Rally for peace in Bosnia

Story and photo
by Jon Lamb

SYDNEY -- More than 800 people rallied and marched here on July 17 to protest against the continuing acts of violence and aggression towards women and children in Bosnia-Hercegovina.

To chants of “Stop the killings, stop the rapes”, the protesters made their way to the offices of the United Nations, where they were addressed by a range of speakers and activists.

The Australian Women's Committee (AWC), a coalition of women from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, organised the rally to highlight the inadequate response of the international community to the continuing Serbian aggression.

Many speakers and participants were critical of the role of the UN and the arms embargo, which has aided the better-armed Serbian forces since hostilities began.

Paula Aboud, a spokesperson for Migrant Women Speakout, told of the impact of rape and sexual abuse used against Muslim women. “Rape is a standard form of combat against women and children ... official failure to punish this gives it overt political sanction.” There are at least 45,000 reported cases of rape, resulting in 20,000 unwanted pregnancies. Of the displaced population of the former Yugoslavia, 70-80% are women and children.

The president of the NSW United Nations Association of Australia, Keith Suter, called on the participants to pressure the Australian government to ensure the creation of an international war crimes tribunal. His speech was met with angry shouts from the crowd and chants of “Lift the blockade”.

Wafa Chafic from AWC responded by questioning the double standards of the UN in dealing with disputes. “Where there is a will there is a way ... there was a will in Iraq, why not in Bosnia-Hercegovina?”

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