Zlata's Diary

Content Warning: This section references war-related death, destruction, and terror, forced displacement from homes, physical violence, catastrophic injury, and suicidal ideation.

Years after the war in Bosnia, Filipović reflects on the conflict, its lasting impacts, and the role of her diary during the war and after. She thanks her readers, recounts her life in Dublin and her studies at Oxford, England, and mentions her family members. Her grandfather has died in the intervening years, but her grandmother and friend Mirna still live in Sarajevo, and Filipović continues to visit the city each year. 

Filipović explores the purpose and impact of her diary while writing it and after it reached international recognition; it has become a tool used by advocates for peace. Filipović dedicates the diary itself to those who lived through the Siege of Sarajevo; it now belongs to them as much as it once belonged to her. She reminds readers of the long-term impacts of war on survivors, noting that much work is yet to be done in Bosnia in terms of rebuilding infrastructure and repairing relations. Refugees especially continue to struggle, as redefining identity can be a lifelong endeavor for those displaced.

Filipović ends with a reminder of the bright spots of humanity and the intense will to survive and endure in the face of atrocity.