Oncology patients at the Tuzla University Clinical Center will finally be able to continue receiving treatment and therapies in their own canton. After more than two years, conditions have been created for the purchase of a linear accelerator, a device that means life for many cancer patients.
Probably the ones most responsible for this are Adi Selman and Nedim Music, the young people behind the Cardboard Revolution.
If you haven’t heard of them yet, you will soon. Because in the few years that this Association has existed, Adi and Nedim have managed to make changes that few, including the two of them, believed were possible.
What exactly did they do?
Besides being the most visible activist movement in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with over 200,000 followers on social networks, they fight against corruption and for equal rights of all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Because they believe that they can create a country where we will all be able to realize our potential.
The list of their actions is very long, and some of the most significant are:
- They managed to secure the purchase of a linear accelerator at UKC Tuzla
- Initiated an investigation against the director of UKC due to suspicion of fraud in the procurement of a linear accelerator
- They ensured that women suffering from breast cancer in Tuzla have the right to treatment by changing the legal regulations, acquiring a mammogram
- Amended the Law on Higher Education of TK, which ensures that unaccredited higher education institutions cannot issue diplomas, and initiated the formation of the Higher Education Inspection of TK, which oversees the legality of the work of higher education institutions
- Initiated and formed the Health Council of the City of Tuzla.
- Spoke at a large rally against the construction of lithium mines in Loznica and Majevica, after which Nedim Music was banned from entering Serbia
- Together with other organizations, they founded the Forest Alliance.
- They saved the Konjuh mountain and ensured the survival of one of the last preserved ecosystems in the region of Northeastern Bosnia, which was threatened by forest cutting
- We have managed to establish control of shipping documents in the Konjuh Protected Landscape area for the first time in 14 years and initiated the installation of video surveillance and ramps through which trucks exporting wood from Konjuh will be controlled.
- They are the first organization based in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to organize a peaceful gathering in Republika Srpska together with activists from Vlasenica. The gathering, which demanded a ban on the construction of a factory for chemical-thermal processing of plastics, attracted over 800 people.
Can a revolution be led by cardboard?
Because of their involvement, Adi and Nedim have ended up on the “black lists” of many. From local powerful people who cut down our forests without control, or build apartments and holiday homes in protected areas against the law, to illegally appointed directors or statesmen, such as Aleksandar Vučić, who issue permits for lithium mines. They have also earned several criminal charges, Nedim has even been banned from entering Serbia. However, nothing can stop these brave guys from continuing their mission of pointing out social anomalies and correcting them. We spoke with Adi Selman for the portal Snaga lokalno, immediately after the tender for the procurement of a linear accelerator at UKC Tuzla was finally successfully implemented.
How does it feel when your hard work finally bears fruit, such as the acquisition of a linear accelerator?
We feel that everything we do makes sense, but what we like best is when they manage to take specific actions that will send a message to people that it is possible. That the story that nothing can be changed is just a made-up story. If we focus our energy, knowledge, potential and pressure all together, things can change. If we have now managed to secure the purchase of a linear accelerator, to have that tender announced according to the law, if we have previously managed to change the law and protect Mount Konjuh, that is proof that other, much bigger things can change, and that is exactly what is most important after such actions.
Can a revolution be led by cardboard and change things with cardboard?
It is a complex question. Fires can be “put out”, changes can be initiated and, most importantly, people’s consciousness can be changed. And when after several victories like this one for the linear accelerator, we change people’s consciousness, when we prove that changes are possible, then the real revolution can follow. Because it is precisely these small victories that keep the flame burning that should at some point flare up, of course in a democratic and peaceful way, in that true revolution that will actually make this system, which is not good, be replaced by another system, other people who will work in the interest of all of us .
How did the Cardboard Revolution come about?
After the last local elections in 2020, we sat down with our community and said: “OK, we want to stay in BiH, how can we contribute to what surrounds us”? Because we simply saw that no political party, nor anyone else, was doing what we thought and was not creating the state we wanted. Then we decided that we would take a piece of paper and start pointing out the problems. That’s how it all started. We never planned to become a formal association, each subsequent step was born out of necessity. When we saw that we were becoming the voice of the people, we organized our work more and more and after a while a formal association was created, which today has 1300 members from all parts of the country. In essence, we are developing our activities, but our ultimate goal is that we do not exist. We will not exist the moment society functions and when people do not need the voice of someone who is not an institution, but can exercise all their rights within institutions.
You constantly call people to action on social media. Are you satisfied with the response?
We are pleased that a large number of people share our opinion. The biggest challenge is how to properly organize our struggle. We believe that it is not necessary to hold gatherings, and if necessary, we will certainly go in that direction.
Your activism has become recognizable, do you find problems or do these problems find you?
These problems in most cases find us. We can’t manage to answer every problem we see, every problem that should be solved. In essence, we work with three concepts: we deal with problems that are delegated by the people, then problems that we consider to be extremely important, and the third concept, which is especially dear to our hearts, is the fight against imaginary national divisions, against fascism. We believe that we create exceptional results, because we are one of the few organizations that is deeply accepted in all parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regardless of all imaginary borders.
How do you react to lawsuits, attacks, and being blacklisted by many, even Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić?
We are proud of that, because we believe that it is proof that we are on the right track. Because when, say, from the President of Serbia to some lower levels of government, someone considers you a relevant factor, and you are not politicians, ministers, or anyone else with an official function, it means that your opinion and actions are valid. On the other hand, in the case when we are opponents of someone who is corrupt, who is promoting nationalism and the like, it is proof to us that we are on the right track, and we honestly no longer perceive pressure as pressure. We have learned to live with it, it is a kind of signpost for us. It would not be right for such people to love us, not to stand in our way, so we have become used to it and are proud of it.
It is not easy to make changes in BiH, what motivates you to move forward?
Just today we came from Tuzla to Sarajevo and we passed through the central street and several people stopped to greet us, to congratulate us. This happens in other places as well. That is our greatest reward. When you know that many people on the street share your opinion and you finally know that you are living this life with a purpose. And the purpose is to fight for justice, to fight for morality, for something worthwhile.
Is there anything that disappoints you?
We get disappointed when we work with our institutions. At any moment we come across a “prone foot”. After each progress, we are met with traps in order to return to the beginning. The same when we see the absence of empathy, say when we talk about health problems. How far can crime and corruption go, that even human lives don’t matter. However, it disappoints us the most when we find ourselves in a situation where our hands are tied, such as the case of Lake Prokoško. There are 300 illegal buildings there, the lake is being destroyed and everyone knows it, and the police arrest us. This disappoints us, but it also makes us rebel even more.
There are many “actions” behind you, which one are you most proud of?
There are many, but our first “victory”, when we were young, inexperienced, completely green, so to speak, was stopping corruption in the Tuzla Health Center, when a mammogram was acquired and when women could receive treatment again. We did not change the world, but we believe that with that small step we directly saved many lives. We are proud even now that we will obviously preserve the Konjuh mountain, which supplies water to all of us and literally enable the physical survival of the Tuzla region in the coming years.
What are the plans of the Cardboard Revolution?
We want to definitively put an end to the forestry mafia. When it comes to forest protection in the Konjuh Protected Landscape, changes to the law, the installation of ramps and video surveillance are in the final stages, and we want it to finally be completed.
We will seek criminal prosecution of the people who illegally announced the previous three tenders for the procurement of a linear accelerator at the Tuzla University Clinical Center. Since last year, we have had a lawsuit against the management of the Tuzla Health Center for the illegal appointment of a director. We will persist in this, because such examples of arrests, which we hope will follow, will be an example to anyone who thinks of engaging in corruption in any other segment. We will also continue the fight against the opening of a lithium mine on Majevica, on the border of Tuzla and Lopar. We are also actively dealing with the problem of illegal construction on Lake Prokoško, which is destroying the lake itself. And these are some six or seven problems that we are directly dealing with, but also a whole series of others in which we provide support to citizens and we will continue to work on it.
Of course, there is also our fight against fabricated nationalism, which we believe is extremely important, because in essence, nationalism serves to cover up the corruption and crime that occurs in our country.
We will certainly continue to expand our membership in the coming period and work on how to best direct the potential of these people for the benefit of society, that is, to ignite this flame of struggle that is currently burning in a positive way.
After 4 years of work and experience, what is the power of that voice of small people in our society, can it change our reality?
Politics, and when I say politics, I mean the corrupt system, has invented two things. The first thing is that nothing can be changed and the second thing is that politics is not for ordinary people. That was invented precisely so that ordinary people would not believe that they can achieve change. So that ordinary people would not enter the system to change it directly. We do not believe in that thesis. We believe that this system is hollow and we show with concrete examples that this system can be defeated. So that our message is: “People, we all pay taxes, we all participate in this country, let’s go fight for our rights. When we all fight for our rights in the right way, then victories are possible.”
Does this mean that this country and its youth have a future?
It depends on us. We certainly have no future if lithium mines start being built, if young people leave here and if this system remains.
And we have a future if we decide to defeat this system. It depends on us. Whether this country will have a bright future or we will be a failed story, like Haiti, where there is no longer any system, is up to us. How much we get stuck, how much we want to change some things, our future will depend on it. It is only in our hands.
Written by: Vedada Sećerbajtarević
This story was made possible through the generous support of the American people through the Local Works program of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The author and the Peacebuilding Network are solely responsible for the content of this story. The views expressed in this story do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.
