The Advocacy Project helps marginalized communities to tell their story, claim their rights and produce social change. We recruit graduate students to volunteer as Peace Fellows with partners.
Bosfam (The Bosnian Family) was established in 1993 by Beba Hadzic, the former head of the Srebrenica primary school, after she was expelled from Srebrenica in the early days of the war. For two years Bosfam trained women refugees in weaving and knitting. Bosfam’s work expanded dramatically after the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, when thousands of distraught women and children arrived in Tuzla as their men folk were being slaughtered.
Knitting is therapeutic for traumatized women refugees, and Bosfam operated knitting projects in 44 refugee collective centers (14 in Tuzla alone) between 1993 and 1995. Donors were grateful, and when Bosfam turned to weaving traditional carpets (kilims), the UK paid for new looms. USAID and UNHCR even put up funds for a new weaving center in Tuzla (Bosfam House, below) which Bosfam now owns.
But as the Bosnian conflict receded, humanitarian aid dried up, depriving Bosfam of its main source of income. During the post-war years, Bosfam struggled to make ends meet, by selling carpets and knitted products. Its needs are great, because many of the survivors remain deeply traumatized. But Bosfam is also rich in assets: it can draw on over 300 skilled women weavers and knitters, a stock of carpets, and a network of highly motivated volunteers.
Before war broke out in Bosnia, in April 1992, Beba Hadzic was the principal of the Srebrenica Primary School. Her husband worked as an engineer in the mines. They owned an apartment in the town and a country house in the mountains.
When fighting began in the town in April 1992, Beba gathered her parents in the apartment. Serbian soldiers arrived and ordered them out before paramilitaries arrived – a favorite tactic to panic civilians. They were bussed to Bratunac, where they stayed briefly with friends. Beba’s husband would have been taken to the school gym in Bratunac and bludgeoned to death had it not been for the intervention of a Serb friend, who was subsequently drafted and killed in the war. Beba is still shaken by how close her husband came to death. They left Srebrenica with the clothes on their backs and six photos.
In Tuzla, Beba found herself in a crowded collective center, where the refugees had nothing to do but sit and wait. Beba was too impatient and motivated to sit idly by. She approached the relief agency Oxfam and began a pilot weaving project that evolved into BOSFAM.
Following the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, Beba emerged as a vocal advocate for the Srebrenica survivors. She has been their leader, guide and counselor ever since – and they revere her in return. She is a natural advocate and was quick to understand how Bosfam’s weaving skills could be exploited to produce the memorial quilt in 2007. The fact that the project has come so far since, is a testament to her drive and vision.
The power of memory: From the blogs of Iain Guest (July 30, 2008):
Ever since her expulsion from Srebrenica in 1992, Beba has desperately trying to salvage mementoes that remind her of happier days. Photographs are particularly valued, and she has been contacting friends and relatives for photos of her former life. She brings out one, which was taken at a party. It shows her at a restaurant with two former teachers that she knew well when she was director of the Srebrenica primary school. Mevludin Smajic (left) had two small daughters and had just been hired to teach at Beba’s school when the photo was taken. The second, Redzep Bektic, directed one of the smaller village schools. Beba is the most serious of the three. Both of the men were murdered at Srebrenica. The image is certainly powerful, as is the fact that so few photos exist from before the war. Memory is everything.
I consider that every woman – Serb, Muslim, Croat – who survived this war and now works to rebuild Bosnia, is strong. Every woman who brings up a child, who supports an unemployed husband, who has responsibility for a family of five people – that’s strength. That’s bigger than BOSFAM.”
- Beba Hadzic
BAHIRA KURSUNOVIC
Bahira is originally from Zvornik, a town to the northeast of Tuzla. On 26 May 1992, she was violently expelled from Zvornik among the rest of the town’s Muslim population. She lived in a series of settlements for internally displaced persons in Tuzla throughout the war.
During the war, Bahira was separated from her husband, who spent over 14 months in a concentration camp. He was one of the few survivors of the camp, but died soon after his release due to lack of appropriate medical care. Bahira has been able to seek comfort and companionship from the other weavers at BOSFAM. Their war experiences closely resemble her own.
BEBA OSMANOVIC
Beba was born in Srebrenica in 1969 and married at the age of 21. The other weavers at BOSFAM affectionately refer to her as Mala Beba, or “Small Beba,” since the founder of the organization is also named Beba.
In 1993, Beba’s son Allen was born in Srebrenica. Just two years later, on 11 July 1995, Beba was separated from her husband and forced to flee to Tuzla with her toddler. The remains of her husband were found and identified in 2004. He was buried at Potocari in 2005.
As a widow and single mother, Beba cannot make ends meet from weaving alone. After a long day at BOSFAM, she goes to work at other part-time jobs. Despite her difficult circumstances, Beba manages to be a real morale booster in the BOSFAM office. Her sense of humor and patience are a great asset to the group.
BEHIJA HAMZIC
Behija was born in Pljeulju, Montenegro in 1954. She finished elementary school in Montenegro and moved to Sarajevo with her family in 1969. In 1979, she married and moved to Bijeljina, a town in northeastern Bosnia.
In 1994, Behija and her family were forced to relocate to Tuzla. After the war, she remained in Tuzla, where she still lives today.
Behija is extremely creative and makes sure her work is done in an impeccable and swift manner. She lives with her daughter and husband in Tuzla. She is able to read coffee grind fortunes and often entertains the other ladies at BOSFAM with this skill.
ENISA NUKIC
Enisa was born in Bosanski Petrovac (Western Bosnia) in 1954, where she finished school. In 1971 she married and moved to Poljice, in Lukavec municipality, where she still lives with her husband.
Enisa has two sons and three grandchildren. One of her sons lives in Austria.
HANIJA SALIHOVIC
Hanija used to live in Srebrenica and remained in the town throughout the war, until she was expelled with other women and children during the 1995 massacre. Today, Hanija lives outside of Tuzla with her husband.
Many of Hanija’s male relatives were killed during the Srebrenica massacre. She also lost a home which she has been unable to return to.
Hanija’s work at BOSFAM is very important to her family. Her income constitutes a large portion of the family’s total earnings.
HAJRIJA DZOZIC
Before the war, Hajrija was a housewife in Srebrenica. Her family was quite well-off and had two homes: one in Srebrenica and another in Bratunac. Then, Serbian forces attacked Srebrenica and her life changed forever. “I lost around 50 relatives, including one brother, all of my closest family, all of my cousins,” Hajrija says.
Hajrija was forced to flee Srebrenica with her daughter when the safe area fell. She has moved repeatedly since arriving in Tuzla, and states that she and her daughter are “barely living.”
Hajrija’s home in Srebrenica was destroyed, and all of Hajrija’s belongings, including 11 carpets, or cilims, were stolen from both houses. The current atmosphere in and around Srebrenica makes the idea of return to the home in Bratunac particularly difficult.
MAGBULA DIVOVIC
Magbula is one of BOSFAM’s core weavers and visited the United States with BOSFAM’s founder, Beba Hadzic, several years ago.
She married in 1971 and had two sons. Her family lived in Potocari, a village just outside Srebrenica and the headquarters for the Dutch troops assigned to protect the Srebrenica Safe Area.
“I had a happy and fulfilling life with my family,” Magbula says. “The war changed everything.”
Magbula left Potocari for Tuzla with her sons in 1992. However, she and her family soon returned to the Srebrenica municipality. “In 1993, my younger son, only 15 at the time, left Tuzla with about 100 others bound for Srebrenica, and I did not hear from him.” Magbula was separated from her husband on July 11, 1995 and sent back to Tuzla.
“My husband was found in one of the mass graves and was buried in the Memorial at Potocari-Srebrenica in 2003,” she said. “I still have no information about my missing son.”
Magbula has returned to a lonely existence in Potocari. Today, she lives a hundred meters away from the Potocari Memorial Cemetery. She used to visit her parents daily, but both of them died of old age last year. Few other Bosniaks have returned to the Srebrenica municipality.
One of Magbula’s sons lives in Tuzla with his family. However, the current economic situation makes it impossible for him to support his mother as well.
Magbula continues to weave and share her talents with others in both Tuzla and Srebrenica. She is a very hardworking woman who deserves to feel truly at home and safe once again.
NURA SULJIC
Nura was a mother of three and a housewife when war broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She lived with her family in a small village in the Srebrenica municipality. Her husband, Bajro, was employed as a tile layer, but disappeared in 1992. He had been working in Serbia when the war began. Nura has not heard from him since.
On July 11, 1995, Nura was separated from her father, brother, father-in-law, and her brother-in-law. Only her father’s remains have been identified and buried. “I know nothing of what happened to my relatives, only my father,” she said.
Prior to coming to Tuzla in 1996, Nura moved in and out of collective centers in Dubrave, Sicki, and Simin Han. She began working at BOSFAM in 1995 and weaving has been her only source of income since then.
All three of Nura’s children have finished their education and are employed thanks to her perseverance – an impressive feat given the current level of unemployment in Bosnia. Nura is a very hard worker herself and a highly skilled weaver. She is a cheerful woman who makes everyone laugh with her witty comments.
RAIZA ZAHIROVIC
Raiza does not weave carpets. Rather, she performs a variety of tasks at BOSFAM. She knits a great deal, makes the carpets presentable, labels carpets once they are removed from the loom, and sews names onto the Srebrenica Memorial quilts.
Before the war, Raiza worked in Croatia and suffered a number of hardships during the war. She eventually moved to Tuzla.
Today, Raiza is single and lives with her mother. Unfortunatly, Raiza suffers from health problems that require expensive medication. She and her mother must live off her mother’s pension and Raiza's income from BOSFAM.
Raiza helps keep everything at BOSFAM in order and has been particularly friendly to former Peace Fellows despite the language barrier. Like Tima, she is an excellent cook.
RASEMA GERMIC
Rasema is from a town called Novacasaba, near Vlasenica. She moved to Tuzla when the war began. Rasema met and married her husband in Tuzla. They have a son and a daughter who are both quite young. Rasema is a talented artist who weaves beautiful carpet designs.
SADETA DIZAREVIC
Sadeta was born in 1956 in Luka, a town in the Srebrenica municipality. Sadeta later moved to Stedra, married, and had three children. Until the outbreak of war, she was a dedicated housewife and mother of two daughters and one son.
Sadeta’s husband was killed in 1993. Fortunately, she and her children managed to take his body out of the besieged area and give him a respectable burial. Sadeta and her daughters fled to Tuzla. Her son attempted to find safety through the forest, and is still missing.
In 1995, Sadeta began working at BOSFAM. Following the war, both of her daughters left Bosnia. One lives in Germany and the other lives in the Netherlands. They are both married and have families, but it is difficult for Sadeta to be so far away from them. Despite having to face life in postwar-Bosnia alone, Sadeta manages to be one of the most humorous individuals at BOSFAM.
SAJMA AVDIC
Sajma was born in 1962 in Pobuđe, part of the Bratunac Municipality in Northeastern Bosnia. She finished elementary school and married at the age of 18. She had a son and a daughter soon after getting married, and moved to Srebrenik.
Sadly, Sajma’s husband died in a work-related accident in 1990. When the war began, Sajma left Srebrenik with her children and sought refuge in Slovenia. In 1996 Sajma returned to Srebenik with her children. Her daughter now studies pharmacy and her son is employed in Srebrenik.
Sajma is a kind, hospitable woman who lives with her extended family in a reconstructed home. She commutes one hour from Srebrenik to Tuzla each day.
TIMA AVDIC
Tima, like many other weavers, originally comes from a small town in the Srebrenica municipality. In addition to being a skilled weaver, she is also a talented baker.
Tima's husband, Alija, was killed while fleeing through the woods from Bosnian Serb forces during the siege of Srebrenica. He was identified and buried in 2004.
Incredibly, Tima’s son managed to escape from Srebrenica during the massacre. He was shot twice and wounded in the foot. He managed to stay alive, and was brought to Tuzla by the only other person who survived the shooting. Due to his first-hand information concerning the massacre, he was a crucial link for the international criminal tribunal in The Hague.
Tima’s son currently works in Srebrenica. Tima lives with her eldest daughter in a home given to her by the municipality. Her younger daughter is on a scholarship
and studying in Sarajevo.
ZIFA BUMBULOVIC
Zifa was born in 1952. She has fond memories of her childhood in Bosnia, when she lived next to a beautiful lake. She married her husband in 1971 and they lived in Pec. They had two children – a girl and a boy.
Srebrenica fell in July 1995 and Zifa fled with her daughter and grandchild to Tuzla. Zifa’s son attempted to escape through the woods to Tuzla but was killed by Bosnian Serb forces en route. His remains were identified and he was buried in Potocari in 2007.
Happily, Zifa and her husband were reunited in Tuzla. He was working in Serbia in the late 80s but went immediately to Tuzla when the war began. Both Zifa and her husband waited for years for their son to arrive in Tuzla, but he never did.
Zifa spends as much spare time as possible weaving at BOSFAM. She says that it helps her cope. BOSFAM is lucky to have Zifa, as she is one of the most talented weavers in the organization.
Bosfam (The Bosnian Family) was established in 1993 by Beba Hadzic, the former head of the Srebrenica primary school, after she was expelled from Srebrenica in the early days of the war. For two years Bosfam trained women refugees in weaving and knitting. Bosfam’s work expanded dramatically after the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, when thousands of distraught women and children arrived in Tuzla as their men folk were being slaughtered.
Before war broke out in Bosnia, in April 1992, Beba Hadzic was the principal of the Srebrenica Primary School. Her husband worked as an engineer in the mines. They owned an apartment in the town and a country house in the mountains.
The power of memory: From the blogs of Iain Guest (July 30, 2008): 
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Beba was born in Srebrenica in 1969 and married at the age of 21. The other weavers at BOSFAM affectionately refer to her as Mala Beba, or “Small Beba,” since the founder of the organization is also named Beba.
Enisa was born in Bosanski Petrovac (Western Bosnia) in 1954, where she finished school. In 1971 she married and moved to Poljice, in Lukavec municipality, where she still lives with her husband. 
Before the war, Hajrija was a housewife in Srebrenica. Her family was quite well-off and had two homes: one in Srebrenica and another in Bratunac. Then, Serbian forces attacked Srebrenica and her life changed forever. “I lost around 50 relatives, including one brother, all of my closest family, all of my cousins,” Hajrija says.
Nura was a mother of three and a housewife when war broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina. She lived with her family in a small village in the Srebrenica municipality. Her husband, Bajro, was employed as a tile layer, but disappeared in 1992. He had been working in Serbia when the war began. Nura has not heard from him since. 
Rasema is from a town called Novacasaba, near Vlasenica. She moved to Tuzla when the war began. Rasema met and married her husband in Tuzla. They have a son and a daughter who are both quite young. Rasema is a talented artist who weaves beautiful carpet designs. 
Sajma was born in 1962 in Pobuđe, part of the Bratunac Municipality in Northeastern Bosnia. She finished elementary school and married at the age of 18. She had a son and a daughter soon after getting married, and moved to Srebrenik. 
Zifa was born in 1952. She has fond memories of her childhood in Bosnia, when she lived next to a beautiful lake. She married her husband in 1971 and they lived in Pec. They had two children – a girl and a boy.