CROWN – Croatian World Network

We Won the War (op-ed) “It is high time for the “all sides equally guilty” refrain, the lie so dear to the heart of the West and the ICTY, to be finally thrown into history’s trash bin where it belongs.” This letter is also being faxed to Secretary of State Colin Powell, NSA Condoleezza Rice, Senators Biden, Lugar, Leahy, Boxer, Feinstein, McCain, Kerry, Feingold and Representatives Cox and Radanovich. Please send letters to your own Senators and Congressmen as well as Pres.Bush and Sec. Powell. President George W. Bush Oct. 16, 2003 The White House Washington, D.C. 20500 Dear President Bush: It is appalling to read that the U.S. Administration has offered 5 million for the information and/or capture of Croatia’s General Gotovina, who is indicted by the ICTY for “command responsibility”. If command responsibility is the criteria for indictments of armed forces officers, then American officers should be equally open to indictments when their troops, without their command or knowledge commit war crimes. Such indictments are of course wrong and the fear of them is precisely the reason why this Administration refuses to sign on to the International War Crimes Court. Commanders should not be made responsible for their individual soldiers’ or troops’ war crimes. Nevertheless, your Administration demands the extradition of Croatia’s General Gotovina, while at the same time badgering Croatia to wave any U.S. forces’ culpability in commitment of war crimes. It is an outrageous double standard – made even more grievous by offering money for the capture of an honorable general, innocent of the crimes he is charged with, and equating him with the likes of Osana bin Laden, Hussein and the Serb war criminals and mass murderers general Mladic and Karadzic. It would behoove the Administration to remember that it was Croatia and General Gotovina’s leadership during the liberation of Serb-held Croatian territory that also led to the defeat of the Bosnian Serbs in a large part of Bosnia, even though the West assumed that Bosnia was a lost cause. That defeat forced Serbia’s Milosevic to come to the peace negotiations in Dayton which finally ended four years of war. It took Croatia to stop a war that none of the Western Powers were willing to stop. It is high time for the “all sides equally guilty” refrain, the lie so dear to the heart of the West and the ICTY, to be finally thrown into history’s trash bin where it belongs. Sincerely, Hilda M. Foley American Croatian Association 13272 Orange Knoll Santa Ana, CA 92705-2258

To Leave or not to Leave ? Letters to the Editor The Washington Post 1150 15th Street Northwest Washington, DC 20071 Dear Editor, With debate in this country now raging about the scope and duration of the current US military mission in Iraq, it is prescient to examine our recent role in Bosnia (“Troops May Leave Bosnia In ’04, Commander Says” World News,Oct 11). Thomas Ricks notes that the US military commander for Europe, Marine Gen. James Jones, recently stated that “we’re seeing in Bosnia a real potential for ending the military mission there and transitioning to…(a solely civilian presence)”. But, with the Pentagon now declaring de-facto “success” in Bosnia, one must wonder what about future benchmarks for success in Iraq. After eight years in Bosnia post Dayton, while there is no longer war, there is also no permanent foundation for peace and stability. The major cause is that Bosnia is still a divided country today, ruled like a military “pro-consul” by the Office of the High Representative. The Bosnian Serbs, via their “Republika Serpska – RS” mini-state, tightly control 49% of the entire country (even though they made up only 31% of the population before the war started). According to the UN, the RS continues to harbor the top two most-wanted war criminals, Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic and continues to discourage minority refugee returns. The RS still maintains it’s own, independent army, beyond the control of the central government. Adding to this unstable environment is rife corruption and an approximately 40% unemployment rate. Given these factors, it is hard to imagine how the Pentagon can now declare success and pull out. If these benchmarks are any guide, this does not bode well for the future of Iraq. Sincerely yours, Anthony Margan