Distrugerea Jugoslaviei constituie, dupa opinia mea, un punct de reper major in istoria Europei. Acest eveniment, ale carui consecinte grave pe termen lung pot fi doar banuite, a modificat geografia politica a sud-estului european si constituie, foarte probabil, un pas important in posibila islamizare a Europei.
Similara prin consecintele sale pe plan istoric este doar Cruciada a IV-a (1202-1204), "deviata" din initiativa dogelui de Venetia spre Constantinopol. In noaptea de 13 spre 14 aprilie A.D. 1204 capitala Imperiului Bizantin a cazut in mana cruciatilor. Trei zile si trei nopti aceasta venerabila asezare, locul de scaun al lui Constatin cel Mare, a devenit "Vogelfrei" - adica a fost scoasa de sub orice jurisdictie. Crime indescriptibile, violuri in masa (sute de calugarite au fost violate in pietile publice), jafuri enorme au marcat aceasta data istorica. Dupa aceasta lovitura Imperiul Bizantin nu si-a mai revenit, fiind deschise larg portile turcilor otomani si islamizarii unei parti a Europei.
James Harff was Director of the Washington-based PR firm Ruder Finn Global Public Affairs. He directed the company's efforts in representing the Yugoslavian republics seeking to secede: Croatia, Bosnia, Kosovo (Albanians).Interviul luat de J. Merlino lui J. Harff este, cel putin pentru cei interesati de problematica destramarii Jugoslaviei, un "loc comun". Peste el nu se poate trece, daca vrei sa cunosti unul din factorii esentiali ai alimentarii continue a conflictului jugoslav.
Harrf: For 18 months, we have been working for the Republics of Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, as well as for the opposition in Kosovo. Throughout this period, we had many successes, giving us a formidable international image. We intend to make advantage of this and develop commercial agreements with these countries. Speed is vital, because items favourable to us must be settled in public opinion. The first statement counts. The retractions have no effect.
Marlino: How often do you intervene?
Harff: Quantity is not important. You have to intervene at the right time with the right person. From June to September, we organized 30 meetings with the main press agencies, as well as meetings between Bosnian officials and Al Gore, Lawrence Eagleburger and 10 influential senators, among them George Mitchell and Robert Dole. We also sent out 13 exclusive news items, 37 last-minute faxes, 17 official letters and eight official reports. We placed 20 telephone calls to White House staff, 20 senators, and close to 100 to journalists, editors, newscaters and other influenctial people in the media.
Question: What achievement were you most proud of?
Harff: To have managed to put Jewish opinion on our side. This was a sensitive matter, as the dossier was dangerous looked from this angle. President Tudjman [of Croatia] was very careless in his book "Wastelands of Historical Reality". Reading this writtings, one could accuse him of of antisemitism. In Bosnia, the situation was no better: President Izetbegovic strongly supported the creation of a fundamentalist Islamic state [there] in his book "The Islamic Declaration". Besides, the Croatian and Bosnian past was marked by a real and cruel anti-semitism. Tens of thousands of Jews perished in Croatian camps. So there was every reason for intellectuals and Jewish organizations to be hostile towards the Croats and Bosnians. Our challenge was to reverse this attitude. And we succeded masterfully.
At the beginning of August 1992, New York Newsday came out with the affair of [Serb] concentration camps. We jumped at the opportunity immediately. We outwitted three big Jewish organizations - B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee, and the American Jewish Congress. We suggested to them to publish an advertisement in the "New York Times" and to organize demonstrations outside the United Nations.
That was a tremendous coup. When the Jewish organizations entered the game on the side of the [Muslim] Bosnians, we could promptly equate the Serbs with the Nazis in the public mind. Nobody understood what was happening in Yugoslavia. The great majority of Americans were probably asking themselves in which African country Bosnia was situated. But by a single move we were able to present a simple story of good guys and bad guys, which would hereafter play itself. We won by targeting Jewish audience. Almost immediately there was a clear change of language in the press, with the use of words with high emotional content, such as "ethnic cleansing", "concentration camps", etc., which evoked images of Nazi Germany and the gas chambers of Auschwitz. The emotional charge was so powerful that nobody could go against it.
Marlino: But when you did all of this, you had no proof that what you said was true. You only had the article in "Newsday"!
Harff: Our work is not to verify information. We are not equipped for that. Our work is to accelerate the circulation of information favorable to us, to aim at judiciously chosen targets. We did not confirm the existence of death camps in Bosnia, we just made it known that "Newsday" affirmed it.
Marlino: Are you aware that you took on a grave responsibility?
Harff: We are professionals. We had a job to do and we did it. We are not paid to be moral.
James Harff, Director of Ruder Finn, Global Public affairs section, in the Jacques Merlino interview, April 1993. (reprinted in a book in Oct. 1993)
Interviul poate fi, desigur, neglijat; iar, in acest caz, se poate apela la colectiile de ziare din toata lumea, inclusiv din Romania, care au relatat cu lux de amanunte crimele sarbilor. Nimic despre crimele croatilor, ale bosniecilor musulmani, ale albanezilor, nimic despre gruparile paramilitare neonaziste italiene, germane, austriene, belgiene, olandeze, nimic despre hoardele de mujahedini iranieni, afgani, libanezi, sirieni, egipteni, iordanieni, etc., care, toti, au luptat impotriva sarbilor. In acest caz, ajugem inevitabil la "demonul" sarbesc Milosevic si "poporul criminal" sarb, precum si la trupele paramilitare cazace, care au venit spre sfarsitul anilor '90 in sprijinul sarbilor. Optiunea itii apartine...
In ceea ce priveste anii 1202-1204 (In anul 1215 a avut loc Conciliul de la Lateran, care nu are nimic de-a face cu problematica aflata in discutie), acestia au fost decisivi pentru soarta Imperiului Roman de Rasarit (vezi aici lucrarea reputatului istoric britanic Steven Runciman cu privire la cruciade). Dupa un scurt interludiu, constituit de Imperiul Latin 1204-1261, care a sleit si mai mult puterea de rezistenta a Bizantului, turcii nu au omis sa-si faca aparitia in Asia Mica. Deja la mijlocul secolului al XIV-lea, deci un secol mai tarziu, parti importante ale sud-estului european se aflau sub dominatie otomana.
In treacat fie spus, intre afirmatiile mele si cele ale lui Huntington cu privire la Jugoslavia nu exista nici cea mai mica discrepanta. Am fost placut surprins, atunci cand, citindu-i lucrarea, am constat confirmarea ipotezelor mele.
S-ar putea ca opinia mea sa fie eronata. In acest caz, as dori sa fiu contrazis prin argumente exacte si verificabile.
Da click aici ca sa vezi totul!
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