Marijana Longin was 17 in 1991 when her country, Croatia, declared independence from Yugoslavia. Until then, Serbs, Croats and people from other ethnic minorities had lived peacefully together in her town, Zadar. They even celebrated each other's religious festivals. Now, with the propaganda from all sides stirring up hate and fear, many of the Serbs fled to Yugoslavia. Later that year, the war started. Longin recalls, 'My apartment was bombed. There were long periods without electricity. The local news was biased. We had to turn to CNN or Sky News to find out what was really happening.'
She finished high school while the war was still being fought. She had wanted to be a laboratory engineer but that was out of the question as her parents were unemployed. She found work as a lab technician in the local hospital. Because the Serbs had held many of the top jobs there was a great shortage of skilled people. Longin had no time for proper training but had to learn as she worked.
Four years later, not having enough money to pursue an engineering course, Marijana Longin decided to study culture and tourism at Zadar's university.
In summer 2000 a family member invited her to attend the conference in Caux. When she first arrived she felt overwhelmed - first because she lacked self-confidence, which she puts down to so many of her plans being thwarted by circumstances, and secondly because it surpassed her dreams. 'I was brought up as a Roman Catholic with moral values. I was taught not to hate but to respect everyone. Seeing films from Hollywood had convinced me that I was very old-fashioned. Many young people in Croatia think only about their careers and money. In Caux I saw people who were thinking about moral values. I didn't think that anything like this existed any more.'
She found encouragement to hold to the values that she believed in, and returned home 'peaceful yet full of energy. I was so self-confident that I couldn't believe it was me. I knew I had learned something worthwhile.'
She completed all her exams in five months. Then her professor, whom she had told about her experience at Caux, asked her to write her final thesis on 'Partnership in intercultural communication', to be based on her experience with MRA in Caux. He must have been impressed as he asked her to stay on as his assistant. She graduated this June.
She does not know what she will be doing in the long-term but she says she wants to learn more about 'how to help people without getting something for myself'. She would like to have experiences that can help in her country 'if they want my help'.
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