From: victor@jezebel.wustl.edu (Victor Wickerhauser)
Subject: Re: Muslim Government of Bosnia reject to talk
Organization: Washington University, St. Louis Mo.
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1992 05:57:34 GMT

In article <1992Jul31.035900.6984@cco.caltech.edu> simic@pollux.ccsf.caltech.edu (Petar Simic) writes:

> situation in Serbia? (Serbia was rather respected parlamentary monarhy and
> democracy once, so to base such a a serious decission with long term
> consequences to the Serbian people on the like or dislike of the temporary
> post-communist government in Serbia seems rather shortsided).

I know several people who would argue that the Serbian monarchy in KSCS and
Yugoslavia was undemocratic (even racist) from the start, even before it
abolished the constitution in 1930.  The best explanation I read was in a
Wall Street Journal article that said Serbs wanted to run a profitable empire
composed of their "winnings" in WWI, and the monarchy or whatever followed
was entirely bent to this purpose.  

> 	Problem seems to be that for the cease-fire to hold one needs the two
> sides. If one side doesn't want to talk, and if it counts on the ouside 
> military intervention, it seems logical extrapolation to assume that it 
> would also try to break the cease-fire whenever it can (and try to put the
> blaim on the other side), because only then there is a chance to achive 
> its goal - an outside intervention. 

But the Serbs declared a "unilateral" cease fire, so in principle they
claimed to be willing to overlook provocations.  Even Gen. McKenzie said that
the most the Bosnians could muster was small-arms raids on military positions
whereas the Serbs could shell Sarajevo with multiple rocket launchers and jet
fighters.  I would say that the Bosnians keep fighting because they are
afraid of a holocaust.  The Serbs are not too wise to leave no alternative
other than fight or be expelled.

>	--------------------------------------------------
>V. Wickerhauser: >>The Bosnian Government is secular and multicultural, not
> Muslim: it contains ministers from all three of the major ethnic groups.<<
>	------------------------------------------
>	In fact it is Muslim and Croat government, while the democratically
> elected representatives of Bosnian Serbs left some time ago, when it became
> clear that the coalition of the two ethnic groups - Muslims and Croats -
> have been formed against the third - Bosnian Serbs. Legality of this 
> government is about the same as the legality of the infamous "incomplete Yu
> government" after Croatian and Slovenian representatives left. The 

Well, the Croatian president of the Yugo presidency was denied ratification
by the Serbian bloc, so you could say the Croats and Slovenes were driven
out.  Also, their response was to call for confederation, local sovereignity,
and finally independence, rather than to attempt to ethnically cleanse
Yugoslavia of Serbs.  Notice that the "Serbian Democratic Party" in Bosnia is
calling for annexation by Serbia/Montenegro, rather than independence or
extra seats in the Bosnian parliament.  They are fighting to exterminate
independent Bosnia, rather than to achieve parity in the Bosnian government.

> governments of the Western Europe rejected to recognise the incomplete 
> Yugoslav presidency, yet, they fully recognise the incomplete Bosnian
> presidency, while the press trys to smooth-out this and similar 
> inconsistencies by talking about outside agression and similar half-truths.

It is pretty clear where the Serb's weapons come from, who controls them, and
who pulls the strings in Bosnia.  What is not clear to me, what is in fact
incomprehensible, is why the Serbs in Bosnia have become genocidal.  Also,
why is there no action by the respected Serbs there and abroad to stop this?

>	Regards,
>	Petar S.

Regards,
Victor
----
Prof. M. Victor Wickerhauser (314)935-6771  <victor@jezebel.wustl.edu>
Dept. of Mathematics, Washington University, St. Louis, MO  63130  USA

Newsgroups: soc.culture.yugoslavia