Anastasiia Marushevska participated at the WARM journalistic residency in Bosnia

Anastasiia Marushevska, editor-in-chief of Ukraїner International and co-founder of PR Army, took part in the “Reports from the Future” project organised by the WARM Foundation with the support of the European Union. In 2024, Ukrainian journalists, documentary filmmakers, and artists were invited to Bosnia for a week-long residency to reflect on various aspects of life in the post-war country and see the challenges and opportunities that could be relevant to Ukrainians, who have been defending their country’s independence for over 10 years.

“Memories in Chains. The Struggle for Closure in Prijedor” is a journalistic report that delves into the lingering trauma of the Bosnian War, focusing on the Prijedor region’s ethnic cleansing. Key topics include the personal losses and relentless pursuit of closure by survivors like activist Edin Ramulić, who lost his father and brother in a concentration camp. His brother is still officially missing, prompting Edin’s continuous search for missing persons and his brother’s remains. The report covers a trip around Prijedor, visiting former concentration camps Keraterm and Trnopolje, as well as mass graves and war cemeteries. During the journey, I discovered a Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and met the family of a Ukrainian priest living in Trnopolje who witnessed a wartime concentration camp there. I also found that a poem by Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko was used by Bosnian Serbs to justify their atrocities during the war.

The piece underscores the struggles in memorialising trauma amidst denial, poor reintegration efforts, and the loss of entire segments of society due to occupation, immigration in search of refuge, and forcible deportations by the aggressors. It highlights the ongoing relevance of these challenges for contemporary wars, such as the ongoing war in Ukraine. The detailed personal narratives and historical context emphasise the necessity of memory and justice in post-war societies.

Read her story in English and Ukrainian.