©Hedina Sijercic, 2007, all rights reserved. This was a speech given by Hedina Sijercic at a conference during the Festival Tzigane Romani Yag / Romani Yag Gypsy Festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on October 14, 2007.

Aven saste thaj baxtale, Romnjale, Romalen, Chavalen! My name is Hedina Sijercic and I am a journalist, teacher and writer. I am Romani, Canadian, born in Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and now living in Germany.

For 15 years now, I have lived between three cultures: Balkan, Western European ‚ and North American. My life experience as a Romni (Romani woman) living between those three worlds has been very rich. I have met Roma from countries all over the world – both domestic and refugees.

I have met our Romnije (Romani women) all over the world, and especially our Romnije living in Bosnia, Germany, France, Italy and Belgium. The lives of all Romnije are the same – it doesn’t matter where they live. Our tradition and culture are too heavy and too powerful to change the suffering faced by our women throughout the history of our people.

I am here to talk about Roma women from Bosnia and Herzegovina, about their problems and their situation in their families and in the larger society. But I cannot talk about this without informing you at the same time about the whole Roma situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and their position there which is ultimately reflected on the women.

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