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On
Kosovo
As
I am writing these thoughts, the headline of the Reno
Gazette Journal reads: "New Kosovo Atrocities Feared.
NATO Keeps Up Airstrikes." Over the last four weeks
we have witnessed scenes reminiscent of those of World
War II: thousands and thousands of people displaced;
families driven into and out of trains and cattle cars;
elderly refugees without basic necessities to keep warm
and protected; others without food and shelter; innocent
victims beings driven out of their homes by masked Serbians
ransacking the homes of ethnic Albanians and destroying
their identity cards. More than half of the people displaced
and without homes are children under the age of fifteen.
There
are no simple answers to the agonizing questions we
are all asking: Did NATO go in too soon? Could NATO
have done more than talk, but less than bomb? Can bombs
achieve "peace" or do they only fuel the fires
of destruction? Is it justified to destroy the infrastructure
of a country in order to stop genocide? How can we stop
the aggressive despotism of Slobodan Milosevic? Is he
like another Hitler, backed by his own elite and ready
to sacrifice the population of Yugoslavia?
I
wonder if diplomats have developed effective strategies
to solve conflicts other than through armed intervention.
Where are the negotiating tools to deal with ethic conflicts
that endanger the security of a country? How can we
resolve strife and prevent it from exploding into violence?
Why do we use euphemisms such as "ethnic cleansing"
instead of genocide? Does the fact that NATO is bombing
mean that the situation has already deteriorated to
such a degree that negotiations would be even more difficult
than they were a year ago or ten years ago?
People
everywhere wrestle with the problem of how they can
help. The events in Yugoslavia leave most of us helpless
- wishing we had answers, or better yet, solutions to
a crisis that seems to deepen with every day of continued
bombing. I'm afraid that all we can do at this point
is keep ourselves informed as best as possible and provide
some financial support to alleviate the misery of the
refugees.
Here
are some addresses of organizations that accept your
contributions. Please be generous.
-
American
Red Cross. International Response
Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013.
Tel. (800) HELP-NOW.
- Catholic
Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090; Baltimore,
MD 21203. Tel. (800) 736-3467
- Doctors
Without Borders, 6 E. 39th St., Eighth Floor;
NY, NY 10016. Tel. (888) 392-0392
- Oxfam
America. Kosovo Relief Fund,
26 West St. Boston, MA 02111. Tel. (800) 776-XFAM.
- International
Rescue Committee,
11 East 42nd, NY, NY 10168. (877) _ REFUGEE.
Viktoria
Hertling, Director
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