"At 6 a.m. the fire was extinguished and at 6:05 our presses started rolling," Kurspahic said. "Though the fighting continued, we won a symbolicvictory just by publishing."

Besides continually writing and editing, thestaff of the paper also is in charge ofdistributing the day's issue. Often, reporterscarry bundles of papers to street corners and sellthem to crowds eager for news.

"One of the worst things is hearing when somequeue has been bombed and people were killed,"Kurspahic said of his job. "Once, the Serbsmassacred a crowd of people waiting on a breadqueue. I later found out that some of them wereclutching our newspaper in their hands."

However daunting the circumstances, Kurspahicand his staff continue to publish day after day.

"It is a really unique professionalexperience," he said, "Our paper is sometimes theonly source of information for our readers. Wehave a duty to keep them informed."

A Perfect Record

Oslobodzenje has not missed a single day'sissue since its inception in 1943.

The paper keeps its readers informed of thelatest Serbian advances, conditions at the frontand the strength of the city's defense.

Among other things, Oslobodzenje carriesapproximately two full pages of obituaries everyday.

"We have a double responsibility to fulfill,"Kurspahic said, "If foreign journalists are cominghere, risking their lives to report on Sarajevo,then it is our duty to do the same," he said.

Besides the facts surrounding the fighting,Oslobodzenje seeks to record the remarkable humanstruggles being fought.

"An art of survival has developed in ourbeseiged Sarajevo," Kurspahic said. "The women,who must try to provide food for their families,are learning to make something out of nothing."

Kurspahic said he is dismayed at the effortsthat have been made worldwide to end the violence.

"As a citizen, I just can't understand howthose who could have stopped the massacre didn't,"Kurspahic said sadly. "The people of Sarajevo feelabandoned by the international community."

No matter how the war goes, Oslobodzenje willcontinue to publish. "Our paper is proof thatfreedom of expression can't be silenced by gunsand cannons," Kurspahic said