From the Field: Bosnia

Taking Care of Business

By Kevin C. O'Brien

Adopt-A-Minefield

Marketing Manager

"It means for me the opportunity to be comfortable," said Ljubomir Džebo of his. loan from STOP-Mines.

Upon arriving at the home of Ljubomir Džebo – just outside of Sarajevo – our host was apprehensive about talking to Americans, and he did not initially want his picture taken.

Truth be known, if not for our photographer we would likely have made a quick departure from Mr. Džebo’s home. But with a little reassurance from Andris, we all ended up at a nearby café sharing intimate details of Mr. Džebo’s life over coffee.

The 32-year-old Džebo lost his leg below the knee in 1992 – when he was only 16. As he leaned to pick an apple from the ground, Džebo explained, he stepped upon a PMA3 pressure activated antipersonnel mine.

He was taken first to a local military hospital, but later ended up at a hospital in Belgrade, Serbia – where he spent a year in rehabilitation and being fitted for a prosthetic.

Džebo stayed on in Belgrade after his release from the hospital until 1999. Asked why he ultimately returned to Sarajevo, Džebo laughs, “The NATO campaign in Belgrade made me come back,” he said through STOP Mines director Radosav Živković, or Žika.

Back in Sarajevo, Džebo moved in with his family and did not work for the first year of his return. When he did work again, he took a bookkeeping job at a small company, and also sold spare auto parts on the side.

He later took a job selling funeral equipment in place of selling auto parts. The job required heavy lifting, however, which was very hard on his prosthetic. Džebo also had no bookkeeping certification, and since he couldn’t continue the heavy lifting – he ended up leaving both jobs, and was again unemployed for a year.

During that year, Džebo lived on a 104 KM ($84.22 US) monthly stipend he got as a civil war victim. After a year, however, his cousin recommended him to a Slovenian company where he took a job putting rubber seal around windows in people’s homes. This is a valuable trade in Bosnia, where the often self-built homes are known to have open gaps between the windows and walls.

After learning the trade from his employers – Džebo arranged a deal, where he imports material from them – but runs the local business. “It was too expensive from Slovenia to run a company here,” Džebo explained.

Džebo first came in contact with STOP Mines as a recipient of a secondhand computer for his business. He also knew about the loan program for at least two years, but did not feel ready to ask for a loan.

“I was not sure I was ready to pay the money back,” he explained.

Another recipient of a STOP Mines loan reminded Džebo that he could import more materials for less if he had the money to order a large shipment all at once. That’s when he decided to apply for the loan.

 

Džebo used the full 5,000 KM to buy material for his business. If he is lucky, and stays employed full-time, he said, it will take two-months to use all of the material.

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Click for more pictures.

Photos ©AAM by Andris Bjornson

This is a word-of-mouth business and Džebo says that business is very good. Still, he does not see a future for himself in this work either. Climbing ladders to reach windows is also hard on his prosthetic leg, Džebo said.

 

He hopes to one day rent out space in his home to a bakery; and then to find work with them, he said.

“I am thankful for the opportunity to get this loan,” Džebo said. “I never got anything for nothing…”

“And this is not for nothing,” Žika interjected.

“It means for me, the opportunity to be comfortable,” Džebo concluded.