🚀 go-pugleaf

Let the sunflower blossom again (update 4)
------------------------------------------

The sunflower-idea and update 2+3 is available from
http://www.ddh.nl/org/balkansunflower

Ein deutsche version:
http://www.ddh.nl/org/balkansunflower/deutsch

Balkansunflowers
c/o Wam Kat
Postfach 1219
14806 Belzig
+49/(0)33841/595 33 (fax) 88
wam@mir.org

Int. Coordination Office
------------------------

For the time being this international coordination office can be here in
Germany, in the coming days we hope to organize some extra telephones lines
and already have established the possibility that people who like to help in
this international coordination point can come and stay and work here for a
while, we take care about sleeping places and food.

Still I hope that this office can be established in the future elsewhere in
Europe (maybe elsewhere in Germany or in Italia f.e.). I think it is needed
to have such a place somewhere, and rather outside of Albania and Macedonia,
simply because the telephone and other infra structure lines overthere are
limited. We had already that experience in the beginning of SunCokret in
Croatia. The situation in Albania and Macedonia is however worst.

National Coordination Point
---------------------------

Already 5 countries has been reacting, but I hope that in the coming days
more organisations/persons will sent a small note so that I can include in
the next update a long list.

International Advisory Committee
--------------------------------

It would be good to establish an Int. Advisory Committee in which each
organisation, each netzwork, what join this action in one way or another can
have a place if they want to. This committee will meet each month by
internet (email) in order to evaluate what is going on, and to make
adjustments in the plan and its activities if needed. I am really stressing
this point since I think it is absolute important to build up this
initiative as an international one, rather than national. And (political)
decisions has to been taken international and together. Hope that somebody
has an idea how we can get such a thing organised with the internet as
medium.

Humanitarian aid
----------------

Lots of reactions came from people asking how, what and when they could
collect humanitarian aid and how to get in down there. Ofcourse the simple
answer is send money, but nevertheless ofcourse you can start collecting
materials. If you can't bring them to the area yourself just drop a note, I
have already a group of drivers who are willing to drive and the experience
is that somewhere there will be some trucks also.

What kind of aid. Ofcourse Clothes, but take care, controll and wash them
before putting them on transport. Almost teh half of clothes we recieved in
Croatia and Bosnia were not useable, esle then to burn them. And that counts
for almost everything.

In SunCokret grow a special department f.e. for medical aid. Every box which
came in was controlled and up to 60% of the medicines were not more as
chemical waste. This sounds hard, but it was the reality. Lets avoid it this
time.

Toys, remember that a lot of Kosovarians are Islam, a different type of
Islam like in the middle east, but still. Some Imans will forbid that
children play with f.e. tedybears. But besides from that dolls and tedybears
are important, often it is the only member of the family which a refugee
child still has.

Travel and staying costs
------------------------

Suncokret volunteers paid their own trip to Croatia and 200 Dm for three
weeks (used to pay for food and stay). We paid for working in those camps
since we didn't want that any money donanted to the refugees was used for
us.  In most countries however networks were formed bringing people without
money in contact with people with money. And a lot of our volunters had
organised their own fundraising at home in order to pay. This last
possibility I like the best, ask your direct environment for support,
involve them in your action. If that isn't possible and you still like to
come, but haven't a slidest idea how to finance it, please contact us, there
always most be a way.

Support-account
---------------

The support account is not ready yet, so you have to wait till the next
update, but it is in the making.

Not only Macedonia and Albania
------------------------------

Why going to Albania and Macedonia, why not Greece (where already thousand
of refugees has arrived via the green borders), USA (where 20.000 refugees
will be placed at an USA basis on Cuba), Bosnia (in Bosnia (Sarajevo) not
only refugees from Kosovo, but also from Sandjak (a muslim area in Serbia)
and still those from the Bosnian war 1992-1995), Turkey (We has big camps
near to Bulgaria of 5.000 and more refugees from Kosovo) or in my home
country, where the first Kosovo refugees already arrived. And why with
Kosovo refugees, why not with those from Bosnia, or from any other country
for that matter. The answer ofcourse why not, if somebody likes to organize
it, please don't hesitate. For the time being I concentrate my efforts on
Albania and Macedonia.

Contacts in Macedonia and Albania
---------------------------------

Slowly the contacts are getting build up, in all countries there are now
establsihed contacts with people who will prepare the arrival of the first
pathfinder teams (still people needed). The pathfinders are still needed
since most of the contacts we have now downthere are people who are working
themselves already for organisations who are understaffed facing the
problems.

Some words from Vanja
---------------------

My name appeared in Wam's messages as unother contact name..so I would like
to introduce myself and to write few words (pages?)....
Vanja Nikolic (31yrs), from Osijek, Croatia, living in Zagreb.Involved in
peace/humrights activities within AntiwarCampaignNetworkCroatia since spring
1992. (Centre for peace Osijek, Direc protection for hum.rights Zagreb,
Volunteers project Pakrac, office of AntiwarCampaign Zagreb, Zamir-zg bbs
/ztn network,...and presently Centre for Peace Studies - coordinator of the
peace studies program in Zagreb).

I am tired of dealing with horror of war violence, and in past weeks am
collecting the last atoms of energy to do something constructiv connected
with this horror in Serbia/Kosov@.
I am ready to support Wam's idea to start the Balkan's Sunflower (or
Sunflower2 - maybe would be good to find the albanian word for it?) but,
(for time being) only as much as I can do it out of here in Zagreb. My
present job  (alternative peace studies program -somthing like civic/peace
education for adults) keeps me in Zagreb. Also, there is (without hiding it)
the acceptance of my own human capacity, and admitting it would be way too
much to now quit everything I am doing here and to immmediatly travell to
Macedonia.

Grassroots initiatives like Wam's idea of starting the new Sunflower in
Macedonia/Albania, I am allways ready to support. I did  work with Wam for
severall years in Pakrac and in Zagreb and that's unother reason why I
immediatly signed up for helping out here (in my own capacity).
There are many ideas floating now arround. Many ideas for peace marches and
caravans. Well, I ask everybody to think twice, or more times before
starting or getting involved in those caravanes. According to Cro and BiH
experienced it didn't do much good, and it was really tirering for local
activists....

Also, when intending to get involved in any initiative (now talking about
this Balkan Sunflowers) I ask you  give yourself a time to think and
question why are you doing it and what is your own motivation and
expectation. Working for few years in Int.volunteers project I am more than
sure that being clear and aware of your own motivation is of extreeme
importance. Also  the expectations...
1. you are not going to stop the war in few weeks
2. describe your own motivation without using the word "Help"...as it is
self-understandible that most of people do want to help... (it is important
to find out whom do I help..to others, to myself, to human race, to my own
ego..)
3. do you run away from your own personal troubles in your own life, by
packing your bags and travelling to war-region?
4. do you dream of yourself as a heroo once you are back home?
5. do you think that you are more clever, educated and "civilised" than
those
people down on Balkans, so you plan to go down there and tell them what to
do?
6. did you practise conflict resolution and mediation so dream about
yourself
going there and doing the workshops on 9 steps on how to solve conflict
7. do you see it as great adventorous "holliday" ......
8. do you think of it as a very good line in your c.v.
9. how your own action can be of benefit and how much it can harm people in
war-region..
10. do you have some your "on-side agenda".. to use this for campaign,
research..
11. are you healthy and psychicly stable enough so once you come there you
can really be  "of help" and not a person who will suck the energy of the
team and local people....
12. are you ready to live for few weeks in chaotic, hard, cold
conditions...among the people who are  going trough horror, .....are you
ready for cultural shock, for not hearing your own language (for not English
speakers) for the all time you are there
13. are you raedy that maybe you are not going to be able to daily
communicate with your family, relatives and friends back at home
14. are you ready that you will come to the war-region and find out that you
acctually do not have any clue what's going on..
15. are you aware of your own prejudices of people from different cultures
and different countries, and do you have a coping mechanism to deal with
it..........

There are so, so many questions for your to ask yourself before applying to
go there. And, be prepared that as much as you prepare yourself, you are
never going to be prepared :))
And, this list of questions...it is not with aim to stop you in
applying...it is more for you to think and be aware of it. Motivations for
activism differ from person to person...and it is ok, but the worst is if
you are not hiding your own motivations from even yourself, or when you are
not aware of your own motivations....
......
Why do I write this "black story".... I find it important, for the sake of
the project, of the people from region, for your own sake.
There is also this exellent, other positiv part of the story. Yes, it is
place to learn, to grow, to feel usefull and creative and constructive. It
is place to make friends, to do  and experience something great. It can
change your life attitudes and paths....This positiv part I leave for Wam to
write about. :))

and .....Of course I feel powerless when thinking how all this horror could
be stopped. And I am not kidding myself that I can stop it. And, of course I
do care for all the victims of the violence. And of course I do believe that
small steps, grassroots initiatives, even though small are of extreeme
importance....

with best wishes
vanja

from Wam 10 April 1999
----------------------

Sorry, I can't help to write a personal note. For 7 years I wrote my diary
each day and I don't how many hunderdthausend were reading it once and a
while. A small note with other words. The 10th Juli I spend in the Harz, in
the middle of Germany in nice spring weather. I went to the Harz not to see
the beauty, although it was hard to oversee. But to be present at the moment
that two stones were place as monuments remembering that at this places for
54 years ago people were packed here in SS-camps to work on the realisation
of the production of the V1 and V2. In the Harz almost 50.000 died as
KZ-prisoners in the camp of Mittelbau-Dora and it�s side camps. Werner von
Braun the technical leader of this operation is also known as god-father of
the weapons now used in Yugoslavia.

People who survived this hells on earth and the dead marches on the end can
in some way imagen what can be happening in the Balkan at this moment. They
just have to remember their own situation for 55 years ago. Therefor I was
impressed that these people call upon a stop of the bombing in Yugoslavia
and asked for new iniatives to solve wars without weapons. And that they
call upon the world to help the victims.

The people who died in Mittelbau-Dora were mostly political prisoners, among
them only a small amount of jews, from whom a lot has been part of the
(armed) resistance against the NAZI regime. Therefor I really was impressed
that such people, who alreadly ones in their live took up weapons asked now
to find new peacefull ways to solve problems.