IN MEMORIAM
PROFESSOR HUSEIN SUŠIĆ, M.D., Ph.D. (11 August 1937 -25 August 2005) was born in Vlasenica. He attended Elementary and Grammar School in Tuzla and graduated from School of Medicine in Sarajevo. He specialized in internal medicine. He obtained his Ph.D. in Sarajevo. During his sub-specialization terms he stayed with VMA in Belgrade, and profes-/X sors Herbringer and Brike clinics in Vienna and Linz. He worked for a while at the USA University with Professor Dr Kafat Ulah Malik. At University of Tuzla School of Medicine he held professorship in pathophysiology. He is one of the pioneers who established School of Medicine in Tuzla in 1976 together with Professor Dr Ibro Pasic. It was through his efforts that academicians from other university centers selflessly worked on the education, specialization and development of medical workers. Tuzla will think of him, not only in the terms of his medical knowledge, but also as a true representative of the University’s intellectual elite.
His greatest love was selfless work with young colleagues, future scientists, that he non-intrusively, spontaneously infected with the desire to excel, to study and kindly aid a man in need.
As a serious scientist he actively participated in numerous projects together with his Bosnian and international colleagues. The results of his research were presented at prestigious congresses and published in scientific and professional journals. He published or presented over 100 scientific reports.
In an environment of illusory disorder that he managed exceptionally well, he performed his everyday work, read domestic and international professional journals, wrote, treated numerous patients with psychological and physical difficulties and continuously painted. He created unparalleled collection of portraits using techniques unique and understandable only to him. In numerous portraits we are able to identify known faces that radiate character and frequently illness. Certain portraits can be used as textbook illustrations of specific syndromes. In painting he remained faithful to his greatest loves, medicine and patients, to recognizable human suffering, pain, sadness, joy, happiness and pleasure. He exhibited his paintings in several places in Sarajevo, Belgrade and Tuzla. Academician V. M. Varagic from Belgrade wrote in the Guest Book: “I could simply not conceive that a professor of pathological physiology -my colleague Dr Sušić had such explicit artistic concerns. It is wonderful that he is able to balance everyday grayness with glowing horizons of arts.” Similar impressions of his exhibitions were written down by numerous prominent authors and artists. Amongst physicians, few were so fully spiritually and artistically gifted. Following his portraits exhibition on 5 December 1991 he wrote: “With deep and sincere devotion to youth that deserves better presence and future I dedicate this exhibition to them and bequeath all the profits to the University of Tuzla Students’ Scholarships and Awards Fund.”
Professor Sušić’s literary work was recognizable for its clear message. A few months ago he published his work “Silence, a man is being born”. His philosophical debates will be remembered for their depth and strong humane messages.
I revoke Huso from the eighties. His talk, his loud meditation causes psychological quake in me. I was well shaken. I cannot recognize him. Only couple of years ago he was apathetic and worried. Or maybe that was only my impression.
Following the surgery, we, his friends spoke of him as of a sick man who survived delicate surgery, and we believed that his condition would progress and inevitably disable all the functions that are indispensable for an intellectual, one by one. At that time, it becomes discharge of powerful, shaking energy. Confidently, with no arrogance, he focuses his rich and intellectual suggestions towards the matters of consequence. With equal strength he initiates physical and spiritual activity in both his juniors and seniors demonstrating relativity of these terms.
Through regular, personal, spiritual and physical exercise he achieved excellent physical fitness and thus became different personality. He showed me thick notebooks filled with neatly written text in Arabic that he learned to read, write and speak fluently all by himself. He translated for me certain segments explaining the depth of the ideas.
He left us silently. I frequently think of him as he was in the past. He used to talk to me about his family. It seems to me that he became even more drawn to them following the loss of his brothers that he was strongly attached to. I am not sure whether he cared more for Selma, Mustafa or Lala. I believe that he embraced them and held them somewhere deep inside. I am not sure why, but it seems to me that the past few months changed him more than the past decade. Although equally spiritual and immersed in thoughts he would occasionally let certain internal tension, restlessness and rare hopelessness emerge. All this time he tried to prove that Tuzla is an environment of mutual respect and care of people. According to him, it is demonstrated in the story of Tuzla’s respected citizen. While protecting his Serb neighbors in the period 1941-1945 he risked his own life. As a sign of gratitude they placed a memorial in a churchyard. He told this story to the USA Embassy representative. It seems that he wanted to be one of the clear springs that strive to clean a muddy river. I had an impression that he no longer believed in his secret and sincere desire. It seemed to me that an angry repetition remained in him: “Man, you cannot clean the river that is permanently, systematically and in organized manner polluted.” I remembered reverend Krstan Bjelac following his return from Gazimestan. Following the greetings and the usual inquiries he answered: “Doctor, here I walk as a poisoned man. I was at Gazimestan. You were a child in 1936 and could not remember. The iconography is the same to the detail as when Hitler was raging and raising to power as a representative of national socialism -fascism in Germany.” He used to say that aloud, in anger, desperate over mass applauding and even more desperate that such ideas can take root in an antifascistic environment in Yugoslavia. This small spring was supposed to clean the muddy river. However, he could do nothing against raging flood of madness that cunningly manipulated common people.
A humanist who nurtured a cult of man, loved people and dedicated his whole life to them has crossed the river. All of us who loved and appreciated him remain on this bank sad and proud of our closeness to an exceptional man. He will be remembered by all the future generations whose part he became as a creator of bright history for University of Tuzla School of Medicine.
Professor Muzafer Mujić, M.D., Ph.D.