Talking It Over

I met some Bosnian war heroes last week. They weren't soldiers fighting for the Serbs, Croats or Moslems. They were Americans — men and women working tirelessly to promote peace and healing in the former Yugoslavia.

It was an unprecedented gathering at the White House to honor Americans for their relief efforts in Bosnia. It was also a quintessentially American event. Not only did it reflect our nation's unique ability to promote peace and reconciliation in regions divided by violent crises, it also served as an example of how people can transcend long-standing differences and work together for a larger cause.

During the ceremony, I had the privilege of announcing a courageous new project undertaken jointly by the Catholic Relief Services and the International Orthodox Christian Charities.

For the first time, these two religious groups have pledged to work together. They will join forces to train psychologists and social workers desperately needed in Bosnia to counsel children, women and men recovering from the emotional fallout of years of brutality and broken trust.

Countless children were orphaned following campaigns of violence and ethnic cleansing. Thousands of girls and women were raped. Rape is a face of every war, but in Bosnia, rape was used as a tactic of war.

Recovery from particularly vicious brands of violence promises to be one of the greatest challenges to peace in the months ahead. The ground-breaking cooperation between Catholic and Orthodox Christian relief agencies can help heal the emotional trauma and rebuild the trust.

Bishop John Ricard of Baltimore is chairman of the board of the Catholic Relief Services, and he told us that his group has already distributed 200,000 pairs of socks and 6,000 pairs of winter boots to Bosnian war victims — many of them children and women — as well as medicine for the local pediatric ward.

Relief workers from CRS also helped start a pasta factory that employs 500 people from the area and produces a staple of the local diet.

Like other humanitarian agencies, CRS doesn't choose its beneficiaries based on their religious beliefs. Anyone who needs help gets it.

In fact, the agency's workers meet each week with Croatian, Serbian, Moslem and Jewish aid workers to decide how to channel food, clothing and other items to their communities.

"It isn't always easy," the bishop said. "Centuries of animosity and resentment make this war an especially bitter one. I won't say that disagreements don't arise.

... Yet our experience has made us optimistic. It has given us a vision of what the future can hold for Bosnia. It has given us hope."

The International Orthodox Christian Charities is distributing food, infant formula and medical supplies to refugees in Bosnia and Serb-held territories, as Father Nicholas Triantafilou, chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North and South America, told the gathering.

We also heard from representatives of non-denominational organizations that are hard at work in Bosnia, providing food, clothing and medicine to refugees, winterizing homes, repairing gas and water lines, and training teachers for local schools.

Julia Taft, the president of InterAction, a collection of 150 humanitarian organizations, asked us all to spread the word about a new toll-free number that offers ways to help the people of Bosnia: 1-800-841-5872.

It's impossible to meet people like the men and women who gathered in the East Room of the White House and not be moved by the courage and compassion of Americans who are literally dodging bullets to save other people's lives.

A group called World Vision brought drawings by Bosnian children that were on display during the event. They are the best evidence I've seen that Americans are needed to help make peace in Bosnia. One showed a mine exploding on a sidewalk. Another was a 14-year-old's rendition of everyday life: soldiers standing with their rifles cocked, a cemetery of graves nearby. A third was of a missile dropping onto a house.

No people are better equipped than Americans to help rebuild a nation like Bosnia that has been torn apart by violence and war. We are a society whose strength derives from our racial, religious and ethnic diversity. And we have proven, after World War II and now at the conclusion of the Cold War, that we have a special role to play in bringing about reconciliation, forgiveness and healing.

Now is no time to recede from our commitments to peace around the world. When we hear about Bosnia, Haiti, the Middle East or Northern Ireland, let's not forget that behind the numbers, graphs and charts are faces of human suffering. By helping people achieve peace and freedom beyond our borders, we are creating a world that reflects our own American ideals. In the end, we are not just helping others. We are helping ourselves.

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There are also Americans on the front lines keeping peace in Bosnia so that relief workers can do their jobs. No Greater Love, a non-profit organization that supports our armed forces and their families, is asking citizens and schoolchildren to send valentines to our service men and women in Bosnia, who may be feeling especially lonely during this time.

The addresses are as follows: For Army and Air Force — No Greater Love; c/o Operation Joint Endeavor; APO AE 09391. For Navy and Marine Corps — No Greater Love; c/o Operation Joint Endeavor; FPO AE 09392.

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