lesson that others need to learn and that everyone should listen to every day around the world, and therefore she called for stopping hatred and finding ways to work together.
Also, during her stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina, an educational program will be launched in Sarajevo and other cities across BiH, and it will involve working with school administrations, teachers and students, and will address topics such as peace and justice, as well as ways to achieve change in society.
The BiH Presidency Member Šefik Džaferović opened today’s conference, who said that in a country where human rights are violated, one should always talk about it again and again and fight for equality of all peoples, adding that the conference should encourage everyone in BiH and the region to devote themselves to the fight for human rights.
Recalling that a massive violation of human rights occurred in BiH in the 1990s, Džaferović noted that even 24 years after the war, human rights are being violated given the inequality of the constituent peoples and other nations and minorities in BiH.
“Bosnian citizens who are not members of one of the three constituent peoples are prevented from holding office as members of the BiH Presidency or to be delegated to the House of Peoples of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly; on the other hand, Bosniaks and Croats are disenfranchised in the entity of Republika Srpska, and Serbs in the Federation of BiH,” he underlined.
He also stressed that there is a present discrimination when it comes to the use of Bosnian language in Republika Srpska and the employment of returnees, which is a particular problem, but there is also segregation in the education system, which is why he called for constant addressing of human rights issues.
Former Croatian President Jadranka Kosor was one of the participants of today’s event who said that she was still optimistic about the EU and NATO perspective, since this is the only lasting guarantee of peace and prosperity in this region.
“We who live here, in this region know the best the meaning of war, suffering, but also what peace means, even though we sometimes do not appreciate it enough. I support an individual approach to the Euro-Atlantic integration path, because each of the states has to make reforms for the sake of their own citizens,” she said.
She believes that in recent years, we have entered a stall and have even gone backwards; nationalism and intolerance have increased, but it is all the responsibility of the political elites in each country,” Kosor said.
“I have always advocated for brave politicians who look 30 or 40 years ahead, not just the next elections. Bridges need to be built and this is not just empty words. It is much easier to tear down bridges between peoples and states because it is easier to be a destroyer than a builder,” Kosor concluded.
The conference was organized by the Foundation of the Society of Shared Values in collaboration with the Robert F. Kennedy Foundation for Human Rights and the Nizami Ganjavi International Center, and has brought together numerous incumbent and former officials from BiH, the region and the world.
(FENA) S. R.
