Nachricht Nummer : 472 Übertragungszeit : 3 min 51 sec Nachricht von : WAM@ZAMIR-ZG.ztn.zer.de (Wam) Betrifft : Zagreb Diary on 7 April, 1994 Kopienempfänger : /REG/NEWS/DIARY/WAM, /APC/YUGO/ANTIWAR, /CL/EUROPA/BALKAN, /SOC/CULTURE/BOSNA-HERZGVNA, /SOC/CULTURE/CROATIA, /SOC/CULTURE/YUGOSLAVIA Erstellungsdatum : 12.04.1994 16:58:00 W+1 Zagreb Diary 7 April, 1994 Dobar dan, It was beautiful weather this morning when I woke up, BJ came pass by and told that all volunteers were on the working places, yesterday we decided that we would go with everybody to Daruvar, 15 Km north to have a long bath in the swimming pool and a kind of good-bye party in one of the restaurant. We also asked everybody not to go looking if you didn't really had to be in that area of the town try to go around it. I was really afraid for the morning, but more for the afternoon and evening, when all the police and the people starts to go in the pub and have been drinking half the day and the fact that on the other side they also have a big parties and that means often drinking and eating and afterwards some shooting in the air. When I come into Skorpija a little bit later to taste the atmosphere in town in the corners there are men discussion the situation and some have got literally knives on the table to show how angry and tensed they were. In the "park" in front of the opcina a few hundred people had gathered already. In the front rows some people with black barrettes and they didn't really had flowers in their hands and pockets to welcome the Patriarch. The Croatian television and some local journalist were also standing and waiting. The service should start at 9 o'clock and every ten moment that the people were waiting the tension was raising. I go to the UNOV and Care office in the Opcina and have some coffee. After a while Jojo comes in who has been standing between the local journalists, he tells that they have to wait for at least another half hour is the rumour which goes around outside. I can imagine that that is not particular helping to cool down the tension. Jojo tells that they can't see anybody on the other side of the checkpoint, some people came with small telescope or the telescope from snipers riffles. Davor told him as a joke that at the moment most Serbs are looking from the Croatian side at the checkpoint. Around 12 o'clock the tension suddenly melts as snow in front of the sun and in nearly 10 minutes the whole crowd is gone and even soon afterwards most of the bars are empty. But who knows, when I enter Skorpija suddenly I heard Dutch radio coming out of the boxes, I never heard that before here. And for the rest it is calm if nothing has happened, I sit down on the bar drinking tea and looking around, when I go with may eye over the Kuna notes (Croatia money during the second world war) I remember with a shock that at Sunday it is the 10th of April, they remembering day of the beginning of the first Croatian republic during the Second World War. I wonder what a reaction could be. Also in some days or weeks the highway through West Slavonia Krajina will be opened and I am just waiting if somebody will organise an auto rally, Pakrac, Lipik, Novska, autobahn, Novo Gradiska, Pozega, Pakrac, with Croatian flags all around and making a lot of noise like the marriage convoys always does on Saturday. Let's hope it stay quiet. I make a last talk with Vanja before I go back to Zagreb to be there for the preparation for the new volunteers who will come on Sunday, nice they will fall with their noose in the butter, as a Dutch idiom says. I wish her a nice relaxing trip to Daruvar and when somebody don't wants don't fight about it, let's them do what they want it looks safe now. And I walk an hour later again near the Opcina and come across the Priest who ask me to walk with him to the barrier to see why all those people have returned for, and indeed again about 75 men are standing looking at the other side and waiting for things to come. At the other side the people obvious returned from the service of the Orthodox church and some have to pass very close to the checkpoint in order to go to their house. The Priest asks me if I was at the "other side" today and I answer him that I told him that I would stay here until it was all over and cooled down and that I was going to Zagreb today. He told that next time I am welcome and come and see such events from the top floor of the Hospital in the Police observation point. When I come at the office to say good-bye I see some Italian cars standing outside, we have an invasion of about 14 Italian youngster on some Christian seminar in Byelovar and who also brought some vans full help for Pakrac, they like to share it between Red Cross and us. The others in the office look a bit hopeless, they have to go to Daruvar and this group just arrives. I promise that I stay behind and tell them something. It is going to be on of those introduction via a translator who himself also don't know all the words and the others who also know a bit English start to discuss with him that he is translating my text wrongly. But after 10 minute I start to enjoy it really, in this group their are two boys who are obvious wearing Ustase symbols, without really knowing what they mean. They bought them in Zagreb during an earlier trip and know that they have something to do with Croatia but not what. After the introduction I take them for a drink on the terrace of Skorpija, it is nice and quiet in the town, I never saw it so quiet on a Thursday afternoon. When we sit down and have our drink I show Jura the symbols around the necks of the two boy and whisper "Tallanski Ustase" to him, he goes inside get's he famous handgrenade without powder and gives it to the boy, makes a step back spread out his right arm and shout "Mussolini" and "Forza Italia", we look at eachother and smile, but the Italians around the table look rather surprised. Mir from somewhere in Hrvatska, Wam ------------------------------------------------------ "Zagreb Diary" can be found on a lot of different electronic networks, it is copyright free and can be ported to any network or other means of communication you like, but please drop my a line, you can reach by sending a message to wam@zamir-zg.ztn.zer.de . 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