Husein Hasani (22 December 1931 – 6 January 2014) was the last shoeshiner in the city of

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was popular with Sarajevans and was known by all as "Čika Mišo" (''Uncle Mišo'').

Background and personal life

Uncle Mišo was born Husein Hasani in 1931 in

Uroševac Ferizaj, . or Uroševac, . Also formerly known as Ferizovići ( tr, Firzovik). is the sixth largest city in Kosovo by population and seat of Ferizaj Municipality and Ferizaj District. Ferizaj has been populated since the prehistoric era by t ...

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...

. He had eight or nine siblings, and was the last living of all the Hasani children. He was an ethnic Kosovar Roma and moved to Bosnia with his family as a teenager in 1946, just after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The nickname Mišo was given to him by his Hungarian boxing coach, who could not pronounce his name. He had said that his true love was boxing. His wife, Džemila, predeceased him.

Shoeshiner

In 1952, Mišo took over the job of shoe-shiner from his father, a job he would keep until his death six decades later. He was the last one to keep up with the traditional trade, which has deep roots in Bosnia, inherited from the centuries-long Ottoman rule of the region. His original "base" was in front of the Marijin Dvor building. He later moved himself to

Marshal Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his death ...

Street, about twenty years before his death. He sat on his chair on the sidewalk throughout the

Siege of Sarajevo The Siege of Sarajevo ( sh, Opsada Sarajeva) was a prolonged blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by the forces of the Yugoslav ...

during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995, avoiding sniper fire. During the war years, he could hardly be convinced to move to a shelter during the shelling. Despite food shortages and poverty during the war, he always kept treats for Sarajevo's stray dogs, which he called his "faithful comrades" in the streets. In 2009 Mišo was awarded a medal for merit by city authorities, as well as an apartment and a pension. In an interview, he said: "There were shoe-cleaners in every street when I started and now, I'm the only one, why? Because I have been brave and people laughed at my jokes."

Death

Uncle Mišo died of a heart attack in the morning hours of 6 January 2014 at the age of 82. The mayor of Sarajevo Ivo Komšić called Misho a "symbol of the city" of Sarajevo and stated that his death had left the city "emptier". Upon his death, the chair where he sat daily was adorned with candles, roses and shoes by passers-by. He was buried in a graveyard in

Vlakovo Vlakovo ( sr-cyrl, Влаково) is a village in Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the 1991 census, the village is located in the municipality of Ilidža Ilidža ( sr-cyrl, Илиџа, ) is a town and a municipality located in Sarajevo Can ...

on 8 January 2014. The day after his death, a petition calling for a memorial to be placed in the spot where he sat everyday was started on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

. On 11 January 2014, the workers of the

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

fast food restaurant in front of the spot where he worked paid for and set up a

commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, typically attached to a wall, stone, or other ...

that reads: "''Here worked čika Mišo, the last shoe-shiner in Sarajevo. Husein Hasani 1931–2014.''"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miso, Cika 1931 births 2014 deaths People from Sarajevo People from Ferizaj Bosnia and Herzegovina Romani people Kosovan Romani people Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims Romani Muslims Shoeshiners