{"id":8136,"date":"2026-09-15T16:36:36","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T14:36:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/europeanmemories.net\/syntheticmemories\/?p=8136"},"modified":"2026-09-29T17:56:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T15:56:43","slug":"alma-masic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/europeanmemories.net\/syntheticmemories\/2026\/09\/15\/alma-masic\/","title":{"rendered":"Alma Ma\u0161i\u0107"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Siege of Sarajevo
and the Balkan Wars of the 1990s<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alma Ma\u0161i\u0107\u2019s testimony connects her childhood in socialist Yugoslavia with the war that followed the country’s breakup in the 1990s. Having grown up in a multicultural society where different religious communities lived side by side, she experienced the siege of Sarajevo and later worked in humanitarian aid, witnessing the devastating consequences of the conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through five Synthetic Memories, Alma\u2019s testimony offers a personal perspective on the impact of war, the importance of solidarity and the challenges of rebuilding trust after conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Growing up in Yugoslavia<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Alma Ma\u0161i\u0107<\/a> was born and raised in Yugoslavia, a socialist country where education and healthcare were publicly provided. She remembers her childhood as a time of stability and coexistence, growing up in a society where people from different religious backgrounds shared everyday life. Religious holidays such as Christmas, Easter and Eid were occasions for families and neighbours to visit one another, exchange gifts and share meals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her memories also include the freedom and simplicity of childhood, particularly swimming in the river with friends. Looking back, Alma recalls a society in which religious differences did not define relationships between people. This experience of coexistence would later make the outbreak of war all the more difficult to comprehend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Yugoslavia began to disintegrate in the early 1990s, the divisions that had once seemed unthinkable became increasingly visible. Alma remembers how difficult it was for people in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a republic characterised by its mixed population, to accept that their society was being torn apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Siege of Sarajevo and the outbreak of war<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The beginning of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina transformed Alma\u2019s everyday life. She recalls a moment when her mother was preparing a pie at home, in their apartment on the thirteenth floor, and suddenly witnessed aircraft dropping bombs. The family had already begun receiving relatives displaced from northern Bosnia, while shortages of food and other basic necessities were becoming increasingly severe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Sarajevo came under siege, daily life became a struggle for survival. Alma remembers the uncertainty of waking up each morning without knowing what the next 24 hours would bring. Despite the danger and deprivation, solidarity among neighbours became essential. Residents shared whatever food they could find, cooking together in the corridors of their apartment buildings and distributing meals among families.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alma\u2019s memories capture the contrast between the peaceful childhood she had known and the sudden violence of the war. The experience of seeing her familiar world collapse, alongside the solidarity that helped people endure the siege, became the second Synthetic Memory generated from her testimony.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Humanitarian work during the war<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

During the conflict, Alma worked for the International Rescue Committee (IRC), delivering humanitarian assistance across Bosnia and Herzegovina. Her work involved travelling to Croatia, particularly to Metkovi\u0107 and Split, where humanitarian supplies were stored, and transporting goods back through military checkpoints to communities in need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although she was able to travel and access supplies, Alma recalls that food and basic necessities were scarce. She often gave everything she brought back to her mother, who distributed it among children and families. For years, she went without proper meals, suffering serious nutritional consequences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her work also brought her into direct contact with the violence of the conflict. Travelling across different front lines, she witnessed destroyed homes, people killed in attacks and communities devastated by ethnic violence. One of her most striking memories is of Ahmi\u0107i, a village near Vitez, where she and her colleagues found twelve children alive, hidden in a ditch by their parents before an attack. The children’s parents had been killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alongside the devastation, Alma remembers the networks of solidarity that developed among displaced people. Refugees in Croatia would entrust her with letters and money to deliver to relatives in Bosnia. Her journeys became a vital link between families separated by the war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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