On December 2, 2022, the Gender Research Laboratory (GenLab) of the Institute of Philosophy and Social Theory of the University of Belgrade organized the workshop “Mapping gender-based violence in the region: Research on obstetric violence in Bosnia and Serbia” as part of the “16 days of activism for gender equality” campaign which is a part of the UNIGEM project, that is regionally implemented by the TPO Foundation from Sarajevo with 19 partner universities, and is financially supported by the  United Kingdom Government.

At the workshop, Ph.D. Zlatan Hrnčić presented his research and publication “Violence against pregnant women in Bosnia and Herzegovina – family, health system and labor relations” intended for the professional and scientific community, but also for all other interested parties who aim to contribute to the creation of a better social environment for family planning, improvement of women’s reproductive health and social policies in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Lawyer Marina Mijatović presented to the audience the results of research on obstetric violence in Serbia conducted by a team of lawyers from Belgrade, in which Jelena Stanković and Ivana Soković Krsmanović participated in addition to the presenter. The report of three female lawyers points to serious violations of human rights in Serbian hospitals.

The moderator of the workshop was Ph.D. Ljiljana Pantović, a research associate at the Institute of Philosophy and Social Theory of the University of Belgrade and a member of the Gender Research Laboratory (GenLab).

The goal of the conversation was to map gender-based violence in healthcare institutions in both countries, and during the discussion, recommendations were made on joint steps toward the improvement of women’s human rights and women’s reproductive health in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.