From: wam@zamir-zg.comlink.de
Newsgroups: soc.culture.yugoslavia
Subject: Zagreb Diary
Date: 29 Sep 92 11:14:25 +0100
Article-I.D.: ZAMIR-ZG.5mhJyPiJtC
Distribution: soc


  

Zagreb Diary
21-09-1992

Dobar Dan,

New in Zagreb, for everybody at the busstation, etc., a new 
commercial on all radio stations in and around Zagreb, the 
newest hit in town, a peep-show on the bus station. I heard 
about 6 times every hour today when we were driving through 
the town to buy the last forks, spoons and knives. Today I 
was together with Sue, whose husband is general director of 
ICL here in Croatia (use to work for the whole of Yugoslavia, 
but since the boycott they only can work in Croatia and 
Slovenia). It was a bit different to go shopping together 
with somebody from outside Croatia than with a Croat. Sue is 
just like me, we need this and we buy it as soon we can find 
it and don't turn every Dinar 20 times around before we buy 
it. With others you sometimes have to drive the town 20 times 
up and down before we can come to a conclusion.

Later today I had some talks with some women from ARK and the 
women shelter (autonomous women center) about the planned 
international women congress ("women and war") which will 
take place soon in Zagreb. The organisational group has got 
50.000 Dm for the organisation of that congress and belongs 
to the group who use to work together with the women of the 
women shelter on the s.o.s. telephone, but in the first week 
that I was here they had there first meeting and decided to 
split up.

The reason to split was the difference in opinion about the 
position of women in this war. Most of the women who work in 
the women shelter are agree with the position of ARK, the 
other group was real of the opinion that Serbs were the 
aggressors and had attack Croatia. The last group is there 
fore totally disagree with the ARK women. You can find that 
back in the written material of the congress in which is it 
stated that some women has very strange idea and are been 
used by the peace movement, who are supporters in some way of 
JNA and Serbia (according to the draft I was reading).

The women from ARK, the women shelter and even from the peace 
center from Beograd are also not invited for this congress. 
One my question who was representing the women in the refugee 
camps during this congress nobody had a good answer. Neither 
the women I was talking with, neither the organisation of the 
congress, who I phoned later, had any answer on that 
question. There were two women invited of the group 
supporting the Vukovar women, and that would be all. When I 
reacted that I think that it is a little strange that around 
400.000 Bosnian women, who are living in refugee camps would 
be represented on these congress by two Croatian women from 
Vukovar was rather taken as a critic on their congress than 
as some essential for the whole topic.
  
I hope that the foreign organisation will stress a little 
more that this congress is open for all wings of the Croatian 
and women (movements) from the whole of former Yugoslavia 
since otherwise I don't see the need that the feminist 

movement from western Europe support this manifestation.

Back in the Suncokret (the flower I call it) Astrid told me 
that the Dutch ministry of foreign affairs had phoned and ask 
her if it was true that people (not only men, but everybody) 
were send back to Bosnia if they pass (illegally) the border 
between Croatia and BiH and also that they weren't able to 
bring papers to refugee in Mostar. After the reports we had 
send to them in the last weeks about some camps they thought 
that we already had our network enlarged to BiH. Of course we 
have plans in that direction, but it would be nice to have 
the thing working in Croatia first. Later this week I will 
have some talks to at least start with opening an office in 
Split, but Mostar is still heavy under attack and I don't 
know if it good to send foreign volunteers down there.

It looks often if every day at least one new company is 
opening, on the news you see at least one of these openings 
per day. One of the governmental members who nice cut a red-
white and blue ribbon and hold a speech about the bright 
future of the new company and the importance of this factory 
in the rebuilding of the Croatian economy. Mostly followed by 
a speech from one or another foreign investor and the message 
how much million marks is invested.

Just after the news there was a commercial for Izosan 1 a 
tablet for disinfection of water, 1 tablet gives 1 litre safe 
water in 20 minutes and it is available in all drug stores. 
It maybe sounds strange to have such commercials on 
television but if you know that f.e. the water supply of a 
town as Zadar is getting worst and worst. The water company 
can't provide enough safe water for all the people and there 
fore more reductions will take place. People talk about plans 
that only 16 hours per week there will be water. I think that 
rather sell those tablets in the shops they should give them 
for free to everybody in regions where safe water supplies 
are getting or will be a problem than selling them.

I have been writing a lot about all the refugees from BiH in 
Croatia the last weeks, you nearly would forget that there 
are about 500.000 homeless or displaced people in BiH as well 
and nearly a million people in besieged towns and villages 
(if not more). UNHCR tries there best to reach more and more 
town, like Srebrenica (North East of Sarajevo), which is 
nearly 6 months under siege. The transport of today didn't 
worked out since it was stopped according to the news by a 
few hundred "Serbian" women and children, who shouted that 
they wouldn't allowed "Supplies for their enemies". They 
convoy returned to Sarajevo fully loaded. Last but not least, 
please think about the 500.000 refugees in Serbia, I haven't 
found much in the international papers (which our 
international volunteers brought with them) about them, but 
they are there.

With Love from ZA-mir-GREB,

                            Wam :-)
--------------------------------------------------------
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I dedicate Zagreb Diary to Tyche, Pjort and Rik
to know what their father was doing all that time
Newsgroups: soc.culture.yugoslavia