|
Gathering
for Peace in Braunau
Have
you ever heard of Braunau am Inn, a quiet little town
(17, 500 inhabitants) close to Salzburg, Austria? It
is the place where Adolf Hitler was born in 1889. This
"hot spot" on the historical maps of Europe
hosts an annual meeting concerned with contemporary
history - the Braunauer Zeitgeschichte-Tage -
founded in 1992 by the mayor of Braunau, Gerhard Skiba,
and Andreas Maislinger, (Dr. Maislinger, a political
scientist, is also the Chairman of the Auslandsdienst
program that sent Andreas Feuerstein and Heinz Bösch
to the Center for HGPS for a 14-month internship.) This
year´s gathering was entitled "Notwendige
Begegnungen" (Necessary Encounters) and focused
on the present conflict in former Yugoslavia.
The
3-day meeting covered the following topics:
- History of flight and expulsion in the 20th century
- the Serbian myth
- the present situation and mechanisms of reconciliation.
Tilman
Zuelch, president of the Society for Threatened Peoples,
Germany’s biggest human rights organization after
Amnesty International, gave a speech on the history
of war and expulsion in this century and showed parallels
between the present situation in former Yugoslavia and
dozens of other conflicts. He shared insights gathered
from his numerous visits to the region. Mr. Zuelch especially
elaborated on the fact that, often, there is no clear
line between who is a victim and who is an aggressor.
He showed that roles frequently flip-flop when the balance
of power changes. He demonstrated this with an example
from Kosovo: When the Serbian army had been stopped
by NATO air-raids, parts of the once-persecuted Albanian
population in Kosovo began expelling Serbs and other
minorities (especially Gypsies) from Kosovo. "Today’s
victims are tomorrow’s potential persecutors"
was his central message.
In
his view, a possible solution lies in a general reconciliation
that would include ethnic minorities’ rights to
autonomy.
In
a discussion with representatives of the groups involved
in the Balkan Wars, the audience was told how they were
struggling to get along, both presently and with a view
toward the future. Although the published agenda indicated
that the Secretary Ambassador of the Republic of Yugoslavia
would participate in this event, he refused to do so,
citing the "heritage" of Braunau as the reason
for his absence.
During
the discussion, Milorad Mateovic of the Serbian Center
in Vienna, Austria said he could accept reconciliation
if the Albanian Kosovars would remain in the Union with
Serbia; Quasim Berisha of the Albanian Society in Vienna
desired reconciliation only if the Republic of Kosovo
were to be acknowledged by Serbia. Both representatives
debated in a friendly manner; and the situation only
got controversial when Mr. Mateovic was was questioned
about his opinion of Slobodan Milosevic. He refused
to comment on that issue. (It should be stated, though,
that Mr. Mateovic has had his life threatened.)
Another
discussion took place among the editors of Radio Nachbar
in Not (Neighbor in Need), a radio program for ethnic
groups of former Yugoslavia concerning all emerging
issues.
Although
the editors were of different ethnic backgrounds, they
were able to overcome their differences and behave as
a single team with a single mission: to provide information
services for and to everyone in former Yugoslavia. They
described their daily work and explained the history
of Radio Nachbar in Not.
Clearly,
the most controversial part of the event was a presentation
of "The Serbian Myth," held by Malte Olschewski,
a respected Austrian TV journalist. He presented the
conflict from the Serbian point of view, an aspect hardly
ever shown in western media.
Mr.
Olschewski’s stand was clearly pro-Serb; and with
a speech and a video documentary (which has never been
shown by any European broadcasting company), he tried
to point out that the Serbian population is a people
that has been suppressed for centuries by the rest of
Europe. Recently this suppression has taken the form
of one-sided journalism (not to mention the several
NATO/UN missions, on yet another level).
During
the heated discussion that followed, a few participants
left the forum in protest.
The
meeting concluded with speeches on mechanisms of reconciliation
by Werner Falk, Member of the Board of the German Aktion
Sühnezeichen (Action Reconciliation Service for
Peace - comparable to the Austrian Gedenkdienst) and
Martin Stieger, representative of the Austrian P.O.W.
association.
Mr.
Falk stated that four elements are vital for his organization
in the process of reconciliation: trustworthiness, intensive
quest for the truth, taking action toward reconciliation,
and patience.
"How
can the deaf engage in a dialogue with the mute?"
was the starting point for Mr. Stieger. He showed how
difficult it is to set up lines of communication when
the victims do not want to listen to the former perpetrators
who, themselves, are not able to speak.
Both
speakers agreed that taking responsibility for crimes
committed and accepting the burden of guilt for them,
are the central issues in starting a process of reconciliation.
For
further information on these issues:
Heinz
Bösch, Austrian Gedenkdienst Intern
|
