dDH: About Tilburg ZaMir

Last update: Aug 5 '96

Tilburg ZaMir
Archive / Archief

Thinking and acting in the former Yugoslavia

`Tilburg ZaMir' is the local equivalent of "Tilburg for Peace".

The objective of Tilburg ZaMir is to give material, financial and moral support to independent peace-, women's- and human rights groups and media in the former Yugoslavia. All its activities are directly connected with this objective.
Since 1992 Tilburg ZaMir has built up excellent contacts with various non governmental organisations (NGO) aiming at lasting peace and democratic development in the former Yugoslavia. Initially the focus was on activities in Croatia, Vojvodina, Kosovo/a and Serbia. More recently assistance to the development of Bosnia's civil society has emerged high up on Tilburg ZaMir's agenda.

Peace is more than the absence of war

The continuous thread connecting the activities of these anti-war and human rights groups is their great effort for a humanitarian society where democracy and tolerance are put first and foremost, where there is no place for racial hatred, nationalism, rape and force of arms.
We do not leave these groups out in the cold. We give them concrete material and financial support. In addition support from abroad is also experienced as a sign of international solidarity and as an important moral help in the struggle for peace and a free pluriform society.
Tilburg ZaMir functions as an intermediary between NGOs in the former Yugoslavia and similar international NGOs. Tilburg ZaMir also advises and supports in terms of fundraising. Occasionally Tilburg ZaMir invites representatives of the aforementioned NGOs for working visits in the Netherlands. One of the goals is to offer them the possibility to contact Dutch partners, organisations and media.

What do these groups do in the former Yugoslavia?

There is much diversity of action, such as:

Demonstrations, petitions, manifestations, publications etcetera against the policy of their nationalistic governments;
Support of deserters and conscientious objectors;
Humanitarian assistance in refugee camps;
Support of victims of sexual violence;
Physical and social reconstruction of villages ruined by violence. In the Central Bosnian village of Gornji Vakuf, divided by the previous frontline into a Croat and a Bosniac part, international volunteers work at the rebuilding of homes and civil society together with the UN;
Application of methods for nonviolent conflict resolution;
Extension of the ZaMir Transnational Network, a computer commu- nication network that enables cheap and good communication between organisations within and outside of the former Yugoslavia;
Publication of independent magazines and extension of the network of independent radio and television stations that promote the development of a democratic and pluriform society;
SOS-phonelines to report women's rights violations and human rights violations in general;
Rendering legal aid in cases of persecution and discrimination;
Reporting on war crimes and human rights violations, for instance on behalf of the International War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague;

Transports and working visits

>From Tilburg transports of office appliances, paper, computer- and communication apparatus, printers, xerox machines, humanitarian aid such as medicine and money have taken place. The transports have been combined with working visits in order to keep up with the actual situation and with the needs of the NGOs. Tilburg ZaMir also functions as an intermediary and transporter for other organisations in the Netherlands concerned with the former Yugoslavia. Occasionally reporters of Dutch media participate in a working visit.

Cooperation

Tilburg ZaMir is strongly orientated towards cooperation with organisations on local, national and European level.
Within Tilburg there is close cooperation with other groups gathered in the campaign `Tilburg helps the former Yugoslavia'.
In the Netherlands Tilburg ZaMir has contacts and cooperation with groups such as Pax Christi, Press Now, Amnesty International, Stop the Arms Race and Fatima Maria, and besides that with a manifold of small local initiatives.
Tilburg ZaMir, Press Now and Pax Christi have combined their efforts to publish the quarterly `Now Future', a magazine reporting on civil society and its independent media and NGOs in the former Yugoslavia.
Within the region of the former Yugoslavia a focal point of Tilburg ZaMir's activities momentarily is the cooperation with the UN supervised project in Gornji Vakuf for the social and physical reconstruction of this divided Croat-Bosniac community. Tilburg ZaMir contributes to the extension of the ZaMir Transnational Network, the well-known electronic mail communication system so much used within the world of NGOs in this area. In addition Tilburg ZaMir is a support organisation of the Balkan Peace Team branches in Croatia and Serbia.