During the weekend from June 16th to 18TH, mentees, associates and members of the alumni club shared knowledge in Bijeljina, as part of a study visit. On that occasion, the participants got to know each other better through joint networking activities, watched films produced by BeFem, discussed mentoring support and visited the Women’s Organization “Lara” from Bijeljina. “Lara” is a non-governmental organization that works on development of a program to protect women from all forms of gender-based violence and to empower women for political and other forms of public activity. It is the first women’s NGO in BiH to establish a shelter for victims of human trafficking (in 2000) that have provided assistance, support and protection to nearly 200 women.
The key messages about women’s rights and gender equality that the participants sent and took away from the study visit are:
“Women don’t have to suffer anything. They can do everything and they don’t have to do anything. We are not alone, we are not to blame and we are superior. We should not give up the fight for women’s rights, empowerment and awareness at every opportunity. The fight is far from over, but there are many of us and we will lead it each in our own sphere. If women do not fight for their rights and for gender equality, no one will. Let’s support each other even if we are completely different. There is a lot of discrimination, but we will not give up in the fight for rights. We alone are capable of fighting for gender equality. Always sit in the front rows and act in our environments to bring the change we want to see. The need to connect is crucial because it brings awareness of the need and opportunity to act.”
The study visit was one of the joint activities of the 13th cycle “Share your knowledge”, which is jointly implemented by the European Movement in Serbia, the Embassy of the United States of America in Serbia and the OSCE Mission.
