Latest news with #Emina
Metro
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Metro
I saw my first dead body aged 8 - it wasn't the last
The Bosnian War took everything from me – my home, my dad, uncles, and friends. Everything I once knew. Before the war, my childhood in my hometown village of Barane (in the south of modern day Bosnia and Herzegovina) was amazing. My family was Muslim – made up of my dad, mam, older brother, and older sister. The only things that mattered to me were which cartoons we watched, which books we liked, and – most importantly – which football clubs we supported. But slowly, our childhood games changed. We stopped playing hide and seek, and started playing soldiers, tanks, and camps. When I was seven years old, the siege of Sarajevo by Serb forces began and Bosnia became the setting of Europe's only genocide since the Holocaust. I wasn't aware that Serbian and Croatian politicians were equating Bosnian Muslims to animals, insects, and disease. One day, I even remember finding Mam crying in front of the TV. She quickly wiped her tears, then hugged me, kissed me on the head, and told me not to worry. Years later, I realised she had been watching the war spread across Bosnia. In spring 1992, war came to our village. At first, it felt surreal. After about two months, my parents made a decision that we had to flee our home for our own safety. In the first nine months of war, we moved 14 times before we eventually settled with one of my uncles in a nearby village. Things got much worse in the summer of 1993 when Croatian forces began rounding up Muslim men into concentration camps, including my dad and most of my male relatives. Some of my cousins were just 16 years old. I cried myself to sleep that night. In the aftermath, I wouldn't leave my mam's side. There were also camps for women and children and on August 4, we were rounded up in a 'collection centre'. That's when we were searched by Croatian soldiers. Mam was forced to sign a document stating she was giving up everything we had for 'safekeeping' to the local council. One of the soldiers even tried to bribe me with chocolate to tell him if we were hiding anything. I remember seeing myself crying in the reflection of his sunglasses. We were then loaded onto cattle trucks along with other families and driven a couple of hours towards Bosnian government territory, south of Mostar. That day was the first time I stepped over a dead body to survive. We eventually made our way to my aunt Emina's house, my mam's older sister, where we were allowed to stay. We were exhausted, frightened, and starving. Life was really difficult at Emina's house because thousands of shells rained on the city daily. We fell asleep hungry every night, but my mam and aunt were so resourceful. They used chicken feed to make bread and grass to make pies. We started school as an act of defiance, but it was safest to go at night. I was desperate to learn to read and write because we started receiving letters from my dad through the International Red Cross. This is when we learnt what had happened to him. He ended up in Dretelj, a former military complex, and kept in one of the tunnels that went deep into the mountain. Within weeks of arriving in the concentration camp, he lost four stone (25kg) after being treated very badly. He still can't talk about the full details. He was there for a few months before the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) helped secure the release of around 500 prisoners. The UK was one of several countries to take in refugees. My dad was brought to Newcastle. We were so relieved that he was safe and we desperately wanted to be reunited with him. Unfortunately, it would be six full months until that was possible. In the meantime, on the night of January 24, 1994, Croat forces dropped bombs from a plane onto Mostar. Through my classroom window, I saw our street in flames. It turned out that my auntie Emina was wounded. She had been standing at the front door when she heard the plane, then the blast threw her back into the house. Family members managed to get her to a hospital, but it lacked medical equipment and medicine. She died the following morning on January 25. I lost all faith in humanity. My life felt fragile and meaningless. On June 19, the Red Cross came to find us in Mostar and gave us two hours to decide whether we would leave Bosnia. It was a difficult decision to leave my grandparents and cousins, but I was excited to see my dad again. We were then taken to a refugee camp in Croatia, where we spent exactly a month. We arrived in London on July 19 and flew to Newcastle later that day. We were reunited with my dad at the airport that same day. My sister spotted him in the crowd first and ran to him, then my brother followed quickly after her. Smajo Bešo is the founder of the Bosnian Genocide Educational Trust. For more information about the work they do, visit their website here. I held on to my mam. I was frightened, nervous, and shy. But as soon as I saw him approaching us, I ran to him. I feel like I can still feel that hug now. I was so happy, but that feeling didn't last. On our first night in Newcastle, I woke up screaming. I suffered with PTSD for many years after that. Ever since, we rarely discussed what we went through, but I have since realised that my family has been reliving the same trauma for generations. My great grandad was in a concentration camp during the First World War, then my grandad in the Second World War, and finally my dad in Bosnia in the 1990s. I grew up wondering if this fate awaited me too. Our plan was always to stay in the UK temporarily, but we learnt in the years since that our house had been torched. We still have the key to the home though because a part of us believes we'll go back one day. After high school, I went to Newcastle University to study architecture, completing both my undergraduate and Master's degrees. I started working as an architect before moving to the university to teach architecture in 2016. I've had the urge to tell my story ever since I was a child. It helped me feel like I was moving toward justice. Importantly, it helped me heal. I came to understand that my story could be a powerful tool for peacebuilding. Only by acknowledging the truth of the past can we build a safer, more just future. So I started sharing, anywhere people were willing to listen. Hundreds of times a year, up and down the country. In 2020, I established the Bosnian Genocide Educational Trust. Then in 2023, I was awarded an OBE by King Charles for my work in genocide and Holocaust education. I attended Buckingham Palace with my wife, Allija, and mam. It was an emotional day for all of us. More Trending I must say, I have never been as frightened as I have been over the past year. The language used by far-right politicians today is eerily reminiscent of the rhetoric Serb and Croat nationalists used in the 1990s. Despite everything my parents experienced in Bosnia, they remain beacons of strength, hope, and inspiration. We just celebrated my dad's 73rd birthday and my mam's 65th. They were surrounded by all their children and grandchildren, it was a beautiful day. My parents always say, those who tried to exterminate us, to break our spirit, to dehumanise us, only managed to dehumanise themselves. Yet here we are, three generations together, full of life, love, and laughter. Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailing Share your views in the comments below. MORE: Delays and diplomacy: Inside Starmer's migrant deal announcement with Macron MORE: UK and France agree to 'one in, one out' migrant deal within weeks MORE: I struggled on stage like Lewis Capaldi – I'm in awe of his return
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
‘We work hard and have a plan': meet the team who have won their league 23 times in a row
There are many types of champions. Some win the league just as a one-off. There are those who enjoy periods of sustained success as well as the relentless winners who establish a long-term stranglehold on the silverware in their country. The next level up is the peerless teams who sustain it for a decade or so. Finally, in an entire category of their own, we have SFK 2000 Sarajevo. The Bosnia and Herzegovina women's champions recently extended their own world record by lifting their 23rd (!) consecutive title, continuing a streak that began before nearly half of their current squad were even born. Advertisement On 21 May they added the Bosnian Cup, lifting it for 21st time this century, with a 1-0 victory over their nearest challengers Emina, and speaking to the Guardian before that cup success, trying to explain their dominance in the league, Sarajevo's secretary general, Azra Numanovic, said: 'I can't even describe it any more. We are changing the perspective towards women's football in Bosnia and in this region, because if you see our results, we're the most successful football club in Bosnia. Not women's football club, the most successful football club. 'I think the biggest question is, 'how do we do it psychologically, to motivate our players to do it from year to year?' Everyone says 'the league in Bosnia, the quality is not so high and so you do it easily' but actually no, that's not true, because we are human – we work so hard, we have our strategic plan, our tactics, our mentality, that we from year-to-year manage to be the best. 'The key point is we have our head coach, Samira Hurem, who is, at the same time, the president of this club. She formed this club in the year 2000 and she's the one who's been leading us since day one. Her vision, her energy is something that has been transferred to all of us younger ones.' Hurem is, like Numanovic, a former player for both SFK 2000 Sarajevo and the Bosnia and Herzegovina women's national team. This year their team won the title by a 21-point margin, but spare a thought for second-place Emina, who have finished as the runners-up for a sixth consecutive campaign. Advertisement 'We have really good matches with them,' Numanovic says, of their rivalry. 'They're trying hard and it's good for us to have teams like that so we play better games because the rest of the league is really not that good, and then you don't have those kind of quality matches and then when the Champions League comes you have to play more defensively and it's really hard to switch over, so we're actually very happy to have Emina.' Naturally, amid such domestic dominance, it is in the Women's Champions League where Sarajevo face their toughest games each season. This season, they beat the Faroe Islands-based club KÍ Klaksvík Kvinnur in the first round of qualifying before being knocked out by Benfica. They have claimed some sizable scalps over the years, including beating Cardiff City 3-0 in 2013, but they have progressed through the qualifying rounds just four times, most recently in 2019, when they were eliminated by Chelsea in the round of 32, before the existing main-draw group-stage format was introduced. 'We try in our preparation period to have good friendly matches with the champions of Serbia and Montenegro who are pretty similar to us,' Numanovic says of the gap between domestic and European football. 'There was an idea to establish a regional league. The best teams from Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia would play each other, because all of us need to overcome this gap. All of us have the same problem. 'It [creating such a regional competition] is not easy because the biggest problem we have is how to finance it. We already had many meetings and everyone would be happy to do it, but we still cannot overcome the financial burden. What's interesting here is, for example, our men's colleagues in all of these countries could never organise that, because of security reasons. It is impossible. Imagine Sarajevo v Dinamo Zagreb? That would be a mess – but when we play each other it's a super happy, positive match, so we have overcome the political situation with women's football. It's a super beautiful atmosphere. Now we need a shift to more investment in women's football to see the potential in it, to make some of these projects come alive.' Advertisement There is at least a new competition that has been introduced by Uefa, but it is Europe-wide. Bosnia and Herzegovina are ranked 25th in Uefa women's coefficient list but now have an extra incentive to improve their standing – from 24th place upwards, countries start to receive a spot in the new Women's Europa Cup competition from the 2025-26 campaign, meaning Emina have narrowly missed out this time, but Numanovic is enthusiastically welcoming that new competition as a means to grow the women's game around the entire continent. 'This is a big step forward,' she says. 'It will help a lot of teams. More teams will get access to Uefa competitions to work on their development so this will help a lot. We are close to having two teams – it will be amazing if Emina also gets to play in Europe and develop themselves, and it will also push the other teams here to also develop.' Numanovic, who started playing for Sarajevo at 14 in 2004, was a defensive midfielder who could also play at full-back, and although she hung up her boots three years ago, she has never been more active in the sport, having working in administration for the past 17 years, initially just to help the club out. She has spent 10 years working with the European Club Association, where she is now a board member, and she wants more women to have chances to get involved in running the sport. 'Another key reason why we [Sarajevo] are successful is most of our administration staff are former players of the club – we give everyone a chance to learn if they want to stay in the club. When you were a player and you remain to be a fighter on the administration field as well, you know what a player needs.' They are already in the Guinness book of World Records but, with that ethos, they intend to remain on top in Bosnia and Herzegovina for many more years to come. Talking points Major blow: The Tottenham defender Ella Morris has sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in her right knee during training with England after she received her first senior international call-up. She wrote on the social media platform X: 'From the highest high to the lowest low. Devastated doesn't even come close. So grateful for the incredible people around me. ACL round 2 – let's go.' Advertisement Cutting it fine: The match venues for July's Women's Africa Cup of Nations, being hosted in Morocco a year later than originally planned, have finally been announced. The stadiums will include the Olympic Stadium in Rabat and Casablanca's Larbi Zaouli Stadium, among four other venues. An official fixture list is still yet to be released. Recommended listening Champions of Europe. Faye Carruthers is joined by Suzy Wrack, Tim Stillman and Sophie Downey to reflect on Arsenal's historic Champions League victory. There is also a chat with Adrian Jacob, head of football at World Sevens Football, about the inaugural tournament in Portugal. Listen here Recommended viewing You can watch SFK 2000 Sarajevo clinch their latest domestic double in the Cup final against Emina, with Lili Jones-Baidoe heading in the only goal in the 37th minute. Quote of the day 'I had hoped that Mary would play an important role within the squad this summer, so of course I am disappointed. Mary has been clear on her reasons why she has made the decision and it is something we need to accept.' The England head coach, Sarina Wiegman, reacts to Mary Earps' decision to retire from international football. Still want more? What is your favourite Mary Earps moment? The dancing on the table? The swearing? Taking on Nike? Suzanne Wrack pays tribute to a player who elevated the game in England to another level. Advertisement The interim Matildas coach, Tom Sermanni, has hit out at the A-League Women for 'gross' underinvestment. 'We need a complete rethink,' he says. Tom Garry tracks the steps – from Linköping to Lisbon – that made Stina Blackstenius an Arsenal icon. Her former coaches are not surprised. The Guardian has exclusively revealed that the FA and the England players have agreed a bonus package that would see the squad receive up to £1.7m if they defend their Euro title this summer. And yes, it is already that time of the year. Sarah Rendell has already inputted more than 150 transfers into our transfer interactive, and this year we have added the NWSL as well. Take a look here.
SBS Australia
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- SBS Australia
Young voters hold the power this election. These are the people they listen to
Influencers, musicians and podcasters are becoming more involved with politics. Source: SBS News Influencers were once confined to the squares on our social media pages and not considered serious players in the media industry, but as their power grows — so does their range. Once associated with fashion, makeup and lighthearted lifestyle videos, Australians are also increasingly turning to them for their views on more serious issues. It's a trend that politicians have also noticed. This year, for the first time, some influencers were flown to Canberra to cover the federal budget — an event that is typically the domain of political journalists and finance experts. Coverage of the budget was transformed at the hands of content creators like mental health advocate Milly Rose Bannister, Cheek media co-founder Hannah Ferguson and podcast host Daphne Berry. Rather than writing articles about the budget, they posted TikTok videos and Instagram reels, and shared information with their followers via Instagram stories. In the lead up to , many are encouraging their followers to engage with politics and policy — and it's working. Brisbane woman Emina is 29 years old and has never been interested in politics, but after following influencer and podcast host Abbie Chatfield, she was motivated to update her voting details and keep up to date with this year's election. Chatfield first gained a public profile after appearing on TV show The Bachelor and is now a podcast host and media personality. In the lead-up to the election, Chatfield has interviewed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Greens leader Adam Bandt, hosted a DJ event with Bandt and the Greens, and made regular posts about the election and policies. "I've followed Abby since she was on The Bachelor, and she's always been really opinionated and I love her for that," Emina said. "I've always found her to be making it engaging and bringing to the surface the things that are often not spoken about enough." Emina said she believes influencers speaking about politics can be empowering and educational for their followers. While Chatfield has openly said she personally supports the Greens, Emina said she hasn't felt pressured to vote the same way. "I haven't found Abbie to be forceful to tell me who to vote for, so that's also something that I've really respected … her message has been one of empowerment," she said. For Holly Rankin, who also performs as a singer-songwriter and recording artist under the name Jack River, pop culture and policy have always been linked. Alongside her professional music career, Rankin has been involved in campaigns and activism for years. She is also the co-founder of Sentiment, a strategic communications and creative agency that aims to bridge the gap between politics and pop culture. Rankin believes online content creators are often not taken seriously by older generations or traditional media and argues the term 'influencer' can be used to denigrate or dismiss their work and advocacy. "At the end of the day, they're likely very good communicators who are passionate about something and they've grown an online community who have shared values with them," she said. This election, Rankin believes young voters and social media are becoming more powerful. According to a 2024 report from the Australian Communications and Media Authority, 46 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds nominated social media as their main source of news, and 31 per cent said celebrities and influencers were sources of their news content. "The voting electorate is younger, and I think the world is in a really kind of frightening spot for a lot of younger people, so it's inspiring them to lean into politics," she said. "Content creators are seeing not even an opportunity, more like a responsibility, to jump in and be part of the conversation." With the election predicted to be close, Rankin said young voters could be the people who decide the results, particularly in marginal seats. "So it's really important that they get good information and that they engage and also just learn about civics and politics," she said. "If they're not getting it [from] politicians themselves, if they're not reading the news, how else are they going to get this information?" With millennials and gen Z voters now outnumbering baby boomers on the electoral roll, appealing to younger voters is becoming increasingly important to political parties. According to the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC), there are 1,831,800 voters aged 18 to 24 enrolled for the 2025 election. The youth enrolment rate, which tracks eligible voters in this age group, is sitting at 92 per cent. Dr Susan Grantham, a lecturer in communication at Griffith University, believes social media has become "absolutely essential" in politics. On platforms like Instagram and TikTok, Grantham said influencers have a "stronger hold over the audience" and may have more sway than posts made by candidates or political parties, which politicians are starting to realise. "There's always been influencers out there that have been politically aligned and have promoted politics during election campaigns previously," she said. But she said this election, political parties and leaders were now doing joint posts and podcasts with influencers. "That's going to be highly influential and far more influential than what we would expect from a politician directly," Grantham said. Hannah Ferguson, founder and CEO of news commentary platform Cheek Media, told SBS News she believes political parties are beginning to recognise the power of social media and podcasts in driving change. "A lot of influencers — and I say 'influencer' but content creators and new media — have really powerful engagement with their audience who may not know that much about politics," she said. "Our ability to communicate directly with our audiences about the issues that matter to them is far more engaged and far more relevant than large parts of legacy media." Ferguson also believes young audiences have an increased expectation that influencers or people with public profiles should be engaged in politics and social issues. She said there is now a "newfound interest and demand" for content creators to make their values clear, with many viewers preferring to "invest time and trust into the people that they see as resonating with them". "We expect the people that we look up to, the celebrities, the influencers, the people with public presences — to have political opinions and to talk about these things because we are very much a values-driven generation," she said. "And we are the most powerful voting bloc in Australia in the lead up to the federal election." Fellow content creator Daphne Berry said she believes many young voters turn to new media platforms for more relatable discussions about politics. Berry, who hosts the music podcast Airing Your Dirty Laundry, told SBS News her platform is "about learning". "I'm completely out of my depth in a lot of ways, but [I try] to come in and really learn and really listen to people who perhaps know a bit more than I do and ask questions," she said. "[I then] explain it to people who ... don't fully understand what's going on in the country." Not everyone is on board with new media and influencers becoming involved in politics When content creators were invited to the federal Budget lockup in March, critics labelled the influencers as "self-obsessed" and questioned whether they were paid to attend. Clips of Chatfield's interviews with Bandt and Albanese were reviewed by the AEC after Liberal senator Jane Hume questioned if they had breached electoral rules by not including an authorisation statement. The posts were cleared of breaching any laws, with the AEC finding no evidence the podcaster had been paid for any political posts, or that Albanese or Bandt had any creative control in the interviews. In a post on Instagram, Chatfield accused the Liberal Party of trying to discredit influencers speaking on politics. "I'm all for the AEC making sure that everything goes by regulations [so] that we have safe and fair elections," she said. "But the reality is there was no reason to question the integrity of my posts because I repeatedly stated publicly that I was not paid." Chatfield said she believed the Liberal Party was trying to "minimise the impact of influencers and new media" and discourage content creators from speaking about politics. According to Grantham, new media and influencers largely play a positive role in politics and education, but she acknowledged it is a "tricky space". "We have to be careful that we don't let the traditional news media die; it still has a very solid place in politics," she said. "What we do see is influencers taking on a similar role, and some of them are doing that very, very well, but they don't have to work to the same ethical codes or media law that go along with this sort of public commentary." Grantham believes young people need to be taught how to question what they see and to think critically about social media and political commentary. "But until we as a society are really good at doing that, there's obviously always going to be potential negatives," she said. In a time of climate crisis, conflict, and global uncertainty, Rankin believes young voters and social media can ultimately play a part in creating a better future. "I feel critically concerned [about the future], but I know we can write a new story. "I feel optimistic, but there is a lot of work to do." Visit the to access articles, podcasts and videos from SBS News, NITV and our teams covering more than 60 languages.
