Hands off Bosnia!

August 16, 1995
Issue 

@edit = Croatia has the right to independence within its recognised borders — outlined in the 1974 constitution of the Yugoslav federation. From that standpoint, there can be no objection to the reclaiming of "Krajina" by the Croatian army. Comments in the Australian on August 8 which referred to the Croatian offensive as a "blitzkrieg" are misleading and typical of many western media efforts to discredit Croatia as a nation of Ustashi, the Nazi collaborators of World War II.

@edit = Rather, the military means employed by the Croatian government to regain Croatian land reflect a reality made in the west. From the beginning, the west has presided over plans to award large parts of Croatia and Bosnia to Serbia on the basis of military gains. Western governments have promoted "ethnic cleansing" by rewarding perpetrators with territory.

@edit = While there is yet no evidence of systematic "ethnic cleansing" — or genocide — by Croatian troops, fear has driven Croatian Serbs to flee their homes. They should be allowed by the Tudjman government to return, with all of the Croatian constitutional guarantees of democratic national rights, including a large measure of autonomy, enacted.

@edit = Unfortunately, the check to Serb chauvinist expansion in Croatia provides no more than a very temporary respite for the defenders of an independent, multi-ethnic Bosnia. The US is now openly proposing a de facto division of Bosnia between Croatia and Serbia. The only thing likely to delay agreement between Tudjman and Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic on this dirty deal is a quarrel over who gets how much.

@edit = Such a deal is all the more likely because it would reflect the competing economic interests of imperialist powers. Germany and Austria were the chief backers of Croatia's bid for independence from the former Yugoslavia, while Britain, France and Russia prefer a strong Serbia to be the dominant state in the Balkans.

@edit = Assistance has been provided to the Croatian military by a "private" company of recently retired US generals, and the US government is suddenly willing to reveal some evidence of Serbian chauvinist war crimes. This suggests that the US prefers a relative balance between Croatia and Serbia, in which it is easier and cheaper for western powers to play one off against the other.

@edit = Some supporters of Bosnia's territorial integrity and independence had for a time been sucked in by the willingness of US politicians to champion their cause. Many called on the US government to do something to halt the genocide being perpetrated in Bosnia.

@edit = As is more than obvious now, imperialist governments never do anything from altruistic motives. Behind the scenes, the US was acting in concert with France and Britain to nobble the UN tribunal on war crimes, which remained hopelessly under resourced. The former US State Department's George Kenney, who had resigned in disgust from its ex-Yugoslavia desk, told the Economist on April 29 that the State Department was concealing war crimes evidence implicating the Bosnian Serb chain of command up to Milosevic.

@edit = With the denial of their right of self-defence by the criminal UN arms embargo, and the western policy of dividing Bosnia in two, the champions of Bosnia as an independent, multi-ethnic state are fighting the odds. They deserve our support.

You need Green Left, and we need you!

Green Left is funded by contributions from readers and supporters. Help us reach our funding target.

Make a One-off Donation or choose from one of our Monthly Donation options.

Become a supporter to get the digital edition for $5 per month or the print edition for $10 per month. One-time payment options are available.

You can also call 1800 634 206 to make a donation or to become a supporter. Thank you.