Mott Communications Officer Maggie I. Jaruzel interviewed Foundation grantees in the Western Balkans who helped coordinate the recent “Truth in Translation” tour through the region. These grantees also attended performances and participated in related "Talk Back" sessions and workshops. Mott grantees share their thoughts and observations below.
- Country: Bosnia-Herzegovina (final show of the tour)
- Performance sites: MESS Festival, Bosnian National Theatre in Zenica, and MESS Festival, National Theatre in Sarajevo
- Mott grantee affiliated with tour: Youth Initiative for Human Rights in Sarajevo (YIHR)
- Staff interviewed: Alma Masic, program adviser, YIHR
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Alma Masic |
I felt that people had some doubts and little suspicions about
Truth in Translation, mostly because of the South African example. It was heavily misused in Bosnia-Herzegovina in the sense that there were numerous attempts to establish some kind of Commission for Truth and Reconciliation and the South Africa Commission was always given as an example. It was a bad example for us. Yes, it was the most famous one, but people were trying to simplify it and say, “That was just the black and white people but here we have Bosnians, Croats and Serbs, and we cannot identify with that.”
But then, when I first saw the show in Tuzla, I was with a group of representatives from victims groups and associations of missing persons, such as Mothers of Srebrenica, and some other people. It was very interesting to see their reaction. The people could so easily identify with it. They were poking each other during the performance and saying things like, “Same with us. Same with us.”
So, in that sense, the performance really opened up new horizons for some people, particularly for victims. For them, it was a relief to know that you are not alone in your pain and struggle.
Here in Bosnia-Herzegovina, you can’t find a lot of people who were not affected by the war—directly or indirectly. The tragedy of the war was never memorialized here in this way before. So for us to make a play that you insert some humor into it, some songs, some dancing, well, if you would do that here, people will think, “You must be crazy!” But this performance was really an example that it is very doable. You really can combine all of these elements without stigma or the risk of offending victims about what has happened to them.
I am super happy that they showed it in all the three major regional festivals. They also showed it in several other places in those countries. It could make those local directors and theatre producers think that maybe they could come up with something for us about war.
The actors said they fell in love with the town of Sarajevo and they want to move here. I heard during the workshop that they felt it was very special to have this performance in Sarajevo, especially during the first part of the play when an actor mourns a death. She speaks about places in South Africa but she also added in “Sarajevo.” When people in the audience heard that, they got very emotional because they knew they were in a special place because of the war fought here.
The workshops triggered very lively discussions. It was like, “Look, we needed this performance. Somebody came from outside and initiated discussion of the issues that are actually our problems and we need to open up and talk about it.” That is exactly what we need in our country.
I am really glad the cast and crew have taken it one step further. During their touring throughout the world, they opened a
Facebook group discussion for
Truth in Translation. They were announcing it in each workshop that now people in the Balkan region and worldwide would be able to share their experiences, views and opinion about what next needs to be done, hoping that some new ideas, initiatives could arise out of that discussion. This is a good idea to leave something behind after the play.
There were a super mix of people in the audience. We had VIPs—the United States Ambassador, people from the Office of the High Representative, others from the Swiss Embassy, British Embassy, Danish Embassy, and many other peoples that are working on issue of “dealing with past” in Bosnia. There were also people from organizations such as ICMP, [International Commission on Missing Persons], and the UNDP, [United Nations Development Program], who are also working on the issue of “transitional justice” work.
On the other hand, we had lots of people from NGOs [nongovernmental organizations] and lots of students, which was very surprising. The Sarajevo performance was sold out 10 days before the MESS Festival even started. I also saw a lot of the public figures, professors, and people who are everyday in the public life. It was very well visited by all kinds of people. This performance was really the major talk of the town.
The most important thing for me was that people first had to see that this was happening elsewhere in the world. Your own tragedy, of course, is the biggest to you but there are other people affected. Together, you can make a strong voice, particularly the victims groups. They can come together and be united regardless of national background. We all can be that voice because we have been through all of this together. We could bring such a powerful message to the world.
Through my work with the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, I have seen that the NGOs know each other pretty well and we all try to work in our little areas on this issue of “dealing with the past.” One of the things that we can discuss in our organization is how to involve the play, or messages from the play, or the results and outcomes of the workshop, into the work that we are doing with the Youth Initiative.
I was telling to [Director] Michael Lessac, “In a year’s time you will be able to see the real results of this play.” I am very hopeful because this play was so unusual and it was so powerful. At the same time, it was so acceptable for the people. It was easy for them to identify with it. For us, it was a completely new approach.