SCOOP - investigative reporting in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus
Investigative reporters are the watchdogs of society. In Eastern and south-eastern Europe investigative reporters get support from SCOOP, a network and support structure established by IMS in cooperation with local journalists and FUJ in 2003. Direct support in the form of coaching and financial support enable the journalists to carry out in-depth investigations and bring the results forward to the public. SCOOP extends to numerous countries in the region thereby connecting investigative journalists in the region as well as globally.Archive
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Lost - and found by investigative journalist
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SCOOP-supported documentary film from Bosnia Herzegovina nominated in the competition programme for best documentary film at the 14th Sarajevo Film Festival in August
In 1992, 45 children from the "Ljubica Ivezic" orphanage left the city of Sarajevo. The Balkan war was tormenting the region. Sarajevo was besieged, and this fuelled the idea to remove the children from the war zone.
In agreement with the government of Italy, the children were taken to Italy to stay until the war was over, after which they were to return to their homes.
Fifteen years later, five of the children - now adults - tell their story in the documentary film "If you are watching this, Mum". The film was produced by Dario Novalic who is a journalist and owner of the magazine START in Bosnia and Herzegovina with financial support from SCOOP, the network for investigative journalists in Eastern and Southeastern Europe.
A mystery
The film attracted considerable attention when it was presented in a screening at the 14th Sarajevo Film Festival in August in the competition programme for the best documentary film.
In the years after the war, the fate of the children remained a mystery. This sparked numerous rumours and media stories ranging from allegations that the children had been sold to rich families in Milan and the US for prostitution - or that they had become victims of illegal trade with human organs.
Searching for the facts
When the idea for the documentary was initially presented to SCOOP, Dario Novalic teamed up with an experienced cameraman, Mustafa Mustafic and applied for funding for a documentary film production. To support his application, Dario carried the first initial results of his research. This showed that fairly easily had he been able to trace some of the allegedly lost children in Italy.
With the documented talent and persistence to uncover the truth, SCOOP agreed to support the project and helped raise funds from other sources that counted, among others, the Ministry of Culture in the Canton of Sarajevo.
Happy ending
Thanks to this well-documented piece of investigative reporting, "If you are watching this, Mum" puts an end to the endless line of untrue and unfounded stories about "The lost kids of Sarajevo".
Furthermore, the documentary film tells the happy tale of a group of children who - despite feeling a sense of nostalgia towards their roots - say they have found happiness in Italy. Attending the world premiere at the festival together with their wives and children, two of the persons portrayed in the film, received massive applause from the audience - as they are the living evidence of the truth behind the real story about the Lost Kids of Sarajevo.
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