Indira Bajramović is a

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council *Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

and

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

who has been working to improve the condition of Roma

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

for over 20 years. She is the director of the Association of Roma Women 'Better Future' (local name 'Bolja budućnost') from

Tuzla Tuzla (, ) is the third-largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the administrative center of Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 110,979 inhabitants. Tuzla is the economic, cultural, ed ...

. Bajramović has worked to provide aid and relief to rural Roma villages, and also advocated for Roma people to have equal opportunity in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Specifically, Bajramović has focused on raising awareness about the difficulties faced by

unemployed Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the referen ...

Roma women and victims of

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

and

abuse Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

Activism

Bajramović's association focuses on providing food and hygiene products as well as school supplies for young children in Roma communities. Additionally, the association works to provide private medical examinations for impoverished women, specifically to screen for

breast cancer Breast cancer is cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipple, a newly inverted nipple, or a re ...

COVID-19 Pandemic

During the summer of 2020, amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Bajramović and her foundation partnered with the Bosnia and Herzegovina Women's Roma Network, the Tuzla Community Foundation, and the International Solidarity Forum Emmaus to provide 700 aid packages to local Roma communities around Kiseljak. Bajramović helped to coordinate the distribution of 400 meals a day once every 3 days with volunteers. She was also engaged in several construction projects including that of a football pitch and a playroom for children. Additionally, she was involved in the reconstruction of a damaged canal, which had previously led to the

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

ing of many local houses. In addition to providing assistance to Roma communities during the pandemic, Bajramović also documented deficiencies in rural areas that were further exacerbated by the pandemic. She pointed out the smaller share of students from Roma communities participate in online classes, the increasing rate of domestic violence and discrimination in health care. She particularly highlighted the lack of availability of COVID-19 testing in these rural communities.

Politics

Bajramović ran for a position on the

city council as number 9 on the Union for a Better Future of BiH ( bs, Savez za bolju budućnost Bosne i Hercegovine) ticket. She was not elected. A total of 20 Roman women ran, but none were elected as councillors. During the election, 47 Roma men ran as well, of whom 6 became councilors. Bajramović ascribed the women's lack of success to their focus on community work instead of visible campaigning. She also brought attention to the splitting of the vote among many new parties, and urged Roma to consolidate behind one candidate, though she was heartened by the greater number of Roma running for office than in previous years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bajramović, Indira Living people Bosnia and Herzegovina Romani people Bosnia and Herzegovina women activists Romani activists Year of birth missing (living people)