Religious leaders united against silence

In late 2025, a gathering of women and religious officials from different communities took place in Vareš to discuss a sensitive but important issue — how to provide better support to survivors of wartime sexual violence, particularly in addressing the stigma that continues to follow them.

Three decades after the war, many survivors still face judgment, silence and social exclusion. Research conducted in 2016 by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Bosnia and Herzegovina shows that survivors — most often women but also men — continue to live with the consequences of social condemnation, marginalization and feelings of shame. Such attitudes deepen isolation and often discourage survivors from speaking about their experiences or seeking support.

Changing this environment requires more than formal policies and commitments — it also calls for engagement within communities themselves, particularly from those whose voices carry trust and influence.

Among them are religious leaders.

Recognizing their role in shaping community attitudes, faith communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina have already taken steps to address stigma. In 2017, with the support of UNFPA, the Interreligious Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted a Declaration condemning the stigmatization of survivors of conflict-related sexual violence and emphasizing the responsibility of religious communities to be spaces of acceptance rather than judgment.

Yet, as participants in Vareš noted, stigma is often reinforced through everyday attitudes and interactions — precisely where beliefs are formed and where they can gradually begin to change.

It was in this context that the discussion in Vareš was organized as part of one of the initiatives supported by the United Nations Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) — “Women Lead the Way to Peace and Security in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” jointly implemented by UN Women, UNFPA and IOM in cooperation with the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Through this initiative, local actors are encouraged to open dialogue on issues that are often difficult to discuss but are essential for building more inclusive and resilient communities.

For many participants, simply coming together and discussing these issues was an important first step, creating space for conversations that rarely take place publicly.

One of the participants, Fra Mirko Majdančić, Parish Priest of Brestovsko Parish, emphasized that the role of religious leaders is not to impose solutions but to help reconnect people within their communities.

“The task of religious officials is to build bridges, strengthen the community and create connections among people.”

He noted that religious communities play an important role because many people link their identity and sense of belonging to them. At the same time, he pointed to the limits of that influence. Confronting stigma — particularly when it comes to conflict-related sexual violence — is a gradual process that requires patience and persistence.

Fra Mirko stresses that empathy must be the starting point:

“If we want to help, we must approach that person as if she were our sister, mother or child.”

For Ramiz ef. Zubača, Chief Imam of the Islamic Community of Vareš, the discussion also highlighted the responsibility of religious leaders as trusted figures within their communities. In his view, faith can play a constructive role when it is used to support survivors rather than judge them.

“Faith should be a source of strength and encouragement to help and protect those who survived violence.”

Through sermons, counselling and everyday engagement with community members, religious leaders can influence how communities respond — either reinforcing stigma or helping to overcome it.

The gathering in Vareš is part of a wider series of local dialogues supported through this Peacebuilding Fund initiative, aimed at encouraging open conversations on issues that are often difficult to address.

By bringing together religious leaders, women and community representatives, these discussions help challenge silence around wartime sexual violence and promote greater understanding and solidarity with survivors.

As participants in Vareš emphasized, meaningful change begins when communities themselves take part in confronting difficult legacies of the past and creating space for dignity and support.