Macedonia: A dream coming true.

‘Balkan’ is a word which is made up of two components, meaning ‘honey’ and ‘blood’. It is perhaps a fitting name for a region in which there is so much that is sweet and good, but where there has also been so much bloodshed.

During our recent conference in Skiopje, Macedonia, one Bosnian participant suggested a new name: ‘Balhan’ which would mean ‘honey’ and ‘water’. The participant was expressing a deep wish – a dream that all citizens of the Balkans need to see become a reality: a future of peace and a break with the violence of the past.

The Humanitarian Forum had to fight with that great natural/supernatural force – Iceland’s volcano – to reach skopje, capital of Macedonia. It was a question of travelling through the ashes which were preventing thousands of people from going home. Many of our members from Europe and the Middle East couldn’t make it in person, and there was a time when we had to think seriously about cancelling this long-awaited event.

But in the end, we decided to go ahead – and I am very glad we did. Fifty representatives came together, from the local Civil Society Organisations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Serbia, Kosovo and Albania. Our ‘Balkano’ meeting seemed like a challenge to the volcano – we were saying ‘you can’t deter us!’ Some of our members still managed to get there from Turkey, Kenya and Iran – I myself took a ten hour car ride from Istanbul with a colleague in order to make the meetings.

The most important aspect of the A HOPE for the Balkans conference was the spirit of dynamic discussion between different ethnic and religious groups. Here was Natasha, a Serbian from Belgrade, leading a mixed group of Muslims from Macedonia and Albania. Jason, who represented World Vision, led another group of Bosnian, Macedonian and Kosovan participants. Amer from ICRC lead another, equally diverse group.

This spirited and dynamic dialogue was most encouraging. To see so many actors from so many areas meet the challenges facing the development of a regional civil society together – to find both collective solutions and answers to the common problems – was inspiring.

One participant told his colleague that this was the first time in his life that they had met together with so many different people. A second representative wondered that he had travelled all the way from Tehran ‘to meet his neighbours’. It seems that for us the continuous process of communication is the foundation of confidence building, which leads to operational engagement of different CSOs from different cities and countries. This communication and operational engagement will be the bedrock of humanitarian partnership – not only in the Balkans but anywhere in the world.

We want to create A HOPE for the Balkans: an Alternative Humanitarian Operational Partnership Engagement between CSOs representing different ethnic and religious groups. This is really the dream that we can make a reality – a new ‘Balhan’ region.

So let the volcano bring ashes – we’ll bring the fire of unity. Let the sky be shadowed with dark clouds – we’ll bring the light of partnership. When the wind competes with us at breakneck speed, our steady determination will win through.

Our Balkano meeting was more dynamic than the Volcano!