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M. Pejanovic, THROUGH BOSNIAN EYES XII. THE GENEVA PEACE TALKS The Presidency selected and prepared the delegation that would take part in the Geneva peacetalks. The original Platform on the work of the Presidency in wartime was proposed as the foundation for the delegation's position, augmented by a few suggestions. An expanded session of the Presidency was called, attended by representatives of all parliamentary parties. At this session it was agreed that since this was to be a Bosnian state delegation, its structure should reflect the essential character of Bosnia, and therefore be multiethnic and pluralist. Haris Silajdzic, then a member of the SDA and Foreign Minister, was appointed head of the delegation: he was already abroad at the time. Other delegation members included Professor Muhamed Filipovic, Deputy President of the MBa and a Member of Parliament; Miro Lazovic, Member of Parliament and representative of the SDP, the largest opposition party; and myself as a member of the Presidency. As for expert members, Constitutional Court judge Kasim Trnka was nominated, along with Professor Dragoljub Stojanov of the Economics Faculty. Sarajevo was then in a state of total ground siege. Available air transport was provided by the United Nations, chiefly to deliver humanitarian aid, and even that was frequently interrupted. It was finally announced that we would travel in UNPROFOR Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs) to Butmir, Igman and Hadzio, and then make our way by road to Mostar and Split. It was a risky departure, since in those days leaving Sarajevo was virtually impossible. On the morning of 16 September, the delegation set off, traveling in APCs. There was atypical morning mist below Mount Igman. We stopped at the former Institute of Culture, where representatives of the local authorities and the commander of the local unit of the Bosnian Army were expecting us. Her~ I had the chance to meet 159 M. Pejanovic, THROUGH BOSNIAN EYES '. several of my friends from before the war, including Zaim Lokvancic. After a warm greeting, and questions about thefamily, Zaim briefly disappeared, and a selection of fresh-picked plums and apples suddenly arrived on the table. This was a real restorative for usSarajevans, since the siege deprived us of any fresh supplies. The local army commander now implored us to think hard about the conditions for traveling over Igman, for the road from Hrasnica to the forested lower slopes of Igman had been shelled twice already, as had the descent from Igman to the village of Lokve. The commander's advice was that we should wait until the situation changed. We all looked at each other, and Professor Filipovic asked, "What shall we do?" I answered: "We are going to carry on - even under shelling." Filipovic agreed, and we set off once more. When . we drew near Lokve,'which had no forest cover, our column of two APCs was shelled. Resad Hadrovic, a Sarajevo writer and journalist, was in the same vehicle as 1. He was leaving the city after considerable suffering, since an op~ration was needed to save his eyesight. We sat pressed against one another, trying to cope with our fear, as shells started falling close by. One hit the vehicle, but we were saved by the readiness of the French soldiers to keep moving, and none of us panicked. . We had a short rest between Konjic and Jablanica, where, for the first time, we found ourselves in free territory, with no trace of shelling or other military action. We refreshed ourselves with water from a spring, and felt revived. Just then a group of children, ten to twelve years old, came by. Professor Filipovic asked, "Hey, kids, where are you from?" They replied they were from Gacko. Refugee families from East Herzegovina had alreadyre-created their lives in the Neretva valley. When we left the valley, we took the paved road to Siroki Brijeg, via Dreznica, and from Siroki Brijeg to Split, arriving around nine in the evening. We were tired and dusty. We flew from Split airport to Zagreb, where we took the plane to Geneva. Here the Bosnian . representative to the United Nations, Mustafa Bijedic, was waiting for us. As we left the airport for Hotel Eden, where we were booked to stay, our eyes still retained their vision of the empty streets and ruined buildings of our Sarajevo. The next day we had a meeting with Silajdzic, who had been waiting in Geneva for our arrival. We lunched together in the Hotel 160 [18.119.107.96...

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