The Stonar Way 22.11.24

Twenty-nine years ago this week a peace agreement known as the Dayton Accords was reached by the Presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia, ending the Bosnian War. Thirty years ago to this day, I was in Bosnia as part of the UN effort to bring about this peace. Following the death of Dictator Marshal Josef Tito, the Yugoslav Federation had broken up into ethnic factions, with Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims), Serbs and Croats all fighting each other for control.

Tito dominated Yugoslavia from the end of World War Two until his death in 1980. His somewhat benevolent dictatorship had held together a disparate group of peoples for forty years. However, once this unifying, dominant figure was no longer there, these same people quickly descended into bitter rivalry.

I was posted to a small town called Bugojno. When the fighting died down during the bitterly cold winter months, we sought to try and help the town piece together its shattered infrastructure. Much of our work was focused on getting schools running again in the hope that the latest ceasefire would hold and lead to a lasting peace. Our work with teachers and children had a profound impact on me that was certainly a factor in my post-military career choice.

As I reflect on recent elections in the UK and US, I see increasing division with both sides playing dirty, both using their platforms as partisan mouthpieces, both confusing and angering the public with disinformation. This reminds me too much of the early days of the Bosnian war, when neighbours turned against neighbours. Parents may remember the awful scenes of ethnic cleansing that we witnessed in the early 90s. Whilst I am not suggesting that political division in the UK and US will turn into ethnic cleansing, there are resonances in the US, in particular, of those early days post-Tito in Bosnia.

My own recollections are of a beautiful country and some wonderful people. I also have some memories of the results of shelling on children I would rather forget. A number of my fellow soldiers and officers returned this year to mark the thirtieth anniversary of our time there. Sadly, I was unable to go, but I look forward to returning one day to remember the good and the bad.