A Voice For the Voiceless

MISSION

The Advocacy Project seeks to help community-based advocates produce, disseminate and use information, and so become more effective advocates for human rights and social justice

Chiara Zerunian and BOSFAM

Chiara Zerunian is a graduate student of Economics and Economic History at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. As part of The Advocacy Project’s 2005 Summer Internship Program, she worked with BOSFAM in Tuzla, Bosnia.

BOSFAM is an organization that provides assistance to women survivors of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, the worst mass killing in Europe since World War II. The killings transpired during an ethnic-cleansing campaign in Bosnia during the 1990s. In addition to offering a refuge for the victims, BOSFAM gives these women an opportunity to weave rugs and produce other goods which are then sold to generate income. For many, this is their only means of earning money.

Chiara dedicated her time with BOSFAM to improving the business operations of the organization and assisted AP intern MacKenzie Frady, also with BOSFAM. In addition to taking an inventory of the carpets and knitted products, she developed a plan for a new knitting project and provided analysis and research on aspects, like standardization and training, needed for it to be implemented successfully. She also attempted to expand the market for BOSFAM products by examining possible outlets in Germany and Scotland.

While with BOSFAM, Chiara also had the opportunity to attend the tenth anniversary ceremonies commemorating the 1995 Srebrenica massacres. She reflects on the emotional ambiguities evoked by the event and her experience in Bosnia in her blog.

• Chiara Zerunian's blog