THE WORKERS Aid convoy is currently unloading the bulk of its aid into Bosnian refugee camps in Croatia or into warehouses for movement into Bosnia at a later date.
The current military situation linked to the role of UNPROFOR has meant that it has not been able to get into Bosnia at this stage.
A small part of the convoy involving Swedish Workers Aid, Danish Workers Aid, plus parts of the convoy from BelBOSNIA CONVOY gium and Britain are continuing to research ways of beating the blockade through developing more detailed local knowledge of the military and political situation.
The Union of Autonomous Unions of Croatia has given unstinting support to the convoy and provided a permanent office in their Zagreb headquarters.
Over the last month it became increasingly clear that the convov would have extreme difficultly reaching Tuzla, given the developing military and political situation in the region.
Hardening attitude The refusal of the Bosnian Government to accept ethnic partition resulted in an intensification of the military campaigns and a hardening of the attitude of both the Serbian and Croatian regimes as they prepared their winter campaigns with starvation as a part of their strategy.
Despite this political and military reality the convoy has been a huge success. Whilst getting through to Tuzla would have been a tremendous achievement, delivering aid to Bosnians who have been the victims of Serbian or Croatian aggression or the victims of ethnic cleansing in occupied parts of Bosnia is consistent with the aims of International Workers Aid and indeed one of its original objectives.
It is necessary to stress again, the Workers Aid convoy has been the only working class response to one of the greatest crimes perpetrated in Europe since the defeat of Hitler.
It has raised the issue of the defence of Bosnia, the right of self defence, the lifting of the arms embargo, opposition to the policies of the Serbian and Croatian regimes and to the horrors of ethnic cleansing in the workers movement across Europe.
Possibly its greatest success has been the bonds built between the convoy and the workers movements in Croatia and Slovenia.
Reprinted on this page is a remarkable appeal on behalf of the Bosnian people, to the trade unions in Western Europe, from the UATUC, the biggest trade union federation in Croatia. All this would have been impossible without a convoy on the road.
Workers Aid now needs to consolidate its achievements and organise to step up the campaign on a stronger and Euro pean wide basis.
The convoy has resulted in the establishment of sister campaigns in a number of other European countries which are rooted in the Labour movement and have only just begun to realise their potential.
International Workers Aid is well placed to continue to organise both aid convoys and international solidarity with the Bosnian people on an ongoing basis.
This is why the Workers Aid conference on October 30 and the international meeting on October 31 are so important.