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Tuzlanska Amica
The association “Tuzlanska Amica” is a non-governmental organisation based in Tuzla, a city in the north-eastern part of Bosnia Herzegovina. Officially registered in 1996, its work started in 1992 with the aim of easing the suffering of a growing number of women and children arriving from the concentration camps, from the areas concerned with ethnic cleansing and fleeing from the city of Srebrenica. In 1993, Tuzlanska Amica started receiving support from the women volunteers of “Spazio Pubblico di donne” (Public Space of Women) of Bologna and later on from a growing number of Italian associations, thus achieving a remarkable expansion of its engagement also outside Tuzla. Today, two "mobile teams" are able to intervene also in the most abandoned areas in a multidisciplinary way, guaranteeing medical, psychological and first aid assistance to families in need.
Tuzlanska Amica is directed by Irfanka Pašagić, neuropsychiatrist originary from Srebrenica, who arrived in Tuzla as a refugee in 1992. Psychologists, pedagogists, social assistants and - if necessary - also legal consultants give their contribution to the association. Furthermore, the Tuzlanska Amica serves as a Centre for documentation and research on the condition of women and promotes public initiatives and seminars in order to support dialogue, understanding and tolerance between persons of all nationalities.
For her engagement, in 2005 Irfanka Pašagić received the International Award of the Alexander Langer Foundation, an award that from 1997 has been assigned to persons actively working for freedom, democracy, justice and together living.
These are Tuzlanska's principal activities:
- Distance adoption / Children need a family: About 950 children from Bosnia Herzegovina are being adopted from the distance, mainly by Italian families with which they weave important relationships and keep a constant communication.
- Family House: It is thought for 8-10 youth out of those that have to leave Tuzla's orphanage after reaching the age of 18.
- Out-patients' department for children without medical assistance, with an average of 100 visits per month and free pharmaceutical services.
- Medical care in Italy for particular illnesses which are not curable in BiH.
- House of Friendship in Brčko with free recreational and educational activities for children and youth af all ages.
- Promotion of social policies in the city and canton of Tuzla.
- Project Adopt Srebrenica.
The organisations which collaborate with Tuzlanska Amica in Italy are: Adottando of Bologna, Macondo Tre of La Spezia, Bancaiuti of Rimini, ARCI Macondo of Bagnolo in Piano, Cosmohelp of Faenza, Solidarieta’ 1991 of Villa di Serio (BG), Nema Frontiera of Torino, Club Motociclisti of Torino, Radio Città Fujko with Wilmo Ferri of Bologna, Cral Telcomunicazioni Emilia Romagna, Cral Telecomunicazioni Liguria – Toscana, Progetti teatrali Babelia with Roberta Biagiarelli, Rivista Una Città of Forlì, Azione Cattolica of Parma, Associazione Scaut of Bergamo, Associazione Calcutta Project of Milano, Associazione Orlando of Bologna, YABIH, the Region Emilia Romagna, the Provices of Ravenna and Forlì, the Municipalities of Pescara and Ferrara.