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Bosnia
The SOS Social Centre in Sarajevo has been open since 1990 and works with local organisations and focuses on preventing the break up of families because of drug addiction, through workshops and an annual Drug Prevention Week involving children and young people. About 850 children, young people and their families come to the centre every month. Every child in Sarajevo knows the centre by its nickname - the Smiling House. The name comes from the parachuting smiling house painted on the façade and from the faces of all children that come to the centre. In the centre, every child is given the opportunity to discover talents, improve knowledge, and brush up skills while having a good time in a relaxed child-friendly surrounding.
In 2004, the centre set up a mobile unit - The Playbus - which goes to children who can't come to the Smiling House and are hungry for fun and games. Every month the Playbus puts smiles on a thousand faces in schools, hospitals, parks and orphanages around the country.
One sunny day in July 2004, some children from the Grbavica community in Sarajevo came to our improvised playground. Among them there were several Roma children. Some of the other parents pulled their children away except for one parent who let his child stay. It was sad to see some of the children go home. They didn't want to, but their parents insisted. Those who stayed, watched from the sidelines. Gradually, they came back to our improvised childrens playground. The parents didn't object and all the children ended up playing together.
In August 2004 there is a group of about 30 children of Roma origin from Grbavica. They were fascinated with painting with water colours. None of them has ever used them before. Very few go to school. They live in poor conditions shacks with no running water. Hardly any of the parents work. Many of the children beg on the streets. They told us we were the first who didn't look away and weren't afraid to go near them. The children had great fun painting with the water colours. They didn't want us to go. We definitely will go back. They need us.
August 2005: another typical day, the Playbus arrives on an empty field and within minutes it is packed with children from Alipashino Polje in Sarajevo of all ages playing together without any problems. Surprisingly, the teenagers, who are usually not interested, were all keen to join in. A girl lost a book and the children immediately organised a search party. It was amazing to see such solidarity among children who don't usually play together.