Edvin Kanka Ćudić
Edvin Kanka Ćudić, born on December 31, 1988, in Brčko, Bosnia and Herzegovina, is a prominent journalist and human rights activist. His early life was marked by the tragic loss of his father during the Bosnian War, a pivotal event that shaped his later work. Educated in journalism at the University of Sarajevo, Ćudić began his career writing for various regional media outlets, focusing on war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He is the founder and coordinator of the NGO UDIK, which seeks to promote the rule of law and address the legacy of human rights violations in post-Yugoslav societies. Through UDIK, he has worked on documenting war crimes, memorializing victims, and advocating for justice. His activism has made him a notable figure, but it has also attracted criticism and threats, including physical attacks during commemorative events.
Ćudić's significant contributions to raising awareness about atrocities in the region have earned him numerous accolades. He has authored two books, "That May '92" and "Not in Our Name: On the Other Side of the Serbian Regime," further establishing his commitment to human rights and historical remembrance. Today, he continues to live and work in Bosnia and Herzegovina, contributing to social change and advocacy efforts.
Subject Terms
Edvin Kanka Ćudić
Bosnian human rights activist
- Born: December 31, 1988
- Birthplace: Brčko, Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Significance: Edvin Kanka Ćudić is a Bosnian human rights activist, journalist, and political analyst. He is also the founder and leader of the Association for Social Research and Communications (UDIK), a non-governmental organization (NGO) that campaigns for human rights and reconciliation in the European nations that once comprised the Former Yugoslavia.
Background
Edvin Kanka Ćudić was born to Edhem and Senija Ćudić on December 31, 1988, in Brčko, a city that was part of Yugoslavia and is now located within Bosnia and Herzegovina. Ćudić’s father died during the Bosnian War, a conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995 and contributed to the breakup of Yugoslavia. At the time of his death, Ćudić was being held at the Batković prison camp operated by Bosnian Serb authorities. Batković is believed to have been the first Bosnian War concentration camp.
As a child, Ćudić attended an elementary school in Gračanica, Kosovo. He later studied at the School of Economics in Brčko and the University of Sarajevo. Ćudić ultimately graduated from the latter with a degree in journalism in 2011.
During his early teenage years, Ćudić became interested in martial arts. He joined the Academy of Martial Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and trained in jujitsu for eight years before earning his 1st Dan in 2017 and moving on to judo and aikido. Ćudić also served as a jujitsu instructor from 2006 to 2008 at the Academy of Martial Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s martial arts schools in Donji Žabar and Gornji Zovik.
Life’s Work
Ćudić began his professional career as a journalist, writing articles for an array of regional media outlets such as Danas, Monitor, and Oslobođenje. He also served as a reporter for various radio stations. Much of his work was focused on war crimes that had been committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
While continuing to work as a journalist, Ćudić gradually established himself as an outspoken human rights activist. He soon became a member of several NGOs that aimed to assist in Brčko’s post-conflict recovery. He joined the Women in Black, a Belgrade organization that engaged in peace-building activities. This work eventually led Ćudić to found and become the coordinator of UDIK in 2013. UDIK strives to help post-Yugoslav societies establish the rule of law and accept the region’s staggering legacy of human rights violations. It facilitates the identification and prosecution of the parties responsible for these atrocities to prevent them from occurring again in the future.
In his role with UDIK, Ćudić gathered facts, documents, and other information about war crimes, genocides, and other human rights violations that occurred in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also led UDIK’s effort to memorialize many notorious Bosnian war crimes to ensure that they would be remembered and to honor those who lost their lives. With Ćudić at the helm, UDIK actively recorded war crimes throughout Former Yugoslavia between 2013 and 2017. Further, Ćudić organized efforts to record war crimes in Zagreb and Sarajevo that were tied to the 1995 Operation Storm battle that ended the Croatian War of Independence. Ćudić also initiated the creation of the Central Register of Monuments in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the publication of war crimes verdicts in places without monuments commemorating the civilian victims of warfare. In addition, he wrote two books: That May ’92 -(2012) and Not in Our Name: On the Other Side of the Serbian Regime (2019).
Ćudić’s work with UDIK made him a well-known public figure. While he was often hailed as a hero, some criticized his efforts and views. He became a victim of verbal and even physical attacks. He first gained fame in 2014 following his time working as a protest coordinator at a series of demonstrations in Bosnia and Herzegovina during which he received more than one hundred death threats. The next year, he was attacked during a UDIK commemoration of war crimes committed in the city of Štrpci. Ćudić dealt with more such issues in the years that followed. He received additional death threats and verbal assaults in connection with his and UDIK’s involvement in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s first LGBT Pride Parade in 2019.
Impact
Ćudić’s efforts through UDIK to commemorate war crimes and honor their victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other part of Former Yugoslavia have done much to raise awareness about these atrocities and ensure that they will not be forgotten. In recognition of his important work, Ćudić has received a number of awards and honors. He was named in the biographical lexicon Who is Who in B&H as one of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most significant people in both 2014 and 2018. He was also the runner-up for the Emerging Europe Award Young Influencer of the Year in 2019. Ćudić was the subject of a poem published by Bosnian poet Adem Deniz Garić in 2012 and another published by poet Erbein Osmanović in 2022. In 2019, Bosnian-born French sculptor created a monument dedicated to civilians killed in Brčko onto which he engraved the entirety of Ćudić’s 2011 story “Maybe I Should Hate Them.”
Personal Life
Ćudić continues to live and work in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is not married.
Principal Works
That May ’92, 2012
Not in Our Name: On the Other Side of the Serbian Regime, 2019
Bibliography
“Association for Social Research and Communications (UDIK).” Anna Lindh Foundation, 2023, www.annalindhfoundation.org/members/association-social-research-and-communications-udik. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“Association for Social Research and Communications (UDIK).” Peace Insight, 2023, www.peaceinsight.org/en/organisations/udik/?location=western-balkans&theme. Accessed 5 July 2023.
Ćudić, Edvin Kanka. “Minorities Lack the Rights That Majorities Enjoy.” ForumZFD, 14 Feb. 2023, www.forumzfd.de/en/minorities-lack-rights-majorities-enjoy. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“Edvin Kanka Ćudić.” Alchetron, 22 Aug. 2022, alchetron.com/Edvin-Kanka-Cudic. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“Edvin Kanka Ćudić.” Biografija.org, 5 Aug. 2022, www.biografija.org/novinarstvo/edvin-kanka-cudic. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“Edvin Kanka Ćudić Nominated for Emerging Europe Awards 2019.” BDC TV, 20 June 2019, brcko.tv/2019/06/edvin-kanka-cudic-nominovan-za-emerging-europe-awards-2019. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“Edvin Kanka Ćudić: ‘We Need to Cross National and Religious Barriers, and That Is the Most Difficult Thing for This Society.’” Ostra Nula, 2023, ostranula.org/edvin-kanka-cudic-treba-preci-preko-nacionalnih-i-vjerskih-barijera-a-to-je-ovom-drustvu-i-najteze. Accessed 5 July 2023.
“LGBT Activist Attacked in Sarajevo.” NI Sarajevo, 17 July 2019, n1info.ba/english/news/a357277-lgbt-activist-attacked-in-sarajevo. Accessed 5 July 2023.