Bosnia & Herzgovina

Bosnian Countryside

What's the first thing you think of when I say Bosnia?  Chances are you, like almost everyone, would immediately associate the country with war and destruction.  The 1992-1995 civil war has branded the country as a perpetual war-zone in the eyes of many.  When I told my mom that we were going to Bosnia and Sarajevo she rolled her eyes, like she's done with so many other destinations I've chosen, undoubtedly thinking to herself, "Jackson, why can't you want to go somewhere normal and safe?"

To be completely honest, I didn't know what to expect from Bosnia or Sarajevo.  Going into our trip I knew three things about Sarajevo: (1) it's where World War I started; (2) they were embroiled in a devastating civil war that I remember hearing about in my childhood; and (3) they hosted the Winter Olympics some years ago.  I wanted to go to Sarajevo solely for the historical and war-related value of the city.  Little did I know that Bosnia, and especially Sarajevo, would be one of my favorite countries/cities I've ever visited in my life!

The country is almost all mountains.  While being home to nearly 4 million people, outside of Sarajevo, the population is scattered across small valley villages near castles, ancient ramparts, and romantic churches.  Our bus ride was brutal.  It was nearly 8 hours from Split to Sarajevo...8 hours of winding one- and two-lane mountain roads, barely wide enough for two cars to pass.  Yet we made it.  I'll talk about Sarajevo in a little, but first I'm going to talk a little about Bosnia as a whole.

I've never been to a country with such an extreme sense of national pride.  The Bosnian's have been through so much and their country is still in such bad shape, yet they are still the proudest people I've ever met.  If only Americans had 10% of the national pride that Bosnians have, we would live in a far better country.

Anyone who knows me can tell you that I ardently believe Clinton was the best US President since FDR.  Yet Clinton's (and the UN's) failings in regards to the Bosnian war are horrendous.  I'm reading a book, called Balkan Ghosts by Robert Kaplan, that is [allegedly] the book Clinton read that made him decide not to intervene in Bosnia in the early 90's.  Until the very end of the war, the US/UN refused to supply arms to the Bosnians or intervene in any way.  The UN only had forces on the ground to protect the Sarajevo airport and the Holiday Inn, where war correspondents were staying.  Yet eventually the US and the UN changed their course and decided to intervene.  As a result of this delay, Bosnians have a lot of built up frustration that's directed at the UN.  As one Bosnian that we met stated:

 The UN would not help us.  We pleaded.  They wouldn't help.  They said they could not supply us with weapons to defend ourselves in a civil war.  Women and children were being shot in the streets.  That is not civil war, that's genocide.  We were surrounded and helpless, but they wouldn't help.  And then, in 1995 when it finally looks like we will be able to win the war ourselves, the UN bombs the Serbians and ends the war.  When the Serbians Attacked Kosovo, the UN bombed the Serbians and ended the war in a few days.  Why not with us?  Why did so many have to die?

The Bosnian war ended in 1995 with the Peace of Dayton [Ohio].  (That's right, for some reason, the feuding parties in Bosnia were brought to Dayton, Ohio to end the war)  The civil war was fought between three local groups: Bosnians, fighting for independence, and Serbians and Croatians, both fighting to add Bosnia to their respective countries.  The Peace of Dayton could not be more clunky.  It divided Bosnia into three governmental regions, one for each ethnic group.  There are now three "presidents" of Bosnia and one "High Representative," selected by the Peace Implementation Council.  These individuals cycle through office in 8 month terms, so nothing gets done.  To further add to the confusion, Bosnia currently has over 52 political parties and, as we were told, nobody knows who to vote for so nothing gets changed.  A politician in Bosnia currently makes around 3,000 or 4,000 euros per month while the average salary for a normal Bosnian is between 300 and 400 euros per month.  Over 75% of Bosnia's annual budget goes to governmental administration.  Making matters even worse, a whopping 44% of the population is unemployed.  When the war ended, Bosnia was supposed to receive $11 billion in aid to rebuild the country.  They received $4 billion and the other $7 billion has been mysteriously "lost."

The above details about Bosnia paint a very drab and unfavorable image of the country.  Yet as one Bosnian told us, "There are so many reasons to come to Bosnia besides war.  When you go home, I hope that you will not encourage people to come here because of the war.  Encourage them because of the beauty of the country, the livelihood of Sarajevo, and the kindness of our people."  The country desperately wants to break free of it's image as a war-stricken place.  Sarajevo wanted to host the Winter Olympics again in 2010, but was turned down because of it's war-torn image.  The war-torn Bosnia in the minds of many is not the Bosnia of today.  It's such an amazing country and I hope that my pictures and future posts will do it justice.