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Refugees, Zenica

Annex 7 of the Dayton Peace Accords says that all displaced Bosnians have the right to return to their homes. In reality, most will not. "Dayton is a black hole," refugees told us. The Serbs will not allow them to go back because most of their homes are now in Serb-held territory. Even if they were given permission to return, most refugees say that they are too afraid.

At the Tetovo Collective Center in Zenica, 69 people, mostly children and elderly, from Prijedor, Zepa, and Srebrenica, lived in 17 rooms. They came in June and July of 1995. There are 39 collective centers in Zenica such as this one, in a former school. "I would rather kill myself or my kids if I have to live in a room like this one again," said one refugee. At the time of our visit, the residents of Tetovo were told that they had to leave in two weeks. When we met them, they had received their last food shipment containing one liter of oil, seven kilos of wheat flour, yeast, one-half kilo of pastry, and one meat can per person. They received this portion once every two weeks. They have no idea where they will go.

Refugees, Zenica

Refugees, Zenica