Nachricht Nummer : 357 Übertragungszeit : 3 min 45 sec Nachricht von : WAM@ZAMIR-ZG.comlink.de (Wam) Betrifft : Zagreb Diary on 26 December, 1993 Kopienempfänger : /APC/YUGO/ANTIWAR, /CL/EUROPA/BALKAN Erstellungsdatum : 01.01.1994 14:44:00 W+1 Zagreb Diary 26 December, 1993 Dobar dan, This evening we were having a meal in Hotel Termal in Daruvar, Manfred and his girl friend invited us and during waiting for the food, in-between two sets of the band I could hear Dutch on the table behind me, I turned around and asked them from which part of the country they came. One from the North (that I could hear), one from the middle (speaking accentless Dutch, so hard to figure out) and one from the South, 5 kilometres from my home town (he was also speaking Dutch without accent, up to the moment that I ask him something in dialect). There were all signals (communication specialist in the different UNPROFOR troops) here in Daruvar, when they hear that I worked in Pakrac they looked at me and asked "Very well destroyed, he ?", what can you answer. Signals can always give you the latest news, they are listing in to all the radio communications and have the news often much faster than every body else, so I asked them how the peace was going on in BiH during this last two days, did the cease-fire held up to now. But as we already expected it is already broken again. It seem that there are really heavy fights between HVO and BiHarmija going on in Central Bosnia, around Novi Travnik and Vitez and Bosnian Serb artillery have been (starting again) shelling Sarajevo today. Another violent not-orthodox Christian Christmas with other words, like last year. Christmas means only something special the Catholics (Croats) and some of the Western American (North and South), as well as some African UNPROFOR battalions, but it is just another weekend for the others. In this war up to now religious symbols and rituals from the opposite nation (read other religion, if when the other didn't had the religion or didn't actively practice the religion, which by prejudices was attached to his nationality (ethnical background)) has often been use as main target to fight. In fact Mosque, Orthodox and Catholic Churches has often been straight in the firing-lines (or been blown up). A big part of the atrocities consist out of provocation's against the possible religion of the opposite victim's nationally. All knew from the "holy rules" of the other religions. Question is however when did they start to know this, a lot of people, is been said to me, didn't even know the rules of the religion they suppose to member of according their nationality. So this in mind it is not so likely that different groups, nationalities will suddenly start to respect each other Holy Days. Therefor a part of the world will be shocked that even a Christmas cease-fire wouldn't held, but again for a big part of the world it is just another weekend. I am as said some times before Jewish, but with a huge West Christian background, as Jew this is another weekend, nothing special (although I think that most Jews respect other religions holy days, especially those who live in countries were other religious are in majority), but as Christian this should be the most important 2 day's in the year or at least something special, even being not religion, the whole society is based on it (the whole special atmosphere is created in all parts of the western society (something like "happy holidays" is only existing in the USA)). On Christmas evening, when we were dancing at the street Bosnian Serbian forces destroyed the powerlines in Sarajevo, the day before that Tudjman accused BiHarmija of "the slaughter of defenceless Bosnian Croats" (he said that BiHarmija command has send out a secret message to all the troops to "Destroy all... in Novi Travnik, Nova Bila, Vitez and Busovaca). He remind Izetbegovic that more than a quarter of a million Muslims are having there temporary living place in refugee camps in Croatia. Not particularly a Christmas message of Peace and understanding. More one who puts the business straight on the table. So let's be real, tomorrow Christmas is over and normal live begins again. I don't want to offend anybody in the religious believe, but don't be hypocrite. "Do they know it is Christmas time at all", they song a few years for Islam's in Africa and the answer will be "No", Mohammed was born at a completely other day (question is really when Christ was born, but let's not discuss that (I had to explain some American guy today that the Christmas tree comes from the old German rituals around what now is the 21th of December)). And the same applies here. Still in the afternoon we had a hard working session of brain storming how to start the money generating projects in this sector, we have ideas, coming out of the people here, and we can start, but how and with which speed. Lot's of things has to be done, lot's of things has to be financed, not much, just for the beginning and the potentials are great. Working on Christmas, even working on a Sunday, yes why not, we had nothing else to do, we could walk around the town of course and have coffee and pivo in Skorpija, stand at the Croatian Checkpoint and inspected the Christmas tree they have also put there, checking out all the nice Christmas decoration which are made. And yes I went out for a while to say good-bye to Vanja, who is going for her last Christmas day to Osijek and at the station their was also the brother of Ralf and his friend, in uniform, they have to be back in their barracks at the front-line by tonight, so they had only two days of Christmas. 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.comlink.de . Zagreb Diary is dedicated to Tyche, Pjort and Rik, so that they found out what there father have been doing all that time in Zagreb. Financial support for Grassroot relief work in Croatia or BiH can be send to Kollektief Rampenplan (atn. Lylette, Postbox 780, 6130 AN Sittard, Netherlands, tel:. +31-46-524803 and fax: +31-46-516460 or to Zagrebacka Banka, Zagreb, accountnr.: 2440291594, to Kat, Pieter Jan Herman Fredrik, Brace Domany 6 6fl nr3 (postbox 33), 41000 Zagreb. Please notify me if you send or have send any donations. Old numbers can be found by sending a message's with as subject "FILES" to pakrac.info@ZAMIR-ZG.comlink.de, to order a file send a message with subject "SEND " to same address. ## CrossPoint v2.93 ##