Ceremony in Barcelona: A New Major Recognition for Jusić and the Prestigious Peacein Progress Award

The “Forgotten Children of War Association” and “Women – War Victims” Sarajevo have
received this year’s Peace in Progress Award. Since 2011, the International Catalan Institute
for Peace has presented this prestigious award to individuals, organizations, or institutions
that make outstanding contributions to promoting peace.

The award was given for the interdisciplinary project “There is Still Someone in the Woods”
(“Kao da je neko još uvijek u šumi”), created by Culture and Conflicte Production in
collaboration with the award recipients.

Through this trilogy, which includes a documentary, a play, and a film, our dear friends and
partners at Cultura and Conflicte have shared the life stories of women survivors and children
born of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We thank them once again for nominating us! It is an
honor to share this award with the late General Jovan Divjak, who received the same
recognition in 2013 for his courageous work in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our ongoing fight to
empower women survivors of war sexual violence and children born of war is deserving of
such recognition, and we are especially proud of it.

Following the reception of the delegation at the Presidential Offices, the event, held annually
on the International Day of Peace, was opened by Anna Erra, President of the Catalan
Parliament. On behalf of their organizations, the award was accepted by Meliha Merdžić and Amela Međuseljac (Women – War Victims), as well as Ajna Jusić and Alen Muhić (Forgotten
Children of War).

Međuseljac expressed great satisfaction, not only for the support provided to survivors but
also for “affirming the truth and establishing justice. She reminded attendees that “thanks to
the testimonies of survivors, many criminals have been convicted.” She also pointed out that
“many women who have been raped remain silent because they are ashamed, due to the
stigma and discrimination in the society they live and work in”.

Ajna Jusić, president of the Forgotten Children of War Association, emphasized that children
born of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina “through their bodies and personal testimonies, have
significantly altered the course of both national and international law, aiming to create a more
equitable society with a fairer legal system and laws”. She further highlighted that “the duty
of non-discrimination requires every state to actively identify individual children and groups
whose recognition and rights may require ‘special measures.’ The need for these ‘special
measures’ is reinforced by the state’s responsibility under international human rights law to
prevent stigmatization and protect individuals from discriminatory actions or omissions by
third parties”. Jusić also pointed out that Bosnia and Herzegovina, like other conflict and post-
conflict nations, has not fulfilled its obligations, and today, children born of war are still too
often viewed through the lens of the “military strategy of rape”.

Xavier Masllorens, President of the International Catalan Institute for Peace (ICIP), reminded
the audience that “the consequences of wars and all forms of violence never end, neither with
the signing of peace agreements nor with the cessation of direct violence.” The ICIP Peace
Building Award, established in 2011, honors individuals, organizations, or institutions that
have made significant contributions to promoting and building peace.

The event began with an excerpt from the play “Kao da je neko još uvijek u šumi” (As If
Someone is Still in the Woods), a Catalan artistic triptych (documentary film, play, and
exhibition) that addresses the experiences of women who were raped during the wars of the
1990s. The work was created by the Catalan artistic organization Cultura and Conflicte, who
nominated the Bosnian associations for the ICIP award.

The Government of Catalonia’s representation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, led by Eric Hauck,
who also attended the ceremony in Barcelona, provided significant support to the Cultura and
Conflicte project and fostered strong cooperation between Bosnia and Herzegovina and
Catalonia. In November 2022, the Representation organized a regional tour for the Cultura
and Conflicte project, which included a symbolic visit to the National Theatre of Sarajevo.
During their stay in Barcelona, the Bosnian delegation also had the opportunity to meet with
Meritxell Serret, the Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs.

The recipients of this year’s ICIP award used this visit to highlight the ongoing barriers faced
by survivors and children born as a result of wartime rape, emphasizing that such recognition
serves as additional motivation to continue working on this issue both in Bosnia and
Herzegovina and globally.