From: wam@zamir-zg.comlink.de (Wam Kat)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.yugoslavia
Subject: Zagreb Diary
Date: 13 Aug 92 15:56:00 GMT
Followup-To: soc.culture.yugoslavia
Organization: ComLink-Network Germany - For Peace Zagreb
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Zagreb Diary
13-08-1992

Dobar Dan,

Panic in Sarajevo (how is it possible that this guy has this 
name), yesterday the Prime Minister of new Yugoslavia visit 
Sarajevo yesterday. He trip started not so successful, when 
he wanted to enter an UNPROFOR aeroplane in Beograd, he kept 
on saying it was a Russian plane, he felt with his noise down 
on the steal of the ramp. When he got out of the plane in 
Sarajevo he wasn't looking so optimistic anymore as he was 
just before he felt at the take off in Beograd. He declared 
that new Yugoslavia would recognise the state of BiH within 
their original border and spoke out against the creation of 
Serbian Krajina in the north of BiH. Honestly how nice this 
may sound I don't think that Panic has any influence what so 
ever on what is going on.

When I was making some plans for taking a short break for a 
few days, like every body else is taking, of course the 
telephone start to rang. Next week I have appointments with 2 
delegations from the European parliament and with at least 3 
reporters from different countries. How all of them get hold 
of my private home number is a big question for me, since I 
try to keep it hide. So I can forget my holidays for another 
week, a week later there will be coming lot's of friends back 
from Ecotopia in Bulgaria, so I have to be here as well.

It is a little boring all this official visits, since they 
all like to speak with the same persons and visit the same 
places and above all ask the same questions. But is seems to 
be the only way to get money for the refugee camps and for 
our projects. Next week at least we get a telefax machine for 
the Osijek group so it is worth to drive them over there. I 
am missing Joel a large bit since he is perfect to spend some 
hours with those people and inform them about what is going 
on, but we haven't heard anything from him since he left for 
Serbia some 10 days ago. A pity is that he is anyway going at 
the end of the month.

My major problem is that we are running out of English 
Croatian speaking volunteers, they are either in the 
workcamps or came back from them and need time to rest, or 
are on holidays or are busy them self with all kind of 
things. I often hope that one of these days we will raise 
enough money to pay two Croatian people, who can only be busy 
with this guest, organising their hotels, trips and meetings. 
Since the amount of visits are increasing and so is the work 
which is on our table. Sorry for complaining but I feel 
sometimes like a travel agency and I feel sorry for the 
people who are always on the speakers lists. They also must 
be bored to see my face popping up all the time with some 
other important persons.
 
We are also thinking that we should do like "Equil Libre" and 
rent a big house in the Center of the town where we can host 
all those guest and where foreigners can meet each other. 
These guys from Lyon have their act pritty well together. 

Other organisations call them the cowboys of the relief 
organisations, since they are known for their spectacular 
actions, who else goes with a double Decker bus to Sarajevo 
(and get shucked on the road since their maps were old). But 
nevertheless the get things moving. There is also a lot of 
criticism on them, they often break long and carefully 
planned  negations from other organisations by their actions 
and that is not always the best way to do it. But all have to 
admit that they get loads of aid across.

The talks about a land corridor from Split to Sarajevo, 
protected by military are becoming louder and louder, 
Croatian government already promised to help in all possible 
ways. But the decision of the security council expected to 
coming yesterday is still not made. In the main time the 
attacks on Sarajevo, especially on the hospital are getting a 
lot worst. And so are the attacks on Brod and Zupanja, big 
movements of Croatian Army are reported in those areas and 
when it continues this way I think we will have a full scale 
war in that area on our hands soon.

After tens of Croatian Band Aids we have now BiH Band Aid on 
television, the number is made by nearly all the artists who 
played on our concerts of the international day to remember 
the children who died in the war. I didn't understood a word 
of it, but the pictures were nice and dramatic. If it brings 
in a lot of money I wonder, who in Croatian and BiH have got 
a lot of money at the moment. The gap between rich and poor 
grown wider with the day and more and more well educated 
people are leaving these countries to make a living 
elsewhere. If this continue this way the countries will sick 
further and further in a swamp of poorness and have no hope 
to get out of it. Thousands and thousands of well trained 
doctors and technicians from Croatian are scattered all 
around the planet and you can't blame them, why working for 
100 Dm if you can make 50 till 60 times more somewhere else.

I hope so that soon something like in the CSFR after the 
revolution there will happen, people from abroad came back 
with good ideas and full energy to build up the countries. I 
sincerely hope that in the coming months this will happen 
here as well. We need hope to get out of this mess, we need 
that experiences and creativity to build up these countries, 
there is a peaceful future, but we have to do it together.

The main square is free from construction work again, the 
trams are not driving over it yet, but that is just a matter 
of time. The nice king on his horse is free from workers as 
well and all election billboards (except the ones from HDZ) 
are carrying normal commercial posters again. The time from 
big festivals and nice events seems to be over, there hasn't 
been any cultural manifestation or other since on the main 
square since the election and before it was at least 2 or 3 
per week.

The road from the main square to the station passing by the 
blown up Sarajevo bank is also open (at least half of it) 
again and when this continues within a month the public 
transport system is back to normal again. A little 

disappointing for all those foreign tourists which have to 
search harder and harder to find any symbols of war. But it 
is more and more like that nice lady from UNPROFOR said on 
television an Austrian like city, with an Italian night life, 
nice and very alive.

With Love from ZA-mir-GREB,

Wam:-)



  
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