Srđan Dizdarević (29 September 1952 – 16 February 2016) was a Bosnian journalist, diplomat, and activist. Born into a prominent

Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

political family of diplomats, Dizdarević graduated from the Faculty of Philosophy at the

University of Sarajevo The University of Sarajevo (Bosnian language, Bosnian, Croatian language, Croatian and Serbian language, Serbian: ''Univerzitet u Sarajevu'' / Sveučilište u Sarajevu / Универзитет у Сарајеву) is a List of universities in Bo ...

in 1976 and entered politics. As a diplomat, he was the first secretary of the Embassy of Yugoslavia in Paris, and in 1991 he returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also worked as the assistant editor-in-chief of the newspaper ''

Oslobođenje The ''Oslobođenje'' ( sh-Cyrl, Ослобођење; ; 'Liberation') is the Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian national daily newspaper, published in Sarajevo. It is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fou ...

'' and was a member of the

Helsinki Committee for Human Rights Helsinki Committees for Human Rights exist in many European countries (and in the wider OSCE region) as volunteer, non-profit organizations devoted to the protection of human rights. It was presumably named after the Helsinki Accords. It was for ...

of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1995, becoming the committee's president in 2005, serving until 2014. He died of severe pneumonia in 2016.

Early life

Srđan Dizdarević was born on 29 September 1952 in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

, while the country was a Yugoslav republic. He stems from a prominent Bosnian anti-fascist family of

heritage, whose members are former politicians and diplomats. His father Nijaz Dizdarević was a former ambassador to

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

and

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

; his uncle Faik Dizdarević was a longtime ambassador to

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

, Algiers and

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

; and his other uncle Raif Dizdarević was a foreign minister of Yugoslavia and the president of the Presidency of both socialist Bosnia and Herzegovina and Yugoslavia. His thirth uncle was a prominent Bosnian writer

Zija Dizdarević Zija Dizdarević (18 February 1916 – 1942) was a Bosnian prose writer. Brother of Raif Dizdarević. Biography He was born in Vitina, Ljubuški municipality, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria-Hungary to Bosnian parents Šefkija Dizdarevi ...

. Srđan Dizdarević graduated in 1976 from the Faculty of Philosophy at the

.angelfire.com
/ref> and studied political science in Paris. During his university years he was responsible for the international relations of the Young Socialists' Association.

Career

Journalistic career

For a decade he was a professional journalist. In 1978 he worked as director and editor in chief of the "children and youth press" branch of the daily '' Oslobodjenje''; since 1981 he was assistant chief editor of the Oslobođenje.

Diplomatic career

After the death of Tito, since his family name was becoming a liability, he looked for a period abroad. A perfect

francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...

, from 1987 to 1991 Dizdarević worked in the Yugoslav foreign service as First Secretary of the Embassy of Yugoslavia in Paris, until when – he said – "it became impossible to work for an embassy of

Greater Serbia The term Greater Serbia or Great Serbia () describes the Serbian nationalist and irredentist ideology of the creation of a Serb state which would incorporate all regions of traditional significance to Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group, inclu ...

In Sarajevo during the siege

He got back to Sarajevo on 2 April 1992, four days before the start of the war. He spent the three-year

siege of Sarajevo The siege of Sarajevo () was a prolonged military blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the ethnically charged Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by Serbian forces of the Yugoslav People's Arm ...

in the town, refusing all offers to leave it: "there were moments in which I thought that Sarajevo only had one chance over hundreds to survive. But that single chance sufficed," he later declared to ''

Libération (), popularly known as ''Libé'' (), is a daily newspaper in France, founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968 in France, May 1968. Initially positioned on the far left of Fr ...

''.BOSNIE-HERZÉGOVINE : IN MEMORIAM SRĐAN DIZDAREVIĆ
Courrier des Balkans, 16 February 2016

Human rights activist

After the

Bosnian war The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

, in 1995, he got engaged in

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere.Al Jazeera Balkans
/ref> He was elected the first president of the

of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2005, a position he held until 2014; he was also a member of the Association of Independent Intellectuals Circle 99; The following year he was elected member of the Executive Committee of the International Helsinki Federation and elected member of the Presidency of the Civic Alternative Parliament. In 1997 he was appointed as a member of the Alternative Ministerial Council – Minister for Foreign Affairs. He declared to the Serbian daily ''Naša Borba'' in 1997:

The Dayton accords admit no alternative. This is why we need to gather all non-nationalist forces, since they are the only ones that can assure the build-up of a normal
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...
.

In 1998 Dizdarević was appointed as a member of the Provisional Election Commission, and as a member of the Independent Media Commission. The same year, a decision of the

High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina The High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was created in 1995 immediately after the signing of the Dayton Agreement which ended the 1992 to 1995 Bos ...

appointed him to the working group on the Permanent Election Law. In 2005 he wrote:

The nationalist parties are blocking all evolution of the country, in fear of losing power. The religious authorities support them, and those that oppose nationalism, the emerging civil society, still don't have enough weight to make themselves be heard. (...) There is no democracy in Bosnia and Herzegovina, not even at Constitutional level, since the inhabitants of the country are not considered as citizens, but as members of predetermined ethnic community.

Following his engagement for a civic and non-nationalist

, in 2008 he took part together with director

Danis Tanović Danis Tanović (born 20 February 1969) is a Bosnian film director and screenwriter. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for the Golden Bear and the Palme d'Or. Ta ...

in the launch of the Naša Stranka party, which nevertheless remained marginal in the following elections.

Personal life

Srđan Dizdarević married Dubravka Doda on 12 August 1972.Libération
/ref> She preceded him in death by seven months, dying on 18 July 2015. Together they had two children; a daughter Sandra, and a son Davorin.

Death

Dizdarević died at age 63 of a severe

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

in Sarajevo on 16 February 2016. He was buried 20 February 2016 in Sarajevo's

Bare Cemetery The Bare Cemetery is a cemetery complex in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina opened in 1965, with the first funeral and interment occurring on 3 January 1966. The central part of the cemetery is a spacious plateau with a staircase and a porch tha ...

References

External links

* [FR
Libération
* [FR
Interview with Arte TV
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dizdarevic, Srdan 1952 births 2016 deaths Diplomats from Sarajevo Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina Deaths from pneumonia in Bosnia and Herzegovina Burials at Bare Cemetery, Sarajevo Journalists from Sarajevo