A BOSNIAN who lived through the genocide that claimed the lives of thousands in his country in the 1990s is due to speak in Jersey next month to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.
Smajo Bešo, the founder of the Bosnian Genocide Educational Trust, has made it his mission to use storytelling to educate people.
Mr Bešo was seven when war broke out in what is now Bosnia and Herzegovina. His father was one of several male relatives who were tortured in concentration camps, and some members of his family were murdered.
The genocide culminated in July 1995, when around 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men were murdered by the Army of Republika Srpska – the Bosnian Serb Republic – led by General Ratko Mladic in just over a week, while over 25,000 women, children, and elderly people were forcibly deported.
After finding refuge in the UK, Mr Bešo went on to build a new life in north-east of England, where he teaches architecture at Newcastle University. He has also received an OBE for services to genocide education and commemoration.
Holocaust Memorial Day is marked on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. It is observed internationally and serves to remember the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, as well as the victims of subsequent genocides.
In Jersey, commemorations at the New North Quay honour the 21 Islanders who died in German camps.
Organisers of the Island’s service have added that they also remember other victims of Nazi persecution, including people with disabilities, gay men, political opponents and resistance fighters.
Mr Bešo said: “The Bosnian Genocide happened in the heart of Europe just 50 years on from the Holocaust.
“The lesson from Bosnia is that we must never be complacent or take peace for granted, because it exposed how vulnerable and fragile society can be.
“Learning from the Holocaust, and subsequent genocides like the one in Bosnia, can enhance our understanding of possible warning signs or patterns and, most importantly, it can better equip us to actively work towards preventing future atrocities.”
Paula Thelwell, a member of the event’s interim advisory panel, added that Mr Bešo’s speech would “add great poignancy to the commemoration”.
The annual Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration is to take place at 2pm on Saturday 27 January in the Occupation Tapestry Gallery at the Jersey Maritime Museum and at the nearby Lighthouse Memorial on New North Quay.
“An Audience with Smajo Bešo” has also been scheduled for 8pm on Thursday 25 January at the Jersey Arts Centre. Tickets will be available from the box office in the new year.
