AUTHENTIC TESTIMONIES ABOUT COEXISTENCE OF BOSNIAN JEWS AND MUSLIMS

Recently published book Suživot jevreja i muslimana u Bosni i Hercegovini. Primjeri tolerancije od 16. stoljeća do danas (coexistence of Jews and Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Examples of tollerance from the 16th century up to this day)  (El-Kalem, Sarajevo, 2021), published on the occasion of two hundredth anniversary of Sarajevo's Purim (1819), an event where renowned Muslim families of Sarajevo confirmed centuries-long experience of coexistence with Jews in Bosnia in a courageous and dignified way, provides many authentic testimonies from family biographies of Bosnian Jews. From the welcome upon arrival of the first Sephardi communities in Bosnia, at the time of Reconquista in Spain, through the described statement which was signed by about 250 most renowned Muslims who came to the defense of rabi Moše Danon and Sarajevo Jews from unjust authorities of Mehmed Ruždi-pasha (Sarajevo's Purim, 1819), a large number of resolutions against hate speech and violence over Jewish neighbors during the Second World War and rescuing the precious manuscript of Jewish cultural and religious identity – Haggadah, the book presents events where Muslims of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the most generous way, continued the heritage of the Medina Charter, which has protected rights of Jews within Muslim communities since the time of Prophet, therefore confirming that the space of Bosnia is a common historical, social, religious and cultural space of Muslim, Orthodox, Catholic and Jewish population and all its citizens. Building of the Sijavuš-pasha daire (Ćifuthana, kurtiž, 1581), for poor Jews in then very center of Sarajevo, near the Bey Mosque, as well as the permit which beylerbey to be Sijavuš-pasha granted them for building a synagogue, are confirmation of the position which Sephardi enjoyed in Sarajevo ever since the second half of the 16th century (Kamhi, 2021, 26-27).

There are many examples of coexistence and mutual respect between Muslims and Jews in Bosnia in modern times as well. Derviš Korkut, as the curator of National Museum, both rescued one of the oldest Haggadahs in the world from Nazi occupier and strongly opposed issuing anti-Jewish provisions – Numerus clausus – of 5.10.1940, which restricted Jews' rights to education (Kamhi, 2021, 41). Interestingly, Haggadah was once again in the 20th century, during the war, rescued by a Muslim: it was the director of National Museum at the time, professor Enver Imamović, in the 1992–1995 war. Jewish community responded to this permanent support in various ways and by means of relief efforts, and attempted to save lives of their Muslim fellow citizens during the years of war in the 1990s, or make their lives easier.

In the text below, we present several authentic testimonies of the help of Bosnian Muslims to Jews during the Second World War, which are included in the described book as documents of oral history:

Derviš Korkut rescues Mira Papo

It is interesting to learn about the case of Jewish teenage girl Mira Papo, whose parents were taken to the concentration camp during the Second World War. Derviš Korkut brought her to his home. To conceal her Jewish origin, they named the girl Amira, dressed her in Muslim costume, and presented her to curious acquaintances as a cousin who helped them around the house. Due to danger which still threatened Jews, Mira was transferred to Dalmatia, where she allegedly joined partisan movement. Thanks to his effort of rescuing the Jewish girl, Korkut was awarded the title of the Righteous Among the Nations after the war.

(Archives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, National Committee for Establishing War Crimes, box Jews, inv. no. 34021)

Izet Arnautović rescues Abraham Konforti

Examples of helping Jews transfer to Italian occupation zone, where brutal anti-Semitic policy was not implemented, include the case of Konforti Abraham, who was driven by Izet Arnautović, in his car, from Travnik to Mostar, where he was soon joined by his wife dressed in a Muslim costume – niqab. Their refugee road took them further to Split, and then to a camp on Hvar, where they joined partisans upon the capitulation of Italy.

(Archives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, National Committee for Establishing War Crimes, box Jews, inv. no. 34021)

Recollection of David Kamhi

“I remember everything. My mother was saved by Fahrija-hanuma Fadilpašić. It may be hard to believe, but I remember everything. My brother was born on 18 October 1941 and mother first hid in a Bauer nursing home. However, one day the head of the institution said that she could no longer stay there, that she should leave, save her life. My family and the Fadilpašić family had been friends for years; mother was on good terms with Fahrija-hanuma, née Hrasnica, and father with bey Fadilpašić. And Fahrija-hanuma rescued my mother. First we were at Mjedenica, staying with the Odobašić family; husband Sejfo and his wife Marica.  After a while, a “kulturbundovac” (one of those who were allegedly involved in culture) came to take my mother away – since he could speak German well. However, everybody got to their feet, neighbors as well, and they were all Muslim, and he left, but said that he would come again. Then Fahrija-hanuma sent a cart with a servant, a niqab for mother and a fez for me, and we got on the cart. I remember well, mother told me: ‘Listen carefully, you are no longer David but Džavid, remember it!’ She gave me a chocolate bar and we came to Banovo, to the Old Railway Station. Then we got on the train to Mostar. My father was ‘red’. We were greeted by partisan associates and accommodate with a family; however, Italians soon took us to a concentration camo on Lokrum and on Rab. Upon capitulation of Italy, my brother and I stayed at several orphanages. We ended up in Split. I still remember the moment when we heard about liberation. We all rushed to the sea, all dressed. I loved diving from the rock and I detached myself from the others. Suddenly, a man in partisan uniform came to me and asked me what my name was. At the orphanage, we were told not to trust anybody and not to talk with strangers. So I kept silent, until he took the magazine out of his gun and asked me if I wanted to play with it. I took the gun right away but I still did not want to talk. Then he produced a photograph and gave it to me. I saw mum and a man, and myself between them, on the potty. The officer asked me: ‘Who is this?’ I say: ‘Mum.’ ‘And this?’, and points to the man. I shrug.

‘It's me, your father’, he said. And so I saw dad again, after so many years.”

(Oslobođenje, 15 May 2020)

Sources:

• Kamhi, David (2021), “Neki aspekti zajedničkog života jevreja i muslimana od Medine preko Endelusa, Osmanske Imperije do Bosne i Hercegovineˮ, in: Suživot jevreja i muslimana u Bosni i Hercegovini. Primjeri tolerancije od 16. stoljeća do danas, Sarajevo, pp. 19-49.