SREBRENICA MASSACRES
Ten Year After Remembrance Events

11th of July marks the 10 year anniversary of the Srebrenica massacres, when 8,000 Muslim boys and men were systematically separated from their mothers, wives, sisters and daughters in a UN designated safe zone, and then murdered by Serb military forces. The victims have not all been identified yet, nor have many of the perpetrators been arrested and held accountable for their part in the Bosnian genocide.

Srebrenica memorial events are being organized by Congress of North American Bosniaks between 9th and 11th of July at different locations.

Friday, July 8
A tehvid, or collective prayer, for the victims of the Srebrenica massacre at the Islamic Cultural Center in Northbrook at 8 pm.

The Islamic Cultural Center
1810 N. Pfingston Rd., Northbrook IL 60062

Saturday, July 9
An art exhibit and classical concert dedicated to the victims of the Srebrenica massacre at L.I.P.A. Gallery from 6 to 10 pm.

L.I.P.A. Gallery
410 S. Michigan Ave., 5th floor, Chicago, IL 60605

Sunday, July 10
Lecture and a mevlud, a prayer service, at the Islamic Cultural Center in Northbrook, in honor of the victims and survivors of the Srebrenica massacres. The prayer will begin at 11 am.

Monday, July 11
Remembrance at Daley Plaza in front of the City Hall in downtown Chicago commemorating the victims and survivors of the Srebrenica massacre from 12 noon to 1 pm.

Daley Plaza
50 W. Washington/100 N. Dearborn, Chicago IL 60602
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Echoes of Complicity
An art exhibit and classical concert dedicated to the victims of Srebrenica
Saturday, July 9th, 2005 (6:00 – 10:00pm)
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· 6pm Opening reception with the artists at LIPA on the 5th floor

· 7pm Cavatina Duo classical concert on the 10th floor (Cavatina Duo: Eugenia Moliner, flute, and Denis Azabagic, classical guitar)

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Donation for concert: $15.
For more information, contact Vesna Rebernak at LIPA Gallery, 312-212-1522 or vesna (at) LipaArt.org


THE CAVATINA DUO, consisting of Eugenia Moliner, flute (from Spain) and Denis Azabagic, guitar (from Bosnia) has become one of the most impressive combinations of its kind. Their powerful and versatile performances have captivated audiences in festivals of chamber music across the world. Cavatina's original programs and exquisite musicianship are now making their way through music halls in North and South America, Europe and Asia. Their mixture of Spanish passion and Balkan sensibility make Cavatina Duo concerts a unique experience. "This is not the sort of playing that comes from discussion & careful score markings. These two feel the music deeply and are of one mind as they play" (American Record Guide).


WHEREVER WE LIVE, whatever our nationality, the conflicts of the world have entered our daily reality. Stories of violent death, devastation and terrorism are now an indelible part of the collective human memory.

IN JULY, 1995, IN SREBRENICA, a Bosnian silver-mining town, only a few hours drive from Venice, Vienna, and other major European capitals, Serbian forces killed nearly 8,000 men, women and children while in the presence of UN peacekeepers charged with protecting them.

TEN YEARS AFTER SREBRENICA, genocide continues to echo through an often complacent and even complicit world while people of conscience try to resist. Since Srebrenica, we have witnessed genocide in East Timor, Rwanda, Congo, Sudan, the Middle East and elsewhere. We see new resistances rise while the old fall away, but the fundamental problems of ethnic hatred and state-sanctioned murder remain.

HOW DO WE RESPOND to genocide and resist oppression in a world that continually emphasizes and exploits differences between varied groups of people whether it be along the lines of race, culture, religion, class, nationality, or sexuality? What role does xenophobia play in world events? Why does the "modern" and "secular" nation-state still deal with crisis by scapegoating certain groups and allowing violence against them? Can art in all its forms help us explore these questions? Can it be a vehicle to help us transcend boundaries and explore our shared humanity? Is art the last resort?

Links for International Promotion of the Arts exists to engage these questions. LIPA grew out of two organizations that were formed at the beginning of the former Yugoslavian wars. In 1991 Dialogue for Peace was founded to dispel media driven information about the Yugoslav conflict. The organization sponsored numerous panel discussions, clothing drive, and organized fundraising and cultural events. But as the conflict began in Bosnia, conflict erupted as well within the group and it polarized into pro Serb and pro Muslim faction and Dialogue for Peace crumbled. The Pro Bosniak faction associated itself with the Americans for Bosnian Orphans. At the end of 1992 the American Committee to Save Bosnia, with its Illinois chapter, was formed. Its sole purpose was to focus on the campaign to lift the arms embargo. At the same time, at the end of 1992, Bridge for Humanity was created. It was dedicated to promoting diverse culture from the area; it also sponsored exhibitions and concerts and provided services such as ESL classes, a job clinic and a general orientation focused on programs for a growing Bosnian refugee population in Chicago.

AFTER THE DAYTON PEACE ACCORD and the end of the war there was still an ongoing need for cultural expressions. The war had created high barriers separating the majority of people from each other, but artists and intellectuals still were able to communicate across these barriers. As a way to provide a forum for that communication LIPA was created in 1997 in Washington, D.C. The organization was relocated to Chicago in 2000.

A key vehicle of LIPA has been its art gallery and the exhibits and programs it has produced. Since its inception in 1997 the gallery has organized over 40 exhibitions, including eight "summer summit" events. In the programming of the gallery, visual art is a catalyst that promotes dialogue and brings together artists, intellectuals, educators, and human rights activists from different ethnic, religious, cultural and class backgrounds. Contemporary art is far removed from the everyday lives of people, as are the issues that face different countries and societies. LIPA Gallery tries to address this estrangement by presenting contemporary art as a kind of lens through which to better see the political dynamics of countries whose work is being presented. LIPA Gallery has to this day presented the works of over 200 artists from 34 different countries with artists' media ranging from painting, drawing, sculpture and photography to installation and video art.

WE ARE TODAY JOINING FORCES AGAIN, as some former members of Dialogue for Peace, Americans for Bosnian Orphans and Bridge for Humanity are coming together to remember the victims of Srebrenica and express their disillusion about the creation of a new entity that was created on the basis of crime. How can a world community allow the existence of a state whose legacy is a mass murder?

"Echoes of Complicity" is a program that is dedicated to the victims of Srebrenica; most of the presented artists are born in Bosnia-Herzegovina and are today scattered all over the world.


VISUAL ARTISTS:

Samir Biscevic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Chicago, Illinois; Kemal Hadzic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Phoenix, Arizona; Cedo Kostovic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Springfield, Missouri; Milomir Kovacevic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Paris, France; Miza H. Maureau, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in San Francisco, California; Mladen Pikulic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Rotterdam, Netherlands; Endi Poskovic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Los Angeles, California; Nebojsa Seric-Soba, born in Bosnia- Herzegovina, lives in New York, New York; Tanja Softic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Richmond, Virginia; Arthur Lerner, born in USA, lives in Chicago, Illinois; Stephen Mueller, born in USA, lives in Chicago, Illinois.


CLASSICAL MUSICIANS:

Denis Azabagic, born in Bosnia-Herzegovina, lives in Chicago, Illinois; Eugenia Moliner, born in Spain, lives in Chicago, Illinois.

We have to thank many, who donated their time in efforts to prepare this event: Bosnian-American Cultural Association and ICC-Northbrook for co sponsorship of all the events; Mujko Erovic and Congress of North American Bosniaks for coordinating four different events; Samir Biscevic for putting together a catalogue, for coordinating and for participation at the exhibit as an artist; Dzemal Delic, Amir Ahmetovic, Ivica Jurisic for helping with the documentation part of the exhibit; Steve Mueller for helping with the installation of the exhibit and for participation at the exhibit as an artist; Mecca Perry with the City of Chicago for helping us with the use of the Daley Plaza; Liz Sloan for video recording of the commemoration at the Daley Plaza.

Vesna Rebernak
Links for International Promotion of the Arts
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L.I.P.A.
Links for International Promotion of the Arts
410 South Michigan Avenue, 5th floor
Chicago, IL 60605
Tel: 312-212-1522
Email: vesna (at) LipaArt.org
Web: www.LipaArt.org