About Vojvodjanka

Vojvodjanka - Regional Women's Initiative is a non-profit association of citizens advocating the observation of basic democratic values and human rights. Through its activities, it promotes civil society where women and men of all generations and ethnicity equally take part in the public and political life, and develop new models of co-operation and networks among government institutions, civil organisations, media, and individuals.

From 2000 to 2010, the organisation realised 19 individual projects, as the partner, it participated in the realisation of 15 projects, it is the publisher of 13 publications, and the producer of 6 short documentaries. Up to date, the organisation has realised its activities in Novi Sad, in Vojvodina and Serbia, and the surrounding countries (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro), as well as in the countries of European Union (Hungary, Romania, Germany, Slovakia, Italy).

Short documentary VIVISECT, whose author is Marija Gajicki, produced by "Vojvodjanka – Regionalna ženska inicijativa", won award for thee best short film (award Gandhi Up for the best short film) at the first international Film Festival on Human Rights, held in Barcelona (Spain), from 22 October to 3 November 2003.

At 7th competition for the best graphic design in Serbia, Republic of Srpska, and Montenegro in 2006 and 2007, Jovan Trkulja, author of design of publication Speech of Hatred and Nationalism – Causes and Effects (in Serbian, Hungarian, and Albanian, January 2007), was given award for design in category "Book and other publications". The book was published thanks to financial support of Embassy of the USA, Office for Public Affairs in Belgrade.

In 2009, "Vojvodjanka" got the annual Award in the area of gender equality in 2008. The annual award granted by Provincial Secretariat for Labour, Employment, and Gender Equality was granted to "Vojvodjanka" due to the exceptional organisation’s activities in 2008, but also during eight years of its existence, as well as because of its original route of struggling for the human rights and enthusiasm spreading the human rights idea.

Since 2004, the organisation has got a direct co-operation with the Provincial Ombudsman, and the support of the Provincial Government of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina.

Since 2005, there has been the co-operation with the Art Academy in Novi Sad, which has been expanded every year – first it was with the Design Department followed by the New Media and Photography Department.

In 2008, the organisation also set up the co-operation with the Ministry for Human and Minority Rights of the Republic of Serbia through the organisation of the photograph exhibition dedicated to the marking of 60 years of the adoption of the Universal Human Rights Declaration.

In its previous, activity, “Vojvodjanka” has realised the projects specifically dealing with the following topics:

- Promotion of higher participation of women within the public and political life in Serbia and setting up the network among the women active at political parties, non-governmental organisations, trade unions, and media. A special part of the activities in the first stage of the organisation activity was related to the participation in women’s pre-electoral campaigns in Serbia in 2000 and 2001.

- Setting up new forms of the cross-border co-operation among Hungary, Romania, and Vojvodina/Serbia, with the aim of including the dimension of women’s politics and gender equality within the Euro-regional co-operation in the DKMT region (Danube-Tisa-Kris-Moris).

- Activities in the campaign for visa abolition and visa regimes liberalisation, within which the action "For the Future without any Borders" was realised (21 June 2001) at the state border between Serbia and Croatia, on the bridge on the Danube.

- Setting up new activity methods within the processes of dealing with the wars in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, and starting the public discussion on the responsibility for the events from the recent past.

In September 2002, "Vojvodjanka" organised the exhibition of the war photographs by Ron Haviv "Blood and Honey" in Novi Sad which arose great media attention and controversial reactions of the exhibition visitors. The exhibition was seen by over 5,000 people, and the material collected during the exhibition was edited as a short documentary, while the comments written by the exhibition visitors on the papers next to the photographs were published in the book of documents. The book and the film are the testimony of the social and political situation in Serbia, after the fall of Slobodan Milošević’s regime and the reasons why the process of dealing with the wars and crimes that occurred in the territory of the former Yugoslavia is hampered.

The VIVISECT film was screened at 12 international festivals (2003–2008), including the award for the best short film at Film Festival on Human Rights in Barcelona (2003), as well as the world premiere of the film at Film Festival on Human Rights in New York (2003), and screening at Film Festival in Geneva (2004). The VIVISECT film and book are included in more than 20 libraries of universities, human rights organisations, and festivals on human rights throughout the world.

- Promotion of the observation of human rights through the organisation of Festival on Human Rights – VIVISECTfest in Novi Sad and the travelling festivals in the countries of Western Balkans and European Union.

The fifth editions of the VIVISECTfest were realised, dedicated to the topics of:

- War in the Former Yugoslavia: View from Inside and Outside (2004/2006);

- My Enemies: Nationalism and Xenophobia (2006/2007);

- Terrorism: No Thanks (2008);

- Totalitarian Regimes – View from Inside and Outside (2008/2009);

- People from Margine - Welcome to the Real World (2010).

In the period from 2005 to 2010, the organiser of the VIVISECTfest set up the network of the travelling festivals in 26 towns (in Serbia: Belgrade, Kikinda, Indjija, Novi Pazar, Novi Bečej, Bačka Palanka, Sombor, Ruma, Stara Pazova, Kula, Niš, Leskovac, Subotica, Sečanj, Sremski Karlovci, Vrbas, Vajska, Zajecar, Vranje; in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Mostar, Sarajevo, Tuzla, Banja Luka; in Macedonia – Skopje; in Montenegro – Podgorica, and in Germany – Berlin).

During the five years of the existence of the Festival on Human Rights –VIVISECTfest, the programmes organised in 26 towns were seen by around 50,000 people, among whom, the majority of the visitors were between 16 and 25 years of age.

 

Organisation was a partner in the implementation of the following 15 projects:

Go Out And Be Active – women's election campaign in Serbia (2000)

Campaign for the amendment of the Law on the Yugoslav Army – to shorten the military service and include the ‘conscientious objection’ (2000)

Organizing of the seminars for women "Women Can Do That, 1 & 2" (2001/2002)

Let Us Make Women's Potentials in Novi Sad Visible (2002)

Campaign against human trafficking – "Open Your Eyes" (2002)

Campaign of women's NGOs "Financially Equal" (2002

Campaign for abolishing visas and liberalization of visa regimes (2002)

Women's City Rhythm (2004)

Balkan Women for Peace (2004)

From Remembering the Past toward Positive Future (2003/2004)

The ICTY in The Hague – A Road to Facing the Past (2004)

Human Rights in Film Festival – Over the Walls (Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2005)

Regional conference "Gender Aspects of the New Enlargement of the EU – the role of progressive parties in co-operation with CEE Network for Gender Issues (February 2006).

KRAF - Kragujevac Review of Anti-war Films (October 2007)

Travelling Peace Film Festival in Bosnia and Herzegovina - Goražde, Višegrad, Zvornik (April 2008).

 

 

Vojvodjanka – Regional Women's Initiative is a member of the following networks:

Network of women's NGOs in Serbia "Women's Movement – Women's Network";

Regional network of the SP GTF (since 2000);

Network of NGOs and municipalities of the Citizen's Pact for SEE;

Network of women's NGOs who have common activities in Novi Sad (since 2002);

Initiative for the reconstruction of culture and society called DIZALICA (CRANE) - active in Novi Sad since 2004.

Vojvodjanka – Regional Women's Initiative published 11 publications:

Facts 2000 (analysis of gender representation ratio after the 2000 elections in Serbia - published in Serbian, 2001)

Let's Work Together in Politics (publication about the first cross-border co-operation among women from Romania and Vojvodina – published in Serbian, English and Romanian, 2001)

Together toward Solution (analysis of women's businesses in Serbia – published in Serbian and English, 2002)

A manual for the Instructors in the Program Women Can Do That 2 (published in Serbian, 2002)

A Book of Documents Vivisect (documents about the exhibition by Ron Haviv in Novi Sad – first edition in Serbian and English, 2003)

A Manual on Euro-Regional Women's Political Co-operation – It's Time for Co-operation (published in Serbian, Hungarian, Romanian and English, 2003)

A Book of Documents Vivisect (second edition in Serbian and English, 2004)

The Catalogue of the first edition of the festival on Human Rights – VIVISECTfest on the topic War in the Former Yugoslavia – View from Inside and Outside (in Serbian and English, 2005)

The Catalogue of the Traveling Festival on Human Rights – VIVISECTfest on the topic War in the Former Yugoslavia – View from Inside and Outside (in Serbian and English, 2006)

Publication The Language of Hatred and Nationalism – Causes and Consequences (in Serbian, Hungarian and Albanian, January 2007)

The Catalogue of the second edition of the Festival on Human Rights – VIVISECTfest with the topic My Enemies: Nationalism and Xenophobia (in Serbian and English, 2007)

 

Vojvodjanka – Regional Women's Initiative produced 6 short documentary films:

Equally 1 and Equally 2 (2000)

Let's Work Together in Politics (2001)

When Someone has Good Hopes (2002)

VIVISECT (2003)

It's Time for Co-operation (2003)