Jelena Silajdžić

Jelena Silajdžić is a film producer, art promoter and human rights activist from Bosnia Herzegovina. She is the co-founder and executive director of Slovo 21, a non-governmental non-profit organization that focuses on the integration of Roma and immigrants in the Czech Republic. In 2000 she was awarded the Nansen Refugee Award in recognition of her work.

Life

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Silajdžić studied journalism at the Faculty of Political Sciences of the University of Sarajevo, graduating in 1977. She first worked as a journalist for Oslobođenje newspaper, then became a film producer.[1] After the breakup of Yugoslavia and just before the outbreak of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, she moved to Prague in 1992.[2] Here she began to devote herself to activities drawing attention to human rights and the integration of Roma and immigrants, and the production of cultural events.[3][1][4] In 1999, she founded the non-governmental non-profit organization Slovo 21, which is promotes tolerance and mutual understanding. She also established the Khamoro World Roma Festival.[5][6]

Film production

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Before leaving for Czechoslovakia, she worked for 15 years as a film production company at Forum Sarajevo. She participated in the creation of 20 films, 6 TV series and 150 documentaries. Among her collaborators was the director Emir Kusturica; in 1988 she participated in the production of his film Time of the Gypsies (Dom za vešanje).[1]

Awards

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  • In 2000, she received the Nansen Refugee Award for exceptional assistance to refugees from the Balkans.[7]
  • In 2000, she received a special thanks from the International Romani Union for her work with the Roma minority.[1]
  • In 2021, she received the International Trebbia Awarded.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d s.r.o, Appio Digital. "Jelena Silajdžič | DOKweb". dokweb.net (in Czech). Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  2. ^ a b "Sarajki Jeleni Silajdžić prestižna nagrada u Češkoj". radiosarajevo.ba (in Croatian). 11 October 2021. Retrieved 2022-07-31.
  3. ^ "Solidarita úplně zkolabovala, myslí si zakladatelka romského festivalu Khamoro Jelena Silajdžić". Radiožurnál (in Czech). 2017-09-09. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
  4. ^ Levin, Jack (2002). The Violence of Hate: Confronting Racism, Anti-semitism, and Other Forms of Bigotry. Allyn and Bacon. ISBN 978-0-205-32247-3.
  5. ^ "Jelena Silajdžić". Příběhy našich sousedů (in Czech). Retrieved 2022-07-31.
  6. ^ "World Roma Festival to address questions on Roma identity in the Czech Republic & the new EU". Radio Prague International. 2004-05-25. Retrieved 2022-07-31.
  7. ^ Refugees, United Nations High Commissioner for. "Nansen medal for refugee activists from four continents". UNHCR. Retrieved 2022-07-27.
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