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The Advocacy Project seeks to help community-based advocates produce, disseminate and use information, and so become more effective advocates for human rights and social justice

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Landmine Survivors Network in Bosnia Herzegovina

Created by and for survivors, Landmine Survivors Network in Bosnia Herzegovina (LSN BiH) empowers individuals, families and communities affected by landmines to recover from trauma, reclaim their lives, and fulfill their rights.  




LSN BiH is based in Tuzla, Bosnia Herzegovina and operates in twelve regions (Tuzla, Doboj East, Doboj, Banja Luka, Bugojno, Gorazde, Sarajevo, Mostar, Trebinje, Bihac, Bijeljina and Velika Kladusa) in over 80 municipalities throughout the country. To date, LSN BiH provided assistance to over 2,200 beneficiaries. Out of 24 LSN BiH employees, 14 are landmine survivors/amputees including 12 outreach workers.

This organization links landmine survivors to healthcare and rehabilitation services, provides social and economic reintegration programs, and works to ban landmines around the world. A leader in the Nobel Prize-winning International Campaign to Ban Landmines, LSN has also emerged as a pioneer in peer support—building peer relationships that help transform victims into survivors, and ultimately, into fully participating citizens.

For more information regarding the history and background of LSN BiH, visit the LSN BiH website.




LSN BiH provides peer support services in the areas of health, economic opportunity, and social empowerment.  LSN BiH’s program is integrated and focused on the specific needs of each individual survivor in three different sectors: Health (to improve the survivors’ health-related quality of life), Economic Opportunities (to increase survivor and survivor family economic independence) and Social Empowerment (to improve survivors’ social and civic participation).

• Health Sector
  • In the health sector, LSN BiH sends outreach workers and provides peer support to survivors. This organization formed groups for the psychosocial support and education of the survivor.  LSN BiH also makes links and referrals to available service providers/resources. Survivors get direct assistance from LSN BiH such as costs for prosthetic devices, medical/rehabilitation costs, small housing adaptation assistance, etc.  Last year, LSN allocated direct assistance grants for 69 survivors in order to obtain prosthetic/orthopedic devices and improve living conditions.

• Economic Opportunity Sector
  • LSN BiH provides for the education of survivors through expert trainings in selected subjects. This organization also gives direct assistance to survivors for their self-employment. LSN BiH has made many links and referrals to employers and available service providers. In the economic opportunity sector, LSN BiH has provided direct assistance for more than 500 survivors so far.
  • To reintegrate into their communities, limb loss survivors need meaningful activity in their lives, including skills development, vocational training and employment. LSN assists survivors in gaining equal access to economic opportunities. In 2007, this organization established 4 groups for economic integration, which empowered 34 survivors/ amputees.  During this year, LSN BiH trained 14 survivors in small business planning/ start ups and agriculture (greenhouse vegetable production). In addition LSN BiH’s direct assistance contributed to the development of 56 small businesses in 2007.

• Social Empowerment Sector
  • LSN BiH is active in advocacy education, training programs, and capacity building of partner organizations of persons with disabilities from BiH and the South East European region.
  • Over 200 survivors participated in LSN BiH ‘s social, cultural, educational, sport events (Survivor Art Exhibition, Sitting Volleyball Memorial Tournament, Art Colony, 3rd December celebrations, various trainings). LSN BiH also supports work in the region that will expand the LSN model in the South East Europe region.  Moreover, this organization actively participates in the implementation of the BiH Substrategy for mine victims assistance. LSN BIH also conducts advocacy initiatives for the signing, ratification and implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
  • In September 2007, LSN joined other members of the Cluster Munitions Coalition (CMC) at a conference in San Jose, Costa Rica to support the growing international movement to ban cluster bombs in 2008. LSN BiH recognized the need for BiH to join this process as a country directly affected by these indiscriminate weapons of war. Along with Norwegian People's Aid (NPA), LSN BiH requested the BiH Government to introduce a moratorium on cluster munitions. A coalition to campaign to ban Cluster Munitions in BiH was formed and it included NPA, ICRC, Handicap International, BiH Red Cross and LSN BiH. The coalition, with the support of other 77 NGOs in BiH, conducted a wide range of activities to raise public awareness of these issues, including signing the petition to ban Cluster Munitions on the Global Action Day, November 5, 2007, in Sarajevo.
  • This organization actively participates in the implementation of the BiH Substrategy for mine victims assistance. LSN BIH also conducts advocacy initiatives for the signing, ratification and implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on a local, national, regional and international level.
  • Last year, LSN BiH established 3 groups for social integration which empowered 23 survivors/ amputees. Furthermore, there were 5 groups established for advocacy / the rights of persons with disabilities whereby 57 survivors/amputees participated. These groups focused on survivors’ education and capacity building.

In all 3 sectors, LSN collectively made 5621 home visits to survivors and other amputees, in addition to 235 hospital visits. Furthermore, 710 survivors received various peer support services from LSN BiH and 241 new survivors / amputees entered into the programme.  Recently, staff members at LSN BiH have volunteered to give one percent of their monthly salaries back to LSN as a donation.

• Press Releases

LSN Bosnia Staff Give Back
February 2008

• Survivor Stories

• Blogs

In 2008, AP sent Peace Fellow Antigona Kukaj to assist LSN BiH with the production and dissemination of their information. Read Antigona’s blog.

April 1, 2008
Prime Minister Spiric Hosted Representatives of the Coalition for the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities
Radio Slobodna Evropa, posted on the Mine Action Bosnia website.

November 12, 2007
"In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the scars of the 1992-95 war are part of the landscape..."
Canadian News Blog

August 26, 2001
Landmine Victims Highlight Plight With Volleyball Tournament in Balkans
Stars and Stripes

5.3 Percent of the BiH Territory Mine Contaminated
Radio Slobodna Evropa, posted on the Mine Action Bosnia website


Contact:
Director: Plamenko Priganica
Becarevac 1, 75000 Tuzla
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Tel: +387 35 251 400
        +387 35 277 688
Fax: + 387 35 251 401
E-mail LSN BiH!

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