We are the XXL Creative Youth Group from Belgrade. Our work is focused on the peace process in ex-Yugoslavia, work with children, and human rights. We tend to spread "creative emancipation" - meaning we try to emancipate through creative work, such as workshops - to all the youth we come in contact with. The XXL is non-profit NGO (NonGovernment Organisation). Our members are mostly 16 to 25 years old, high school or university students. There is no age limit though. There are 20 of us.
The ending of the wars in former Yugoslavia has brought up many unresolved questions. People were split, communication was jeopardised, phone lines were down. Even thoughthese wara are officially finished, the consequences remain. New waves of aggression and discrimination still influence us. .
The awareness about the complexity of this problem has resulted in the formation of a number of local NGO's, that have focused their activities to different aspects of the situation: fighting against ethnic, religious and other forms of discrimination. Foreign help in empowering these NGO's is significant.
The cooperation between the Yugoslav NGO's and foreign foundations has strengthened, and gradually, work on the local level has started to achieve significant results. However, the problem has not been solved. The influence of mass media and the disrespect for basic human rights make hate, xenophobia, and intolerance in former Yugoslavia still very much present.
The choice of individuals who will be the ones to start the reconciliation is difficult, as the situation is delicate.
We believe that young people are capable of practically engaging in achieving tolerance, pluralism, and values of a democratic society. Students are ready to accept opinions, beliefs, customs, and behaviour different from their own but also easily impressed by violence. Because of this, it is of primary importance that the young learn the peaceful way of solving conflicts. Also, the young are capable of successfully transmitting their knowledge to others. And last but not least, work with young people gives fast and effective results which helps keep our own motivation high.
The youth of today will rule the country tomorrow. The experiences they have now will in great part determine the manner in which they will do this. If students could be brought to learning nonviolent behavior as the integral form of their being, the Balkans may be on their way to overcoming conflicts.
Previous projects:
* Work with children in refugee camps
We started with psycho-social work with children in April 1995. We were then called The Grassrooting Group (GG). In cooperation with the British humanitarian organization Oxfam (as a part of their Recreation and Rehabilitation Projects), our group has held creative workshops in seven collective refugee camps in Serbia. The goal was increasing the awareness of children about basic human rights and helping them adapt to their new environment.
* Involvement in three Intercultural Peace Summer Camps against racism, nationalism and discrimination
HCa Projects from Wageningen, Centrum Kontakt der Kontinenten from Soesterburg and the Peace Bridge (Basel and Mohacs offices) have been making Intercultural Summer Camps since 1993. Students came from all over Europe. The main aim was the overcoming of nationalism, and it was achieved through various workshops. At first, we were just participants, but in time some of us became workshop leaders (the workshops: Games, Masks, Folkdances and Music) and helped with the organization in the camps.
* Participation in various workshops about nonviolent communication and conflict resolution, as well as participation in debates
Since 1992, all of our group members have participated in many different workshops covering these topics. Some of us have held these workshops later on. Most of these seminars were held in the Center for Antiwar Action in Belgrade.
* Organization of Eppur Si Muove Camps
In February and August 1997, we organized our own Camps, just for people from the former republic of SFRY. The co-organizers in this project were Action Youth Group from Osijek (Croatia), PostPessimists from Tuzla (Bosnia and Herzegovina),Youth Peace Group Danube from Vukovar (Croatia), and Youth Peace Group "Baranja" from Darda (Croatia), as well as the Italian peace group Admira e Bosko and the Municipality of Verbania (Italy).
* Participation and coordination of the Yugoslav group on the conference "Neighbors" in Wageningen
This conference was held in May 1997, and dealt with conflicts between neighboring states (Germany-The Netherlands, FR Yugoslavia-Croatia), as well as student organizations (since it was held shortly after the Students' Protest in Belgrade). The organizers were hCa Projects Wageningen, and the Wageningen Student Organization.
"Education of Youth for Work With Children"
We helped to organize two of these Camps, in Backa Palanka (Serbia), in July 1996, and 1997.
* Participation in the "Camp about Bosnia"
This Camp was organized by the PostPessimists (a group with which we often cooperate), and sponsored by the Norwegian People's Aid. This was another youth peace Camp, with nonviolent communication and creative workshops as the basis of the work.
* Participation in the Camp "Balkanski susreti"
(Balkan meetings) This was one of the PostPessimist Camps we were invited to.
* Peace Week in Osijek (Croatia)
We were invited as participants on this conference, in July 1997.
* Organization of cultural events
In September 1997 we organized an all-day theater for the Peace Festival in Vukovar. Together with the PostPessimists, we acted in a play. There was also a play performed by the group "Schmrtz Teatar" from Zagreb, as well as a joint play of the Zagreb and Belgrade group. On November 9th (the day against fascism and antisemitism) we had two plays ("Zhyts" and "Atlantida") in the Center for Cultural Decontamination, Belgrade.
* Participation in the "Confidence Building Measures" conference
This conference took place in Klagenfurt, November 12. to 15. 1997. It was an evaluation conference about projects done on the topic of minority rights in Europe in 1997, sponsored by the European Union.
* Participating in the 11th Peace School
This Camp was held in Sarajevo 10.-17.01.1998. It was about expressing human rights through sound and motion.
* Organization of the 12th Peace School (26.02. - 05.03.1998.)
This project was a creative, peace, intercultural, nonviolent communication youth Camp. The topic was "The First Generation of Human Rights as Shown by Media". Participants came from all of the countries of the former republic of SFRYugoslavia, plus Italy. Through nonviolent communication and creative workshops, we learned about the first generation of human rights (basic human rights, from the UN Declaration in 1948).
* Initiating the foundation of the Antiwar Campaign in Belgrade
We are one of the initiators and members of the ad-hoc NGO Antiwar Campaign, dealing with problems in Kosovo. This group is working mostly on antiwar radio shows, flyers and posters, and also on making contact with Albanian as well as Serbian NGO's in Kosovo. The group has members all over Serbia.
* Organisation of the 14th Peace School (28.12.1998 - 04.01.1999.)
This Peace School obeys the same principles as the 12th. The topic this time was - political rights. We focused on freedom of expression, civil service, civil disobedience, the right to privacy and other rights.
Projects planned for the next year:
* "Argonaut" project
The purpose of this whole year project is eestablishing the medium of communication based upon the Internet between youth of Serbian, Albanian and Montenegrin ethnicity. The projects includes: a web site with project data, modes of using the system, general premises, as well as up-to-date information, links to related subjects (presentations of NGOs, free and alternative media, etc.), a bulletin board which enables offline communication of greater number of participants, round-the-clock active chat room which enables online communication of users, and periodically organized chat forums (sessions) with already given topics. We also plan local gatherings of participants in the project for personal contact, as well as regular gatherings of all participants in camps where they will have the opportunity for direct contact and exchange of experiences in order to raise mutual confidence.
* "I exist" project
This project is a campaign about the right to vote. It emphasises that everyone in the society is as important as anyone else, that everybody counts. Through motivation, education, and direct co-operation with people ages 18-30 living in Serbia, we hope to teach young people in our country that voting is actually a way of influencing your society, even though they haven't had a chance to see that for themselves yet. The activities will be very different, ranging from direct contact with students, polls, radio shows and jingles, press conferences, through workshops, monitoring, flyers, posters, to transportation to their voting stations on elections day. It will also be emphasised that NOT voting is also a choice we have a right to - but a choice nonetheless.
* Workshops for workshop leaders
A series of workshops for young NGO members about workshop leading will be organised.
* Organisation of a Camp about political history
In April 2000, a Camp with this topic will be organised in Lepenski Vir. It will deal with different European past situations, from BC to today. The purpose of analysing these events is to show that the problems the Balkans has are not very different from many others, and, more important, that there are ways of overcoming them. Various follow-up activities will be organised when concluding the ways of overcoming our present situation.
* Organization of a Camp about genders and Human Rights
The main purpose of this Camp is emphasizing that individuals of different genders and sexual choice have equal rights. The Camp will deals with these topics: sexuality, prejudices, flirting and genders through history and in the future. Special attention will be given to respecting the rights of homosexuals and bisexuals. It will be held in Herceg Novi, Montenegro, in the spring of Y2K. Participants will be adolescents from all the republics of ex Yu.
* Keeping in contact with similar groups
We are invited to all these conferences and Camps by our contacts (who come from all over Europe). At the moment it is impossible to know how many projects we will be invited to participate in during the next semester, but we are planning at least to keep up with the same pace as in the previous years.
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XXL Creative Youth Group
Jevremova 23
11 000 Beograd
Jugoslavija
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+ 381 11 621 348
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mailto: XXL Creative Youth Group
