Zlata diaries
11406 mots
46 pages
[pic]by Meike de Haas, NetherlandsWriters' Corner On-Line Chat With Zlata Filipovic
She is perhaps the most famous Bosnian child living in exile. On June 2, 1995, Zlata Filipovic met with children around the world in the Kidlink chat area for a four hour on-line conversation. She was the first writer invited by Kidlink kids to the Writers' Corner.
From a laptop computer in her Paris home, she discussed her book (Zlata's Diary), war and peace in Bosnia, and the Zlata fund -- money she is raising for children displaced or orphaned by the war. Many of the children in the audience participated in reading circles with classmates and teachers before meeting with Zlata. Their preparation was evident in the questions they asked the author.
In the more unstructured second half of the chat, Zlata allowed us to peek over her shoulder as she hung out with her new found international community of friends. Many adults watched silently in the background as the children's conversation slipped back and forth between discussions about life, death and MTV. After four hours, Zlata did not want to leave.
Not only did Zlata connect with many new friends, she also discovered that other Bosnian children were attending schools linked to the Kidlink network. As a result of this chat, Kidlink members convinced several companies to donate a laptop, modem and software to Zlata permanently so that she could establish regular contact with other Bosnian children living in exile throughout the world.
Everyone was captivated by her warmth, her message and her intelligence. But most of all, we all hope that the on-line session helped Zlata recapture a tiny strand of her lost childhood.
[pic]Zlata sends her special thanks to World Com Exchange Inc. in Salem, New Hampshire for donating a DEC laptop computer and modem to her. She also thanks Hewlett Packard for the inkjet printer, Lotus Development Corporation and Qualcomm Corporation for the software that will allow her to continue