Schools in B&H Federation - Parallel Curriculae

No Class-Rooms for Returnee Children

AIM Sarajevo, 12 September, 1999

In Zepce, 311 children of Bosniac refugees did not start school - local authorities do not approve of these children attending classes in the existing school buildings according to the federal curriculum. In this municipality, the main curriculum is the so-called "Croat" one. Their parents, Bosniac returnees blocked one of the main roads - they demand resignation of the officials in charge of education on all levels. The Cantonal minister of education in the government of Zenicko-Dobojski Canton, Kemal Celebic, says that such a demand for resignation was not handed to him, and that those addressed to media he did not recognise. To the question what his view was of the problem of 311 children who had not started the school year and whether he considered the possibility of resigning, he answered: "Out of 78 thousand school children, only 300 have not started the school year" (?!) He further clarifies that municipal authorities do not permit them to attend school according to the federal curricula and that this is a case of violation of the Cantonal law by municipal authorities and that if anyone should consider resigning, then there are many who should - from the municipality to the Office of the High Representative (OHR), which is unable to solve these problems, says Celebic.

In Bugojno, at the same time, about 250 children enrolled in the First Elementary School, who are mostly children of Croat returnees, attend school in a small room of the vestry of St. Ante Church. The children sit "on top of each other" under a low roof supported by bare beams, with two or three grades in different corners of the room. Teachers make a time-table according to which different grades will use the "classroom". Only thanks to the good will of the local parish priest they were given a hall which they are now dividing and making two real classrooms: "At this moment we need at least eight classrooms, and in the existing schools in Bugojno there is plenty of extra room", says school director Stipe Saric. Local authorities in this region (coalition of the Party of Democratic Action) do not see fit to provide classrooms for this school in the existing school buildings although the Office of High Representative (OHR) explicitly demanded it. Their stand is that this is introduction of ethnic classes and that they will not permit it. Federal minister of education Fahrudin Rizvanbegovic says about this specific case that there is not 250 or more children but only (!?) 58 of them and that people often manipulate figures.

Similar problems in the beginning of the school year appeared in Stolac, Capljina, Vares. Classes take place in churhes, cafes, cellars, private homes: "In 18 schools there are demands for parallel curricula", says Rizvanbegovic. He believes that the only solution is in common curriculae. His "partner" in the ministry, deputy minister Josip Musa, says that the Croats in B&H will never agree to common curricula because that would mean unitarisation, imposing togetherness by measure of one of the ethnic groups, and this, he says in Hrvatska rijec: "The Croats have already tasted in former Yugoslavia through persecution, dungeons..." While Rizvanbegovic claims that his colleague Musa does not seriously mean to accept working on the drafted common curricula, the job which 98 experts from whole of B&H Federation are said to be engaged on, deputy minister says that representatives of Bosnian Croats did not participate in drafting of the curricula, and that there is nothing in them that would indicate to the Croats that they are subjects and that they are equal in B&H. Rizvanbegovic answers by giving the list of names of those who drafted the curricula: Vera Kac, Marija Vlasic, Franjo Lujnovic, Boskica Visic, Vlado Puljic, Ilija Rozic, Katica Cerkez, Vladimir Vego, Miljenko Milos, Jago Musa and others.

To the question whether he is considering the possibility of resigning if he does not manage to resolve these problems - find arguments to convince federal partners or make them reach a compromise - federal minister answers by a counter-question: "Do you think that this a problem of the ministry of education? It is a political problem of the first order, and not a problem that should be resolved by experts. This is a topic for the Forum of the Federation". His deputy Musa probably does not think about submitting his resignation either - for days now he is running from one meeting to the other and he has no time even for media. President of B&H Federation Ivo Andric Luzanski and vice-president Ejup Ganic are unable to reach an agreement, they have no time for media either. Only an advisor of Andric Luzanski says that he believes that these are not big problems and that the president is not contemplating resignation either.

At this moment top priority should be given to reaching an agreement and finding classrooms for the pupils. But Rizvanbegovic says: "Last year they also attended school in unnatural conditions and there is no other solution but commom curricula". Asked whether there is space in the existing schools for those who would attend school working according to different curricula, he answers: "Yes, but if that were not manipulated!".

About the fact that children do not go school nobody seems to be worried. The experience of teachers with children of returnees shows that especially those in upper grades of elementary school have difficulties during the period of adaptation which follows after change of curricula. Problems also arise when they miss a part of the teaching which will happen to those who will begin the school year with a delay - they will have to attend supplementary classes which is also an additiona burden for them. Psychologists warn against danger which arises due to attending school in unnatuiral conditions and remind of the experience of Sarajevo in war conditions when the children went to schools which were located in cellars or some other improvised space.

At the same time it is hard to understand why mathematics, foreign languages, chemistry, biology or other subject which do not belong in the group of ethnic subjects cannot have a common curriculum, and why the question of ethnic ones, such as mother tongue or religion cannot be resolved by some kind of a compromise - with the status of an optional subject, for instance. After all, there are numerous examples that this is possible - the Catholic School Centre in Sarajevo, schools in Konjic and another few places.

In OHR they say that their ideal is a common curriculum for the whole state, and until this is achieved it is necessary to respect the wish of returnee parents. Indeed, along with employment and a roof above their heads, as a condition for endurable return, they mention ethnic curricula. Pragmatic individuals in the school system, in both ethnic camps say that for the wise men in the ministry the most important objective should be - the shortest and the cheapest possible way to textbooks for all the children in B&H - the same textbooks but in three linguistic variants.

And while return of "everybody to their own" is increasingly insisted on, the minister of education in the government of the Republic of Srpska, Nenad Suzic, announces: "As long as I am the minister, there will be no commom curricula". This could mean that returnee children in B&H, especially nowadays when return from RS to B&H Federation and vice versa is intensified, will still have to face numerous problems. Will B&H, apart from being one of the poorest, be also one of the most illiterate countries in Europe or is this too perhaps in the interest of the state?

Rubina CENGIC

(AIM Sarajevo)