Celebrate with your heart, not your gun: A campaign in the Balkans hits the bull's-eye

A man in Tuzla was accidentally wounded in the stomach during a New Year’s Eve party when his good friend fired a gun as part of celebrations. A girl died in downtown Skopje as she celebrated New Year’s Eve. A photographer was wounded in Podgorica while working at a wedding. A soccer player in Sarajevo collapsed during a game because he had a head injury from a stray bullet sustained the day before at a wedding. While celebrating the birth of his son, a man in Crvenka fired a gun and his stray bullet injured a 14 year old girl playing outside her house.  While playing at a wedding in Novi Pazar, a toddler shot his dad in the stomach.

Each year throughout the Balkans, many are left dead or wounded in similar incidents by celebratory gunfire. Shootings happen across the region at weddings, after the birth of a child, during religious festivals and holidays, New Year’s Eve, and even after sporting event victories.  To raise awareness about the dangers of celebratory gunfire, SEESAC is running a regional social media campaign on Facebook, Instagram and Google. Read more