MOSTAR - A YEAR LATER

AIM, SPLIT, July 22, 1995 When on July 23, 1994, the European Administration in Mostar started work, its mandate, among other, included the provision that it was necessary to "help create possibilities for return of displaced citizens of Mostar to their homes". A year later - the first half of the two-year mandate of the European Administration - not only that the displaced have not returned to their homes, but every day only 250 people (read - women, the elderly and children, but not military eligible males) may cross from one side to the other of the divided city.

In a specific "balance sheet" of the European Administration in Mostar after a year of its operation published in the past few days it is stated that it "persistently attempted to accomplish more progress in freedom of movement, but so far it was impossible to achieve an agreement about is between the Boshniaks and Croats". Indirectly, the Croat side of Mostar is pointed at as the reason for this, because it is stated that "the Croats think that it is still too early for major steps in this sphere - the people have still not forgotten the war, and that increase of freedom of movement could cause problems in the sphere of public safety." But, even without freedom of movement there are enough problems in the sphere of public safety. Recently, even Hans Koschnik himself, EU Mostar Administrator, compared this city with 1932 Chicago. He likes to stress often that criminals on both sides cooperate more and better than the two police forces. They say in the European Administration that the Croat party is opposed to a rapid development of a joint police force, as agreed by the Memorandum on Understanding with the Muslim and the European party.

There are 150 European policemen on duty in Mostar, almost half of them being from Germany, and the others from France, the Netherlands, Portulgal, Spain, Britain, Italy and Luxembourg. They assist the recently established joint police command, and they started with policemen on both sides of the city and joint patrols along the separation lines. In the Western part of Mostar, the European Administration says, there is still a large crime problem. Primarily, a large number of cars is stolen, many of which are property of international organizations. For that reason, towards the end of June, the police forces from the Western and the Eastern city signed an agreement called "Paris Steering-Wheel" pursuant to which they should cooperate in investigations concerning theft of vehicles.

A day before the European Administration entered upon office, on June 22, 1994, the city was demilitarized, and until the end of March this year it was mostly obeyed even by the Serbs located in Podvelezje. They violated the agreement on demilitariazation in December last year when they killed two girls, and since the end of March they have been shelling the city quite frequently.

The city is equally affected by this problem in all its parts and perhaps that is the only thing it is united in. The Croats insist that Mostar should have two municipalities in the future, and the Boshniaks want a united Mostar. They believe that the Croat proposal about two municipalities might be understood as acknowledgement of the results of war and of the de facto division of the city. The Europeans, as for example, the EU Ambassador Klaus Metscher, believe that Mostar can never be as it used to be, but it can neither be accepted to have the city "divided as it is now. We really do not wish to create ethnic ghettos. But is is also quite clear to us that ethnic communities must be left sufficient autonomy in order to enable them to secure what they call their national identity, meaning that they must have sufficient autonomy in culture, education, etc."

As concerning education, so far, school buildings are repaired for 12 thousand Mostar students. Twelve elementary school buildings have already been repaired, and repairment of three more is still under way. In August, complete reconstruction of two secondary schools will begin. Further renovation of secondary schools, people from the European Union say, depends on the political decision concerning joint education and free access to schools for all students. These preconditions have not been fulfilled yet in the divided city. Apart from the schools, historic buildings are renovated, too, as well as the library and the archives of Herzegovina.

So far, well over three and a half lightly damaged housing units have already been renovated in Mostar. In the Eastern part of the city, repair of 400 heavily and medium damaged buildings has also begun. But, many buildings 70 per cent or more of which was damaged will be torn down.

For a long time, water was a great problem for the city on the Neretva river, as well as electric power supply. In the past year the European Administration has succeeded in bringing water to all parts of the city except its elevated zones, where this problem was topical even before the war. The waterworks were damaged during the war, and 35 kilometres of them have been repaired. About 40 kilometres are left to be done, and then the present losses amounting to 50 per cent of the water will be eliminated. Since March the electric power supply has been sufficient for the households, but the city with a few hydro- electric power plants cannot supply industrial facilities. In fact, there are no industrial facilities either, so majority of the people in the city are unemployed. For that reason, the European Administration has initiated a program for investment support of large public enterprises (textiles, concrete, metal constructions and equipment, fruit and juices, storage equipment) and a program for support of small enterprises which was allocated almost 13 million German marks. This support refers primarily to renovation of buildings and working premises, but purchasing of equipment and machinery, too. The budget of the European Administration in 1994 amounted to 61 million German marks, and this year it is 152 million marks. Besides the listed items, money is spent for resumption of health services, telecommunications, humanitarian aid and similar. Only public kitchens prepare 15 thousand meals a day.

Mostar is nowadays overcrowded with refugees and until their problem is not solved, citizens of Mostar who are refugees themselves will hardly have where to return. The problem of return of banned persons to their homes, as they believe in the European Asdministration, must be resolved on the level of the Federation of B&H, in order to enable people who have come from other cities and places to return to their respective homes. This is a precondition for the return of the citizens of Mostar to theirs.

Bridges will be needed for the return and for living. Not just those which are being constructed by the Europeans - they are building two pedestrian bridges right now - but also bridges which would connect citizens of Mostar, and which can be built only by themselves. The one that was dearest to them all, the Hajrudin's, is at the bottom of the Neretva river as a memory to Mostar which exists no more. It depends on the people in and around Mostar what it will be like. The mandate of the Europeans expires next year, and they are the ones who will stay.

GORAN VEZIC