

Ing. Salih CAVKIC
Editor in Chief
by ORBUS.BE
info@orbus.be
www.orbus.be

No more
Paris nor Brussels!
Stop
terrorism!
We want to live in peace with all
our neighbors.
regardless of their religion, color and origin.
Therefore, we condemn any
kind of terrorism!
*****
Ne više Pariz ni Brisel!
Stop terorizam!
Mi želimo živjeti u miru sa svim našim
komšijama,
bez obzira koje su vjere, boje kože i porijekla.
Zato mi osuđujemo svaku vrstu terorizma!


Prof. dr. Murray Hunter
University Malaysia Perlis


Eva MAURINA
20
Years to Trade Economic Independence for Political Sovereignty -
Eva MAURINA


Aleš Debeljak +
In
Defense of Cross-Fertilization: Europe and Its Identity
Contradictions - Aleš Debeljak
ALEŠ
DEBELJAK - ABECEDA DJETINJSTVA
ALEŠ DEBEJAK
- INTERVJU; PROSVJEDI, POEZIJA, DRŽAVA


Rattana Lao
Rattana Lao holds a doctorate in Comparative and International
Education from Teachers College, Columbia University and is
currently teaching in Bangkok.


Bakhtyar Aljaf
Director of Middle-East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) in Ljubljana,
Slovenia


Rakesh Krishnan Simha
Géométrie variable of a love triangle – India, Russia and the US


Amna Whiston
Amna Whiston is a London-based writer specialising in moral philosophy. As a
PhD candidate at Reading University, UK, her main research interests
are in ethics, rationality, and moral psychology.


Eirini Patsea
Eirini Patsea is a Guest Editor in Modern Diplomacy, and
specialist in Cultural Diplomacy and Faith-based Mediation.


Belmir Selimovic
Can we trust the government to do the right thing, are they really
care about essential things such as environmental conditions and
education in our life?


Dubravko Lovrenović+
Univ. prof. Dubravko Lovrenović is one of the leading
European Medievalist specialized in the Balkans, pre-modern and
modern political history.


Manal Saadi
Postgraduate researcher in International Relations and Diplomacy at
the Geneva-based UMEF University


doc.dr.Jasna Cosabic
professor of IT law
and EU law at Banja Luka College,
Bosnia and Herzegovina


Aleksandra Krstic
Studied in Belgrade (Political Science) and in Moscow
(Plekhanov’s IBS). Currently, a post-doctoral researcher at the Kent
University in Brussels (Intl. Relations). Specialist for the
MENA-Balkans frozen and controlled conflicts.
Contact: alex-alex@gmail.com


Dr.Swaleha Sindhi is
Assistant Professor in the Department
of Educational Administration, the Maharaja Sayajirao University of
Baroda, India. Decorated educational practitioner Dr. Sindhi is a
frequent columnist on related topics, too. She is the Vice President
of Indian Ocean Comparative Education Society (IOCES). Contact:
swalehasindhi@gmail.com


Barçın Yinanç
It is an Ankara-based
journalist and notable author.
She is engaged with the leading Turkish dailies and weeklies for
nearly three decades as a columnist, intervieweer and editor.
Her words are prolifically published and quoted in Turkish,
French an English.


By İLNUR ÇEVIK
Modified from the original: They killed 1
Saddam and created 1,000 others (Daily Sabah)


Aine O’Mahony
Aine O'Mahony has a bachelor in Law and Political Science at
the Catholic Institute of Paris and is currently a master's student
of Leiden University in the International Studies programme.Contact:
aine-claire.nini@hotmail.fr


Elodie Pichon
Elodie Pichon has a
bachelor in Law and Political Science at the Catholic Institute of
Paris and is currently doing a MA in Geopolitics, territory and
Security at King's College London. Contact :
elodie.pichon@gmail.com

Qi Lin
Qi Lin,
a MA candidate of the George
Washington University, Elliott School of International Affairs. Her
research focus is on cross-Pacific security and Asian studies,
particularly on the Sino-U.S. relations and on the foreign policy
and politics of these two.


ALESSANDRO CIPRI
Born in Chile and raised in Rome, Alessandro
Cipri has just finished his postgraduate studies at the department
of War Studies of King's College London, graduating with distinction
from the Master's Degree in "Intelligence and International
Security". Having served in the Italian Army's "Alpini" mountain
troops, he has a keen interest in national security, military
strategy, insurgency theory, and terrorism studies. His Master's
dissertation was on the impact of drug trafficking on the evolution
of the Colombian FARC.


Ms. Lingbo ZHAO
is a candidate of the Hong Kong Baptist
University, Department of Government and International Studies. Her
research interest includes Sino-world, Asia and cross-Pacific.
Contact:
harryzhaolin@gmail.com


Hannes Grassegger
Hannes Grassegger and Mikael Krogerus are investigative
journalists attached to the Swiss-based Das Magazin specialized
journal.

Mikael Krogerus
Hannes Grassegger and Mikael Krogerus are investigative
journalists attached to the Swiss-based Das Magazin
specialized journal.


Michal Kosinski
Scientific analysis


Ms. Elodie Pichon,
Ms. Elodie Pichon, Research Fellow of the IFIMES Institute, DeSSA
Department. This native Parisian is a Master in Geopolitics,
Territory and Security from the King’s College, London, UK.


Djoeke Altena

INDEX 2017
INDEX 2016
English
Important News
Dutch - Nederlands
Belangrijke nieuws
French - Français
Nouvelles importantes
German - Deutsch
Wichtige News
Bosnian-Bosanski
Važne vijesti
|
2017
Saudi king’s “Clash of Civilizations,
convergence with Indonesia's hypocrisy and opportunism
by
Julia Suryakusuma
When
my older sister who lives in Germany came to Indonesia recently, we
gave her the royal treatment. Well, she’s family after all, and had
not visited in 12 years.
So if a family member hadn’t visited in 47 years, the
royal treatment would be quadrupled, right? Well, that’s how long it
had been since a Saudi monarch had come to Indonesia. The last time
was the visit of King Faisal in 1970, so when King Salman of Saudia
Arabia came in February the reception was pretty over the top.
Family member? Yes, being Muslims, we are all members
of the ummah (community of Muslims), which for some is even
more meaningful than being connected by blood. Our qibla
(direction Muslims face when praying) is toward Mecca, but more than
that, lately Saudia Arabia is our qibla for many things we
consider to be part of our Muslim identity. Arabic-style attire is
one example, but more importantly is the adoption of a more rigid
and literal interpretation of the Quran than the moderate Islam
Nusantara (Islam of the archipelago) that Indonesia is famous
for.
King Salman is one of the richest world leaders and,
boy, did he ever show it! An entourage of 1,500 in eight wide-bodied
jets, a few limousines and two gold-plated escalators — because of
course, one isn’t enough, right? We lapped it all up and various
Indonesian dignitaries and political leaders were falling over
themselves to pay obeisance to the custodian of the holy cities of
Mecca and Medina that Muslims make pilgrimages to. Well, at least we
got the extra haj quota we were hoping for.
So why did he come after all this time, and at the
age of 80, when most octogenarians would be ensconced in rocking
chairs, especially after a stroke he had recently? Is it simply “the
ties of Islam?” In economic terms, the visit to Indonesia did not do
much to boost the relationship, which has never been fast and
furious in any case (see “Saudi King Salman’s visit to Indonesia:
Bound by ties of Islam,” The Jakarta Post, March 18 2017).
For almost 40 years, Saudi Arabia has imposed a kind
of cultural imperialism in Indonesia by pouring in money which
essentially has been exporting their brand of Salafism, a strict and
dogmatic version of Islam. Millions of dollars produced hundreds of
mosques, schools, a free university, provided teachers, scholarships
and much, much more. Will this now change? Whatever the case, the
investments have already made an impact.
Despite the ostentatious display of wealth because of
falling oil prices, Saudi Arabia is going through a recession. Hence
the ambitious one-month tour, not just to Indonesia, but also to
Malaysia, Brunei, Japan, China, the Maldives and Jordan. Obviously,
the trips to China and Japan have nothing to do with Islam, but are
an attempt to look for partners and investors in the Asia-Pacific
region to lessen Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil revenues.
Besides China overtaking the United States as a big
net importer of crude oil in 2016, there are also geopolitical
considerations. With the uncertainty that comes with the Donald
Trump presidency, China can certainly be seen as a counterweight to
the US for Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy.
What about terrorism? That was mentioned too in King
Salman’s underwhelming two-minute speech at the House of
Representatives — which sounded more like the speech of a Miss World
contestant — to stand united against global challenges, in
particular against the “clash of civilizations”, terrorism and to
work together to achieve world peace.
Funny that. Is decimating Yemen a way to achieve
world peace? Saudi Arabia committed crimes in Yemen as evidenced by
the destruction of infrastructure and the killing of thousands of
innocent civilians, including children.
Addressing visiting members of the Supreme
Revolutionary Council of Yemen, Ali Larijani, the Iranian
parliamentary speaker, said, “The scope of destruction is
unprecedented in history and this clearly shows that Saudi Arabia is
a rogue state in the region.”
As for the clash of civilizations, it’s more like a
clash of ignorance, which is the title of the essay that Edward Said
wrote to debunk Samuel P. Huntington’s 1993 Foreign Affairs article
entitled “The Clash of Civilizations.” The hypothesis is that
people’s cultural and religious identities will be the primary
source of conflict in the post-Cold War world.
Oh really? Is that why the US and the United Kingdom
provide the arms used by Saudi Arabia to crush Yemen? Because, of
course, Saudi Arabia is the US’ ally in the Middle East, maybe a bit
less so after the US betrayed them by making deals with Iran, Saudi
Arabia’s main rival.
But even if King Salman repeatedly listened to Paul
Simon’s “Fifty ways to leave your lover,” Saudi Arabia could not
break up with the US because it still provides them with the best
weaponry and spare parts too.
But, Saudi Arabia is not all it appears to be. It’s
not by any means revolutionizing, but it is evolutionizing, as
Ameera al Taweel said.
The 33-year-old drop-dead gorgeous US-educated
princess, businesswoman, high-profile women’s advocate and
humanitarian philanthropist is the ex-wife of Prince Al-Waleed bin
Talal, 60. He’s one of the more progressive of the thousands of
princes of the Saud family and one of richest men in the world, who
is planning to give away his US$33 billion to charity when he dies.
And would you believe that there’s a vegan Saudi
prince who wants to veganize the Middle East? Meet Khaled bin
Alwaleed (son of Al-Waleed bin Talal), 38, handsome and a fervent
environmentalist who believes that “Climate change and the
unjustified consumption of energy are two of the most serious issues
we face today at the macro-level.”
Hope he’s saying this to his gas-guzzling compatriots
as Saudia Arabia is the world’s largest oil producer, but also the
world’s sixth-largest consumer.
Then there’s Ahmed Qassim al-Ghamdi, formerly an
employee of the Saudia Arabia’s religious police who had a
life-altering experience when he turned to the Quran to study the
stories of the prophet Muhammad and came up with the conclusion that
being Islamic is about being more liberal. No need to close shops
for prayers, to cover women up, or to ban women from driving.
Unsurprisingly, death-threats dogged him after he made these
statements.
Like Indonesia, Saudi Arabia has a demographic bonus:
Sixty percent of the population is under 30. Like Ameera and Khaled,
they are connected to a globalized world and they will rebel against
the strictures of the Islam espoused by their forbearers.
Change in Saudi Arabia seems inevitable, as it is
becoming more progressive, climate-conscious and is espousing
“Western” notions of rights (which the US under Trump seems to be
abandoning), while Islam in Indonesia is becoming more Arabized and
conservative.
Ironic or what?

Julia Suryakusuma
(First published by the JP)
*The writer is a public-intellectual, social-critic,
columnist, researcher, author of “Julia’s Jihad” (2013) and several
other books. She is based in Jakarta.
March 29, 2017
The
World’s Last Colony:
Morocco continues
occupation of Western Sahara, in defiance of UN
Nizar Visram
ADDISA
ABEBA: At the 28th Summit meeting of the African Union (AU) held in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 30 January 2017, Morocco’s readmission to
the continental body generated heated discussion. At the end of the
day the Kingdom of Morocco managed to win over sufficient member
states on its side and it was allowed to join the fold
unconditionally.
Morocco left the
Organization of African Unity (OAU), precursor to the AU, in 1984
after the OAU recognized the right to self-determination and
independence for the people of the Western Sahara and admitted the
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) that was proclaimed in 1976
by the Sahrawi people’s Polisario Front.
It was in keeping with the OAU principle not to recognize the
occupation of any part of the continent that it admitted the SADR to
its membership. While SADR claimed sovereignty over the Western
Sahara territory, Morocco saw it as an integral part of its own
territory. Thus, rather than accept SADR’s independence, Morocco
left the OAU.
Since then Morocco has
refused to join the AU unless the organization withdraws the
membership of SADR.
The Occupation of
Western Sahara
The area of Western
Sahara has been occupied by Morocco since 1976 when Spain pulled out
and relinquished its claim as a colonial power over the territory.
This former Spanish colony was then annexed by Morocco. Sahrawi
people, who fought Spanish colonial oppression, were now forced to
fight Moroccan occupation. They conducted resistance struggle under
the leadership of Polisario Front until 1991 when the United Nations
(UN) brokered a truce.

A UN-supervised referendum on
independence of Western Sahara was promised in 1992 but it was
aborted by Morocco. A UN peacekeeping mission that was to organize
the referendum has remained in the territory ever since, while
Morocco built a 2,700km-long sand wall, with landmines.
SADR, headed by the
Polisario Front, has been recognized by the AU as the legitimate
government in exile. For decades Morocco made futile attempts to
delegitimize SADR and Polisario. Eventually it applied to rejoin AU
without precondition.
AU member states argued
that Morocco should not be readmitted unless it accepts the 1960 UN
Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries
and Peoples, which states that, “All peoples have the right to
self-determination; and by virtue of that right they freely
determine their political status.”
Morocco was also asked
to accept unconditionally the OAU/AU African Charter on Human and
Peoples’ Rights which provides that:
Nothing shall justify
the domination of a people by another. All peoples shall have the
unquestionable and inalienable right to self-determination. They
shall freely determine their political status.
Thus, before
readmission Morocco should have accepted all the 33 Articles of the
Constitutive Act of the AU with Western Sahara as a founding member.
Morocco should also accept the AU Act which recognizes African
colonial boundaries, thus making its continued occupation of Western
Sahara illegal.
All this was thrust
aside and Morocco was readmitted to the AU when 39 out of the 54
African member states voted for Morocco. They tacitly endorsed the
longstanding occupation of Western Sahara, while Morocco refuses to
comply with the successive UN resolutions on the holding of a
referendum on self-determination.
Western Sahara thus
remains the continent’s last colonial outpost, occupied by another
African state. It is an albatross on the African Union’s conscience,
since it was a departure from its founding principles.
The notable US
professor Stephen Zunes (a professor of politics and international
studies at the University of San Francisco, the co-author (along
with Jacob Mundy) of the illuminating book Western Sahara: War,
Nationalism, and Conflict Irresolution (Syracuse University
Press.), says:
“For those of us who
have actually been to Western Sahara, there is no question that it
is an occupation. Any verbal or visual expression of support for
self-determination is savagely suppressed. Even calls for social and
economic justice can be dangerous. The young sociologist Brahim
Saika, a leader of a movement of unemployed Sahrawi professionals
demanding greater economic justice, was tortured to death while in
Moroccan detention in April 2016. Freedom House has ranked Western
Sahara as among the dozen least free nations in the world, along
with Tibet, Uzbekistan, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan.
Indeed, of the more than 70 countries I have visited -- including
Iraq under Saddam Hussein and Indonesia under Suharto -- Western
Sahara is the most repressive police state I have ever seen.”
Morocco’s
Goodwill Tour
Morocco’s readmission
was reportedly influenced by Morocco’s King Mohammad’s affluence.
This became evident when he demonstrated his largesse while touring
the continent, lobbying for support from African heads.
It is said he will now
bankroll the AU in line with what Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi used to
do. The two are, of course, poles apart. Gaddafi, arguably, had a
pan-Africanist and anti-imperialist vision, while the King aims at
continued annexation of Western Sahara.
That is why prior to
the AU vote the King embarked on a charm offensive by touring
African countries, seeking support for his AU bid. In February 2014
he set off on a tour of Mali, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Gabon. This
was his second regional trip in less than five months. He took with
him a contingent of advisors and business executives who negotiated
a pile of agreements covering practically everything – from
religious training to agriculture and mining projects.
In December 2016, the
King concluded the second leg of a nearly two-month, six-country
Africa tour, resulting in some 50 bilateral agreements. The visits
came on the heels of trips to Rwanda, Tanzania, and Senegal in
October, when more than 40 bilateral agreements were signed.
This is how the monarch
wound up his whirlwind tour of Africa prior to the AU Summit meeting
in January 2017. For those who say the royal expeditions to African
countries had altruistic motive, suffice it to quote his official
who said:
Aside from west and
central Africa we must open up to east Africa and that is what is
under way. The context of Morocco’s return to the African Union is
there too of course, and these are important countries in the AU.
The tour of east Africa
“is also a way to get closer to countries which historically had
positions which were hostile to Morocco’s interests,” said the
Moroccan source.
In some circles it is
argued that Morocco’s readmission was a ‘positive’ step in that, as
full member of the AU, it will now have to recognize the
independence and sovereignty of SADR. If that is so then the
readmission should have been conditional.
In any case, Morocco
has no intention to give in on its occupation. Its return to the
union is intended to eventually push for the removal of Western
Sahara out of the AU, thus silencing the voice of the Sahrawi people
in connivance with ‘friendly’ member states.
Yet while the AU fails
to stand by such principles, the kingdom of Morocco is under
pressure in the international diplomatic arena where Polisario is
gaining global support. In fact, on 21 December 2016, a few days
before the Addis Ababa Summit, the European Court of Justice (ECJ)
dismissed Morocco’s claim to Western Sahara. The ruling means the
European Union’s trade deals with Morocco do not apply to the
occupied territory of Western Sahara which is endowed with its fish
stocks, mineral deposits, agricultural produce and oil reserves.
The UN and the
European Union
The ECJ ruled that
Western Sahara cannot be treated as a part of Morocco, meaning no
EU-Morocco trade deals can apply to the territory. The ruling
confirms the long-established legal status of Western Sahara as a
non-self-governing territory, and upholds existing international
law. The EU member states and institutions have been asked to comply
with the ruling and immediately cease all agreements, funding and
projects reinforcing Morocco’s illegal occupation of Western Sahara.
The Court also ruled
that a trade deal between the EU and Morocco should be scrapped
because it included products from Western Sahara. Morocco had to
accept that any free trade deal would have to exclude Western
Sahara. This includes the fruits and vegetables grown by companies
such as Les Domaines Agricoles, which is partly owned by King
Mohammed VI.
On top of this there
have been more than 100 UN resolutions calling for
self-determination for the Western Sahara. In March 2016, the then
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon described the situation in Western
Sahara as an “occupation.” The UN, however, has to go beyond
rhetoric by enforcing its resolutions. It formally recognizes the
occupation of Western Sahara as illegal, and has maintained a
peacekeeping mission (MINURSO) commissioned to hold a referendum in
Sahara since 1991. But it has a skeleton staff, with no mandate to
even monitor human rights abuses, thanks to France’s Security
Council veto.
And so the French oil
company Total is active in Western Sahara, while others have pulled
out. Also big investors such as the Norwegian government’s pension
fund avoid any deals which involve Western Sahara. And the EFTA free
trade association, a group of non-EU countries including Norway,
Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, excludes Western Sahara
goods from its free trade deal with Morocco.
Morocco’s return to the
AU is an affront not only to the people of Western Sahara but to
African people, for Morocco is a country that once refused to host
the African Cup of Nations on flimsy grounds that Moroccans would be
infected by African teams bringing in Ebola virus.
Some African heads
claim that the admission of Morocco will now resolve the question of
Western Sahara’s occupation. Such argument is always pushed with
some foreign machination. In fact Morocco is now emboldened. That is
why those who voted for readmission of Morocco should have demanded
an end to the illegal occupation as a precondition.
That did not happen at
the AU Summit meeting in Addis Ababa. Instead we see the AU
blatantly violating its own Constitutive Act, and the principle for
African countries to respect each other’s territorial boundaries.
We witness a violation
of both the AU and the UN declarations on the inalienable right of
the people of Western Sahara to independence and self-determination.
Meanwhile, hundreds of
thousands of Sahrawi people are disenfranchized. It is estimated
that up to 200,000 have fled to refugee camps in the neighbouring
Algeria and Mauritania. They are separated by a 2,700km-long wall
going through Western Sahara, surrounded by landmines. •

Nizar Visram
is a Ottawa-based
free-lance writer from Zanzibar, Tanzania. Recently retired Senior
lecturer on Development studies, he extensively publishes in over 50
countries on 4 continents. He can be reached at
nizar1941(at)gmail.com
.
MARCH 24, 2017
Culture as a binding factor in
our society, interview with Camilla Habsburg-Lothringen
By Djoeke Altena
We
need culture to know where we came from, says her Imperial and Royal
Highness Archduchess of Austria and Princess of Tuscany Camilla
Habsburg-Lothringen. “In a time where society is complaining, is
frustrated and not making the best of what we have, there we need
culture. The cultural field enables us to build up dialogues better
and faster than administrations can.” Contributing to a better
world, that is why the descendant of the Habsburg house which leads
back to Holy Roman Emperor Francis I and Empress Maria Therese of
Austria, chose the cultural field over a more political career.
How does it feel be the
great-great-great-granddaughter of such historical figure like Maria
Theresia?
This year we celebrate the 300th anniversary of
Empress Maria Theresias birth. She was bright and very advanced for
her time. Great policy such as the obligation to go to school, the
vaccination against chicken pox, the opening of the stock market and
the founding of the academy for diplomats was one of the many
actions implemented by her. Her strong charakter and personality as
a ruler, wife and mother impresses me strongly
It is a big responsibility to carry this name, it
will always be imprinted on me. As it is not easy to fullfill all
peoples expectations but I try to be true to myself, not to loose my
focus and keep remembering my history, where I come from

Do you consider this responsibility to be
political?
No, there is no role for me in politics. The time to
get involved is very limited. First you have to get elected, and
during the mandate you try to do as much as you can – let’s hope so-
and then the electorate either replaces or re-elects you. All this
makes it difficult to make real changes not mentioning the opponent
parties that block every suggestions even if they are good ones
Politicians mostly take responsibility over a certain
period. This is understandable because they receive legitimacy over
a certain time. But the downside is that many do not understand the
responsibility for future consequences of their actions. Monarchies,
nobility and family run companies they all have to make carefull
decisions as these leave an impact and imprint on the future of
generations and the empires or business. Politicians should learn
from this and vow to take consequences for the effects of their
actions in the future.
Besides that I feel that real change should be
realised via initiatives.
Do you feel that we need change?
I am pretty thankful to live in a peaceful country
with a strong stability like in Austria. But it worries me that
people don’t recognize that. In the last years nearly all over
Europe I observe the encrease of a complaining and unsatisfied
society that is questioning everything. Also greed and materalism
has become very dominant in our times and this leads to a feeling of
emptiness. And so its understandable that people become very scared
and receptive to any kind of manipulative information that theats
this artificial way of life
In our times there is a strong destabilizing fear for
the future and other cultures. The result is a lack of focus and
investments. Constant worrying will lead us nowhere and won’t enable
us to build a strong future. That is something we need to change.
I would say that there is a need for respect. Respect
is much stronger than tolerance. The population is growing fast,
everybody is getting closer, and more people will live in our
countries. Just tolerating others will not be sufficient, we need to
respect each other and other cultures and learn from them
Do you see any role for yourself in this?
I have a background in PR and advertising, besides
that I am also very active in the field of networking. But most
important for me are values: the stability of a society and passing
on of ideas and sending impulses. I was never involved in
representing companies, firms, but always more looking into the
direction of a so called atmospheric PR if you understand what I
mean. That is a kind of seismographic feeling towards our
environment and our global thinking and acting. Searching for
solutions, to get together those people who feel and think in a
similar way and then move things into action.
Do you consider that to be diplomacy?
Yes. Diplomacy has a very important stabilizing
function in this world. I prefer the cultural field because it is
neutral and makes it easier to bind people and nations on a
diplomatic base. A few months ago I became Director
Euro-Mediterranean Diplomacy and Intercultural Affairs at the
International Institute for Middle-East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES).
In this function I would like to connect the Euro-Mediterranean and
Balkan regions and give a voice to those without one. For me that is
one of the important aspects of diplomacy.
---
Do you feel that the European Union contributes
to a better world?
The European project -the European Union, brought
prosperity and peace to the continent. But now they are getting lost
in a big contruction of burocracy and regulations like on what kind
of energy saving light bulbs we are allowed to buy. There are too
many paragraphs blocking any fast action. I find this a waste of
energy, time and money. There is a real need for solutions for the
bigger problems, like immigration for instance. The European Union
should focus on the bigger political issues and on the cultural
field
The near future might be challenging, but we need to
keep the dialogue going, because together we can tackle every
crisis.
First published by the Dutch Diplomat Magazine

Imperial and Royal Highness Archduchess of Austria
and Princess of Tuscany Camilla Habsburg-Lothringen

Unique K.
From ‚K und K‘
„Schmelztiegel
Wien” – this is a term usually used in the socio-cultural
studies to describe the capital of a vast Habsbourg empire, today’s
seat of the Republic of Austria, Vienna. Inspired by the past and
present meanings of its colours shapes rhythms and ambient, trying
to capture a glimpse of everlasting cultural fusions, walking a
grace of tradition and charm of modernity in one leap,
ethnomusicologist and designer Sofi B., with her collection ‚Unique
K by Sofi B.‘ for the Vienna Fabric&Design, is
illustrating this jewel of central Europe – historical city of
Vienna.


Each
and every item in this collection is exclusively designed, handmade
tailered and unique. Many pieces are of the fabrics which are not
produced anymore. The Unique K. items are purchasable
exclusively and only in the Vienna Fabrics and Design
premises (Schwarzenbergplatz 10, A-1010 Wien) or at the sporadic
fashion show reviews.
http://www.vienna-fabrics.at/news/unique-k/
MARCH 10, 2017
ALL BREAKING BEDS OF OUR
MOST FAVOURED AGGRESSOR
By Elodie Pichon
2017
will be a challenging year for Saudi Arabia, who is losing its
leadership in the Middle East and faces looming economic challenges
stemming from low oil prices.
SA has been humiliated in Syria, and embroiled itself in an endless
and costly conflict in Yemen. According to Reuters, Saudi Arabia is
spending $175 million per month for bombings in Yemen and an
additional $500 million for ground incursions. These low oil prices
and military expenses have unprecedented impact on Saudi foreign
reserves, which depleted from $732 billion to $623 billion in 2015.
However the main cost of these military failures is not a financial
one, they also dealt a fatal blow to the Saudi monarchy who used
military nationalism to foster support, and implement a cult of the
personality to King Salman. The Saudi propaganda relies on
anti-Iranian rhetoric, and exaggerate Tehran’s geopolitical role to
justify its foreign policy. In Yemen, Saudi monarchy has
mischaracterized the Houthis as Iranian proxies. They claim that
Tehran provides the Houthis financial and logistical support, as
well as military advisers (Financial Times, February 2014). One of
the arguments put forward is that the Houthis, who were isolated in
the mountains in the North, would not have been able to gain such
prominence without external support. However, their growth is
primarily due to the support of the ex-president Saleh, who still
has tribal and military allies. Thus, the extent of Iran support in
term of funding and supply of arms remains unknown. (Salisbury, P
(2015).
The war in Yemen embodies a military nationalism, which fired the
Islamists imagination but could turn against King Salman. Indeed,
Islamists in SA expected a quick victory against the Houthis,
qualified as blasphemer puppet of Iran. Moreover, defeated militants
in Syria could come back in their country and reunite to canalise
their military effervescence in their country, accusing of their
defeat SA leaders. Saudi Arabia’s difficulties pose a threat to its
hegemony in the region, which reverberates on its allies support.
Indeed, Egypt pursues its own national interest when SA was
expecting total cooperation, and unconditional support. There could
be a backlash from Saudi Arabia population who expect Saudi Arabia
to keep its leadership in the region.
Their lack of leadership in the region is aggravated by the
deterioration of its relationship with the USA. The US is less and
less dependant on SA oil and condemns its religious extremism, which
has been worsened since the accession of King Salman in January
2015. Moreover, Trump financial approach to foreign affairs means
that Trump will be tough toward SA if they face economic hardships.
Concerning the Saudis, the bone of contention is not only the
Iranian nuclear agreement but also the absence of support for their
ally Mubarak in February 2011, which has been perceived as a
betrayal from the US. Despite the disagreements, Saudi Arabia
government knows that they can’t afford to break ties with the USA.
They rely on the USA military presence in the region, and on
American military equipment.
The economic difficulties only add pressure to the government, who
can’t afford to be present on all fronts. The collapse of oil price
cost SA government 75 billions of euros, even though public
spendings increased to finance the war in Yemen. The country’s
foreign reserves have dropped by a quarter since oil prices started
falling in 2014, and the budget deficit skyrocketed from 6,7% of the
PIB in 2015 to 20% in 2016.
Consequently, Riyadh adopted a politic of austerity, and seized on
every opportunity to squeeze costs: they cut construction projects,
cut pay for ministers, freeze hiring, rise fees for visas, increase
fines for traffic violations. Overall, they cut off 80% subsidies on
public goods and services. The price for basic goods such as water
and electricity has skyrocketed and spurred dissatisfaction
nationwide.
In addition to the cut of public spending, the government announced
an ambitious plan to diversify the economy, which relies entirely on
oil. If the plan is successful, non-oil revenue will triple by 2020.
To do that, they want to expand the country’s mining industry to
exploit gold, phosphate and uranium deposit and build up the
financial, technology and entertainment sectors.
The challenge is high for King Salman, who massed extraordinary
domestic power, using a wave of Sunni based Saudi nationalism. The
lack of leadership in the region, the military failures, and the
economic difficulties poses a threat to the monarchy. For too long,
the monarchy has postponed the necessity to implement economic
reforms, cut public spending and diversify the economy. Indeed, the
efforts put into place by Abdallah, who became a King in 2005, to
implement reforms have been stopped when the fear of a contagion of
the Arab Springs in 2011 lead the King to spend 135 billions of
dollars to buy social peace. With social and political tensions, the
government tries to avoid economic reforms, which could spur
dissatisfaction. But the situation is critical and the survival of
the regime depends on the King’s ability to reform the country, and
assure Saudi Arabia leadership in the region.

Ms. Elodie Pichon, Research Fellow of the IFIMES Institute, DeSSA
Department. This native Parisian is a Master in Geopolitics,
Territory and Security from the King’s College, London, UK.
MARCH 7, 2017
ONLINE NEWSLETTER International, No. 946
National Congress of The Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina (NCR B&H)
March 2, 2017
CONTENT:
1. Congress to Prof. David Schaffer (a member of Bosnian
legal team at ICJ)
2. Bosnian Presidency members to send replies to ICJ separately
3. Bosnian agent at the ICJ was nominated permanently in 2002 and
was never removed from that position
4. THE BOOK "THE WAR IN BOSNIA: HOW TO SUCCEED AT GENOCIDE" NOW IN
ENGLISH
This issue of the newsletter goes on 3,089 e-mail addresses on our
"International" mailing list and on 64,295 addresses in our
"Bosnian" mailing list.

1. Bosnian Congress to Prof. David Schaffer (a member of Bosnian
legal team at ICJ)
Dear Prof. Schaffer,
Thank you very much for your help to the Bosnian legal team.
We are Bosnians and friends of Bosnia. We call ourselves Bosnian
Congress. Our purpose is to inform the public about important
political events that affect Bosnia. We regularly send a Bosnian
language newsletter to 65,000 e-mail subscribers in Bosnia and in
the diaspora. We also have an English language newsletter that we
send to 3000 friends of Bosnia including diplomats and academics.
The English version is sent less often, only when we have major
developments to discuss.
We have closely followed the progress of the genocide lawsuit since
its inception during the war. As you know Bosnia has already won the
judgment in 2007 that the Republic of the Serbs committed genocide
in Srebrenica. On the other hand, Serbia was convicted only for
non-prevention of genocide. Even so, this judgment is a very
valuable tool in countering genocide denial, and is a powerful
argument in favor of a just and democratic future for Bosnia, and
against the carving of Bosnia into states with territories where
ethnic purity was created by genocide.
Of course, we agree fully with your intended outcome for this trial,
as stated in the NY Times on 2/24/2017. It is obvious that the
aggression and genocide in Bosnia were conceived, planned and
executed by the Milosevic regime in Serbia. It is obvious that their
campaign of ethnic cleansing -- the euphemism for genocide that they
coined -- started in 1992 and occurred in many different areas of
Bosnia and Herzegovina. The fact that the ICJ stopped short of
recognizing that full scope, and Serbia's true role and intent, in
2007 is a miscarriage of justice. We have pored over that outcome
and we understand the factors that led to it -- inadequacy of the
Bosnian presentation for meeting the high standard of proof that the
ICJ set, and the omission of evidence from the ICTY trials. However,
given the obvious truth, and given your qualifications, we hope and
expect that you will be successful in your goals for appeal.
We offer you our help with anything that is within our means. As we
mentioned, our primary mission is informing the public, and to that
end we can translate into Bosnian and distribute your statements, or
any other information of interest that you wish to share with our
Bosnian and international readers. To begin, we invite you to send
us a statement regarding the appeal to the ICJ. In addition, we are
knowledgeable about the war and politics in Bosnia and Serbia, and
are ready to discuss and answer any questions you may have.
Finally, events are happening quickly, and a challenge to your
appeal has already been made. Namely, Mladen Ivanic, the Serb member
of the Bosnian Presidency has sent a letter to the ICJ noting that
he did not give consent to proceed with the lawsuit, which he claims
is required for such decisions under the Dayton Constitution.
However, his point is baseless, and repeats a similar unsuccessful
challenge from 2002. Simply, this appeal is part of the same lawsuit
that has already been properly authorized by Bosnia's government in
1993. Continuing with it does not require Mr. Ivanic's consent, as
that represents no change. In fact, withdrawing the lawsuit would be
a change requiring consent, which Mr. Izetbegovic did not give.
Thanks and Regards,
Tarik Borogovac
National Congress of the Republic of BiH

2. Bosnian Presidency members to send replies to ICJ separately
ZAGREB, Croatia, March 2 (HINA) -- Members of Bosnia and
Herzegovina's collective State Presidency on Thursday failed to
reach agreement on a joint position on a request by the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) to clarify the status of the
country's legal representative before that court, and all three
Presidency members will send separate letters to the ICJ, with their
personal positions on the matter.
Presidency Chairman Mladen Ivanic said in a statement forwarded to
the media that the Presidency held "informal consultations" on the
ICJ request that arrived in Sarajevo earlier this week requiring a
reply by 6 pm on March 2.
"It was agreed at the consultations that each Presidency member
should individually deliver their own opinion to the ICJ," reads
Ivanic's statement.
The ICJ requested the Presidency members to state the current status
of Sakib Softic, who ten days ago submitted to the ICJ's registrar's
office, on behalf of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a request for a review
of an ICJ ruling from 2007 that cleared Serbia of responsibility for
the genocide committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Under a decision by the Presidency of 2002, Softic was the country's
legal representative during the trial that ended ten years ago.
A decision on launching a procedure for a review of the ruling has
not been made formally by any of Bosnia and Herzegovina's bodies,
and Ivanic claims that that would constitute entirely new
proceedings and require the appointment of a new legal
representative.
The Bosniak Presidency member, Bakir Izetbegovic, believes that the
review request is a continuation of the same proceedings, launched
with the submission of the lawsuit in 1993, and that the appointment
of a new legal representative is not necessary.
The two Presidency members said earlier that they would submit such
positions in responses requested by the ICJ.
The Croat member of the Presidency, Dragan Covic, refused to say
publicly his position on Softic's status.
The ICJ's decision on whether Softic still has the right to
represent Bosnia and Herzegovina will determine whether the request
for a review of the ruling against Serbia will be accepted.
Izetbegovic said previously that the review request was a result of
a serious analysis of evidence that emerged after the 2007 ruling
and that refers mostly to information that became available during
the trial of Bosnian Serb wartime commander Ratko Mladic at the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
The purpose of the review request is to try to prove, in new
proceedings, that Belgrade played a direct role in war crimes
committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including genocide in
municipalities apart from Srebrenica.

3. Bosnian agent at the ICJ was nominated permanently in 2002 and
was never removed from that position
The quoted article from Zagreb shows how the Serbian side of the
story dominates even in Croatia. Namely, in 2002, when Sakib Softic
was nominated for Bosnian agent at the ICJ, there was no any time
limitation in that nomination. Yet HINA says "Softic was the
country's legal representative during the trial that ended ten years
ago."
The quoted sentence is obviously intended to mislead reader to
believe that his nomination ended with the trial in 2007. If that
was the case, we can be sure that Serbs would quote the sentence
about the limitation from the original document.
On the other side, according to Bosnian media outlets, e.g. Bosnian
news agency Patria, on February 27, 2017, Bosniak representative in
Bosnian Presidency Izetbegovic quoted the decision adopted in
October 2002, by which there was no time limitation for Bosnian
agent Softic at International Court of Justice. Unfortunately, media
outlets outside Bosnia did not pay much attention. Nobody translated
Izetbegovic's interview to Patria, while many media published
Ivanic's baseless letter to ICJ. We hope that Izetbegovic sent the
same response to ICJ as to that interview to Patria. (It is widely
believed in Bosnia that Izetbegovic filed the revision only because
of enormous pressure from Bosniak public opinion.)
There was no procedural reason that Izetbegovic should ask
Representative of the "Serbian Republic". In addition, that does not
make any sense that the convicted side, Serbian Republic, should be
able to prevent or to choose the agent for the process against it (Serbian
Republic).
I understand that Serbian politicians repeat baseless "arguments"
from Ivanics letter to ICJ, but it was a surprise to read in English
that a Croatian news agency, supposedly professional, repeats that
propaganda. In addition, have in mind that Croats in Bosnia were
also victims of the same Serbian Republic, and siding with Serbs in
this matter is an act without dignity.
Recall that Serbia was found guilty of two counts of violating the
Convention of prevention and punishment of Genocide, a) Serbia did
not prevent genocide in Srebrenica, and b) Serbia did not punish
perpetrators of the genocide (typically former high ranking officers
of the Serbian army). In addition, in the first trial in 2007, the
Serbian puppet statelet in Bosnia, "Republika Srpska" (Serbian
Republic) was found guilty for committing the genocide in
Srebrenica.

4. THE BOOK "THE WAR IN BOSNIA: HOW TO SUCCEED AT GENOCIDE" NOW IN
ENGLISH
The video for book "THE WAR IN BOSNIA: HOW TO SUCCEED AT GENOCIDE"
has been launched. You may watch that short video at the link below.
https://youtu.be/RcL_3waDiZw
Recall the book in Bosnian Language was bestseller in Bosnia. The
book completely changed Bosnian public opinion about the war,
negotiations, and outcome of the war.

March 2, 2017
Bosnian precariat,
militaristic world images and media cynicism
Media, national projects, neo fascism in
precarious society (I)
Senadin Lavić

Speaking on the ruins of the world
Fascism is in full sweep around us. Writing
about the ruins that left behind it, is the task of our time. Maybe
it is the most important task, because we must not remain silent!
Disaster of (human) policy is in practice, but we are hardly
surprised. Every statement around us which denies the possibility of
existence of Bosnia, is essentially fascist howling of a monster
that is trying to be covered up by diplomatic phrases about
democracy of our next-door neighbours from Belgrade and Zagreb.
Politicians, their followers and spokesmen, media experts,
semi-conscious girls in military uniforms with rifles in their
hands, folk singers with microphones, masses captivated by
politicians who encourage them to hatred, the poor in shelters of
demolished cities, dead children on the streets, big and small
dictators, Muslims who try to take off from their faces the
terrorists label while they are bombarded by the aircrafts of
civilized world - they all together tempt again the evil of fascist
destruction of the world, only today at a higher technical level.
Media lead us directly to the streets of Syrian
cities that were bombed and destroyed by the Western allies
aviation, the Russian military and local forces. Not so long ago,
almost yesterday, Serbian guns were destroyed Sarajevo, Konjic,
Mostar, Bihac, Gorazde, Olovo, Srebrenica and killed civilians,
innocent citizens. Serbian criminals turned the cities into military
targets. The cities in which the Bosniaks were the majorities. In
other cities they were exterminated and "humanely" moved out, for
example, from Trebinje to Scandinavia. In the large crime of Serbian
politics, which is developed by SANU (Serbian Academy of Sciences
and Arts) and supported by SPC (Serbian Orthodox Church), the cities
in Bosnia became the target of Serbian criminals on the way of a
large "Serbian state" building, where it is never existed. Serbian
war strategy made the "legitimate targets" of the cities - because
the Bosniaks live there! In that way, the half of Bosnia has been
occupied. The cities have become battlefields. The urban culture and
spirit have been destroyed. The destruction of urbanity is in
practice. Media recorded the terrible images of death and human evil
... Media recorded ...
In the European tradition, the man is meant in
different ways. The man is being determined as a zoon logon echon,
as animal rationale, it is like a living being who has
language and mind, being who as a social being lives in the
community with his equal. For centuries we believed that rational
being respects speech and intelligence, all those things that
philosophers from Plato's State and Kratil to Wittgenstein's
theory of meaning and Sprachspiele talked about.
But people have the ability to abandon all
considerations and allow themselves to be infected by ephemerality,
nastiness, ideologies. The idea of greed that defines our age is
defined by the conservative view of the world. It helps the
dominance of consumerism. It rejected every possible sense of the
idea of equality among people and recognition of human
characteristics. The greed is preferred in it, without mercy and
compassion towards each other. It has all kinds of fundamentalism
and exclusivity. The capitalist greed for profit is in it. In it
there is the power of insane generals and mighty armies that are
driven by sick minds. The domination of the fascist forces has
become normal in it. The hatred has become characteristic in it.
From everywhere, they speak and order: "Stop thinking, stop
thinking!" In all this the media has been involved...
Gone are the days when we have thought, deliberated.
But, unfortunately, the time "when philosophers like Simone de
Beauvoir and Jean-Paul Sartre, Michel Foucault or Jean-François
Lyotard said about contemporary events or suggestions that they
would have done to improve things that were considered important -
belongs to the past.
Nowadays, even those who imitate the behaviour of the
philosopher, who have pushed out the philosophers in the 1970s, they
have compensated themselves have by entertainers and models,
football players and boxers. "(A. Badiou / S. Žižek, Philosophy
in the Present)
It must be admitted that the models look better, and
football players run 'faster' then philosophers! From those
dangerous displaced philosophers.
We must not ignore it at all!? The media have hidden
critical intellectuals from the scene, pushed them, darken them and
offered us manipulators who explain that we need to be serfs of
capital, banks, financial funds, elite, leaders, generals... The
corrupt deceivers every night mislead us by false claims that we
need to be nobody and nothing. The media help to maintain the state
of captivity in the ghetto, in the "closed society", in the cage.
The media "help" us to forget Bosnia...
Hence, could we write about the ruins, about
collapsed architecture of the world, refer to the right to think of
our destiny while from all sides deny to us the sense of
philosophical attitude in the present, manly courage in front of the
world that the capitalists and fascists led before the abysses of
the human. Alein Badiou is trying to write a manifesto for
philosophy.
We are not aware that an attempt to kill Bosnia will
define our life and thinking. Trying to delete Bosnia from the face
of the world, is the question of sense of Europe. It has been clear
long ago that this issue exceeds the Serbo-Croatian historiography
performances, small rural constructions of frustrated tribes, their
ridiculous myths, folk singing of mountain-dwellers, nebulous ideas
about their own place in history... But they have not still
confronted with their crimes as human beings. This confrontation is
waiting for them till doomsday, to the their beliefs, at the
beginning of each new day when should be built some new human form.
This confrontation cannot be avoided or substituted
by some form of art, a novel, something like Andric's novel
Bridge over the Drina River, which can be used to
escape into the false image of history in order to pushed aside the
crimes against Bosniaks in World War II, ignored them and forgotten
them. And also, that the history of Bosnia can be forged and focused
people's attention on the other side.
Literary, novelistic fiction, the work of
contemplation, it is offered as a historical truth! However, it is
escapism. Therefore, the panel-warning on the Town hall has a moral
sense because it tells us that the criminals from the Serbian people
have burned the house of knowledge and killed citizens from the
surrounding hills. This is the truth that liberates. So, we have to
pass through the ruins. After that, nothing will be the same for us.
Let's make Bosnia free of primitive ethno-religious nationalism
which the media serve to it...
After all, our confidence in mind has remained. We
have fallen into the flow "from solid to liquid" (Z. Bauman) and
lost orientation. Around us echoes the authoritarian cacophony -
Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer - and we do
not understand what this means! We disappear in fog.
Image for the public
The undertaking to "shape the world in the image for
the public" (M. Heidegger) through the media, books, proceedings,
conferences, political manifesto, the party's programs, Nobel Prize
winners literary works and then, this image becomes obliging for all
others, leads us to almost hopeless position that shows us the
forgery, simplifying, reducing and destruction of the contents of
the world that we live in.
Afterwards, it is shown that we already have
available finished images, constructed images of the world and
experiences, simulations and bad copies, but not our own opinion
about the world that opens up the world to another dimension, in
addition to simple performance on us as subjects who have mastered
the world as a subject that we must subordinate and exploit for its
untamable needs. Modern Aged, Cartesian image of the world
as an object which approaches the subject to it with its
intellect and instruments, has suffered a dramatic criticism and
transformations during the last hundred years, and it must continue
to transform in the direction of love for the world in which we
live. Adaequatio rei et intellectus goes with
it, as well as the metaphysical realism of "appearance" of the
spirit that we must overcome. The man is seen as a camera that
"objectively" shoots the world... A man just constructs media
image...
The media are emerging as a threat for our freedom.
They dramatically wider cultural pessimism, xenophobia and policy of
divergence. The fascist tendencies are pouring from them, ethno-foulism
and impassioned sermons on life meaning. The boundaries between
fiction and reality or fictional form and actuality disappear
without explanation and leveled every form of rationality in the mud
of fascism. It has been already seen by Adorno, Lowenthal,
Horkheimer, Benjamin, Marcuse and others. We have splashed again by
a wave of fascistoid infection, that monstrous that has appeared in
the past that we have not overcome and ennobled as people (unbewältigte
Vergangenheit / unmastered past), the past which we
could not obey to the man and his values.
Unbeaten ghosts of the past are trying to push us
into migration again, into the new emigration, the escape into a
hidden corner of the world where the fascists cannot reach us. They
are trying to prepare for us a new genocide, murder, dehumanization.
But there is no more space for migration and running away - finally
we have to face with the Serbian Nazis and fascists! The crisis of
capitalism and liberal democracy always opens the space to small
then to large fascists around us. Usually, most people are not aware
and do not notice when the fascists grab them and harness to the
crazy circle of crimes. The media have real criminal role in it...
Our media are provincial. The media are the
culmination of an enlightened false consciousness. Sloterdijk
denounces them with special pleasure. Guillotine has survived in
them. Media lynch as a "proof" of guilt of the accused is the means
of prosecutors and conspiracy groups that do not have public
responsibility. That is the main method of political
disqualification of opponents. Media campaigns are the "evidence" of
guilt. Manipulation of public spirit is shown as irresponsibility,
incompetence, ignorance and danger for the system.
They asked Umberto Eco: "Do the journalists have the
role in stopping of conspiracy ?, and he said: - Journalists
must help to prevent the rule of lies and
manipulation. This should be one of
their struggles, while preserving critical spirit alive, and
avoiding standardization of thought ". (http://lupiga.com/intervjui/intervju-umberto-eco-velike-lazi-stvaraju-povijest)
The journalists have been
transformed into "soldiers" of organized interest groups in the
social structure. They behave as the loyal soldiers of leaders and
their clique that rotate. The media, unfortunately, do not work for
citizens around the world. The media, the secret police or the
prosecution services often work together under one political hat
against citizens. They manipulate the citizens from the position of
financial interest groups dealing with top-grade transactions and
serve to a few in society. The poor pays everything eventually. In
Bosnia, Syria, or who knows where tomorrow?
The media has taken in
hands the role of creator of our reality. With its superficial power
of judgment, they formed millions of forms and contents of the
people's minds who move into unconsciousness of their own existence,
not knowing the meaning of their lives. They, almighty and
all-shaping media, create confusion that cannot be treated or
removed. They create terror more than it can be expressed by
referencing to the word simulacrum and much more than that can be
daily consumed. They can wage wars, rob the countries, exterminate
the nations, they can make spectacle from crime, they can mislead as
much as you please... And they think they are innocent!
In fact, the media are
there to carry out the post-war rehabilitation of the area,
subsidence of soil, levelling of horror, relativizing of evil,
rehabilitation of war criminals... They are just the extended arm of
the ruling policy. The media are there to deceive us and left dazed
for the next day. The media give space to local fascists, neo-Nazis,
nationalists, misanthropy, bums, primitives and similar creatures
that infect the public. And that lasts for decades.
Media collaboration in
spreading of hatred and evil among people, cannot be presented at
all by rational means. Madmen present the criminal political
programs, and the media follow and support them. They transmit their
words, using them as exclusive news, scandalous insane appearances
due to better viewers rating and profit. This is the simple essence
of irresponsible media structures. The media teach us to "tuck tail
under" and gather in our corner, to accept the "peremptory set" of
systemic attitudes in which we are trapped. Media "teach" us that
there is no rebellion...
Lies of the media (II)
Meaningless populist
campaigns sputter around us. Politicians scream from all sides and
promise "golden spoons for common people". People have become
phlegmatic, indifferent, tired from the promises. Citizens live
passages as from Adorno's book Minima moralia. Logic
disappears in speech. People are talking nonsense. Babble. Trash.
They are frustrated and outraged. Only some of them still considers
the moral issues of human endeavour. There is no reference to the
ethic of responsibility and moral attitude in human
matters. On the scene are the "priests" and politicians who are not
able to keep like male and knight in front of serious things of
life, but they escape into the empty "height" or "bottom", it does
not matter.
Endlessly, the media
provide the repetition of lies, they provide the duration of the
controlled society and choking of critical consciousness. They have
the truth that is transmitted by authorities. For decades, they hide
questions and possible answers. They do not ask one of the most
important questions initiated by Dervis Susic: "Do you know
anything about yourself? Let's say, who you are, i.e. we, Bosniaks?
It must be known!" Do we know who is Avdo Međedović, at all -"A
singer who talks"? What means to us "Bosniak's Homer"? If Husein
Basic is right, then Avdo is too big for us or for our powers of
understanding? How did we reach this condition? Where did we get
from our vocabulary of undefined beings? What are the curricula in
the education system? Moreover, the media teach us the emptiness,
the silence, the worthlessness of their own existence.
The International Union for
Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) warned at the
end of 2016 that some species that were not on the list of
endangered ones, have become the part of the list of endangered
species. It happens noticeable reduction of giraffes and African
gray parrots in the wilderness. Horrible, indeed? Also, it is
endangered the leopard, they assume that only 7100 leopards have
remained in wilderness. The animal protectors have slogans: I'd
rather go naked than wear wool. Wear your own skin!
Let animals keep theirs. Let's protect animals if we cannot
protect people. The slogans of fighters for animals protection peal
everywhere, but in the same time, small people are eradicated
because of their names, language or belief.
Where are Rohinja people
who are Muslims? Does anybody think of them while the Nobel Peace
Prize is given? Do entity "RS" on the ground of the Republic of
Bosnia and Herzegovina is not a result of the crime of genocide? The
"priests" of genocide and guards of its results are the ones who
would continue the same "job", wouldn't they ? Can the media and
media cynicism make of that crime the humanist fairytale about the
man's "will"? Immoral human figures tell us that the genocidal
creation "RS" on the ground / territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina is
"the result of the will of the Serbian people". What a juristic
formulation?! The media help the rising of this "truth", especially
media predators with their destructive content in which the public
is experienced as an animal farm.
The media shamelessly
deceive and contribute to decline of public morality into the mud of
ethnic-nationalist images of the world which can be best understood
as Kačavenda-shape idolatry in the heart of fascism. Media bravely
return and lead us to the Middle Ages, in the empire of crusade,
priests and local rulers, among dogmatized protocols of life and
octroyed algorithms of truth, but we must not forget that they only
serve to certain policies and have to implement it. Therefore, the
media operation is turned into a mechanism that should be
objectified the possibility of civilizations wars as a new spectacle
- as if the army do not fight with political and economic interests
behind them.
The media, unfortunately,
are caught in the net of power and it is not hard to serve it,
because they are the source of funds to maintain the system. In
Bosnia, most of the media (public radio and television broadcasters)
are paid by citizens - hence, citizens pay them to be oriented by
the media. The media participate in the general moral degradation
and education of the population, that shower them with their
information and programs.
Such as the industry of
beauty maniacally exploits the sense of human beauty, just as well
the cynicism of legal system perverts the meaning of law and justice
among people. Corrupt prosecutors, police officers, judges,
businessmen, at every step destroy the system and order in society.
Nowadays, primitive aesthetics and law are the only reflexes of one
horrible process in which the human existence is systemic destroyed
on all sides of mankind. It seems that the process is complementary
in which modern technology destroys human life by shutting off a
movement in it, action, thought, dynamics, resulting in autism, with
processes ghettoisation and atomization that people for the purposes
of capitalism and organized control. Burning Aleppo is in the media
image, as if Sarajevo used to be, under the watchful eye of the UN
and world forces. Graham Bamford shines in my Bosnian heart.
Lies in media reports
The media in the hands of
corporate capitalism pelt us by messages, information, products,
offers. We are choking and losing support in everyday life. "Children
of the rich cannot play rock and roll" - the warning of
officers' sons of failed army! We need to start thinking about a new
definition of a man and the key terms of human life. The great
transformation is in progress, an epochal turn of all that we have
conceived as a people.
Eva Bartlett, an
independent Canadian journalist and human rights fighter, all around
the world, warned in her speech at the UN that the sources from
the ground mislead mainstream media, i.e. these sources are
compromised and are not credible at all. The image that comes
through their reports to the public all around the world is a
false image and not corresponds to the state of things on the
ground. Corporate media fabricate the reality, deceive the public,
adapt their reports to the interests of the big players, fabricate "fake
news / story", recycle the testimony, so that everything you
read is the opposite to the reality. Bartlett warns that the Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) is located in Coventry led by
the authority of one man who "receives" information from
so-called White helmets. Image from Syria, therefore, was under the
control of corporate and compromised media.
We are led by financial
institutions through debt for borrowed money. The rulers of the 21st
century will be the semi-educated and uncultivated, barbarians
without shame who are pride of their vulgar manners and ignorance,
self-satisfied demimonde. They control the money flows and
subordinate the debtors. And media serve to it... We will know all
about this today when this is important to no one, when we
wouldn't remember criminals and politicians from Belgrade no more,
from that dark city. The media will insidiously level Serbian
chauvinists crimes and patriotic struggle of the Bosnian people for
their survival. As if we are stupid, they still sell us the
Yugoslavianism, the old Serbian hegemony and narration, those old
and empty speakers of existence without identity... Anti-Bosnian
forces are strategically put people on positions in the system and
they deliberately disintegrate the state. They attack all the points
of the Bosnian state, which make them the resistance - or bribe them
with money and escort-ladies or set them the "dance". They have at
the disposal the means and resources. They do it by means of the
police and secret police services, the judiciary and prosecution,
paid media and corrupt journalists, ministries of this and that,
embassies and no one is trying to stop them.
Numerous media are in the
service of destruction of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Genocidal creation
on the territory of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the
work of the Milosevic's regime which is on the ruins of Yugoslavia
tried to create a Greater Serbia. The identical plan had Tudjman's
regime, but handle with velvet gloves. The evidence of it is in the
top analysis by Cyril Ribičić about the project HZHB. The complicity
of the media in the profanation of our social life is boundless,
shameful and invaluable. The media, of course, will never take this
responsibility because they remind us to the children who go round
like sparrows that tweet from the rooftops, but they are not able to
learn the lessons given and do not like the lecture. They never feel
the guilt and do not take responsibility.
Media show us that they are
the heart of the simulacrum and ideological one-sidedness of the
society with no choice. They are callously involved in people
liquidation who were aimed from the political opponents. The
ignorance and indifference come out of them. Journalists repeat
ideological matrix, they do not differentiate the meanings, they do
not know the old definitions and do not want to learn the new ones,
they speak language that conceals rather than reveals social
processes, irresponsibly refer to the words, do not have time for
language consolidation and clarification of terms, because they are
connected to police, secret services, companies, party's secretaries
and leaders. They must fulfil their requirements. They have to
satisfy divergent interests and that it all seems "logical" - and
that certainly cannot be logical. But citizens? (Nota bene.
The growing children need to know that the Army of the Republic in
Bosnia Herzegovina was not "so-called" - it was legendary and the
only legal military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
that got up to save the state of a double aggression of Milosevic
and Tudjman's regime. The media in B&H today transfer the deceits
from Belgrade media-propaganda and intelligence circles that someone
who is legally defended their country "so-called." Such morbidity
comes from the heart of fascism. The truth is not proved by means of
reveal a lie of fascism or it is not true to prove a lie of
fascism.) Citizens should be protected from forgery!
The right-wing hook has
raised against Bosnia as a unique state and began peddled morbid
attitudes on "three of Bosnia", certainly ethnic-religious
fragmented. This is just a continuation of anti-Bosnian hegemonic
criminal ideas that cause war and suffering. Still the media are at
the service of the fascist attitude towards Bosnia of Great Croatian
and the Great Serbian discriminatory arrangement. Thereby, the media
openly advocate the right-wing hatred, exclusion, xenophobia, ethno-foulism,
they are silent on the constitutional discrimination, support the
society of ignoramus, they create the fake image. The media deceive
us and lead to the situation to leave rational behaviour and accept
something that we have not yet understood, but the next moment we
can see that it is disastrous for us. Meanwhile, the media have
earned billions of dollars and their owners are rubbing their hands
without thinking whether it is dangerous or good for people that
have supported a sick fascist to come to power. Therefore, there is
not intellectuality in the media, the understanding or superior
thinking, because their goal is the manipulation of mediocrity that
dominates on the historical scene. Media deception is only the
consequence of the old ideological deception of Bosnia that began at
the end of the 19th century and continued until our time in many
false narratives.

Senahid LAVIĆ
March 1, 2017
2017
PUBLICATIONS
MARCH, 2017:
Saudi
king’s “Clash of Civilizations, convergence with Indonesia's
hypocrisy and opportunism - by Julia Suryakusuma
The World’s Last Colony: Morocco continues occupation of Western
Sahara, in defiance of UN - Nizar Visram
Culture as a binding factor in our society, interview with Camilla
Habsburg-Lothringen - By Djoeke Altena
ALL BREAKING BEDS OF OUR MOST FAVOURED AGGRESSOR - By Elodie Pichon
National
Congress of The Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina (NCR B&H) - March 2,
2017
Bosnian
precariat, militaristic world images and media cynicism - Senadin
Lavić
PUBLICATIONS
FEBRUARY, 2017:
SR15
Caspian Basin.pdf
THE
EMPIRE STRIKES BACK - By: Tomislav Jakić
Decriminalize
Victims, please - Sooyoung Hu
Big
data and the Future of Democracy - by Hannes Grassegger and Mikael
Krogerus
The
Malta Plan – a humane EU border and asylum policy is possible -
Gerald Knaus
PUBLICATIONS
JANUARY, 2017:
The
Diplomatic Insight JAN 2017.pdf
La-La-Land
of Central Asia Kazakhstan and its “Astana Code of Conduct” - By
Samantha Brletich
Donald
Trump, Nuclear Issue and Nuclear War -By: Markus Wauran
TRUMP’S
TURN - By Tomislav Jakić
Facing
the Trump Presidency – Will the Monroe doctrine finally die? -
Nicola Bilotta
Human
Misery monetized - By Aleksandra Krstic
Jakarta
Gubernatorial Election 2017: Who Will Be Eliminated? - By: Igor
Dirgantara
Battling
the Tiger: Combating corruption in the Sino-world - By Lingbo ZHAO
A
European swamp – corruption and human rights - Gerald Knaus
info@orbus.be
www.orbus.be

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Maasmechelen Village

Maasmechelen Village


Adria


BALKAN AREA


prof. dr. Anis Bajrektarevic
Editor - Geopolitics, History, International Relations (GHIR) Addleton Academic
Publishers - New YorK
Senior Advisory board member, geopolitics of energy Canadian energy research
institute - ceri, Ottawa/Calgary
Advisory Board Chairman Modern Diplomacy & the md Tomorrow's people platform
originator
Head of mission and department head - strategic studies on Asia
Professor and Chairperson Intl. law & global pol. studies

Critical Similarities and Differences in SS of Asia and Europe - Prof.
Anis H. Bajrektarevic

MENA Saga and Lady Gaga - (Same dilemma from the MENA) - Anis H. Bajrektarevic

![Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Assos. Prof.[1] Nguyen Linh[2]](images/Prof_Dr._Nguyen_Anh_Tuan_140.jpg)
HE ONGOING PUBLIC DEBT CRISIS IN THE EUROPEAN UNION: IMPACTS ON AND LESSONS
FOR VIETNAM - Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Assos. Prof.[1] Nguyen Linh[2]


Carla BAUMER
Climate
Change and Re Insurance: The Human Security Issue SC-SEA Prof. Anis
Bajrektarevic & Carla Baumer

Igor Dirgantara
(Researcher and Lecturer at the Faculty of Social and Politics,
University of Jayabaya)


Peny Sotiropoulou
Is
the ‘crisis of secularism’ in Western Europe the result of multiculturalism?


Dr. Emanuel L. Paparella
A Modest “Australian” Proposal to Resolve our Geo-Political Problems
Were the Crusades Justified? A Revisiting - Dr. Emanuel L. Paparella


Alisa
Fazleeva
Earned an MA in International Relations from the University of East
Anglia in Norwich, United Kingdom in 2013. Her research interests include
foreign policy decision-making, realism and constructivism, and social
psychology and constructivism.


Corinna Metz
She
is an independent researcher specialized in International Politics and Peace
& Conflict Studies with a regional focus on the Balkans and the Middle East.

Patricia Galves
Derolle
Founder of Internacionalista
Săo Paulo, Brazil
Brazil – New Age


Dimitra Karantzeni
The
political character of Social Media: How do Greek Internet users perceive and
use social networks?


Michael Akerib
Vice-Rector
SWISS UMEF UNIVERSITY


Petra Posega
is a master`s degree student on the University for Criminal justice and Security
in Ljubljana. She obtained her bachelor`s degree in Political Science- Defense
studies.
Contact:
posegap@live.com


Samantha Brletich,
George Mason University School of Policy, Government, and
Intl. Relations She focuses on Russia and Central Asia. Ms. Brletich is an
employee of the US Department of Defense.

Interview on HRT-Radio
Prof. dr. Anis Bajrektarević


Dr Filippo ROMEO,


Julia Suryakusuma
is the outspoken Indonesian thinker,
social-cause fighter and trendsetter. She is the author of Julia’s Jihad.
Contact:
jsuryakusuma@gmail.com


Gerald Knaus


Mads Jacobsen
Mads is an intern at PCRC. Mads Jacobsen is from Denmark and is currently
pursuing his Master's degree in 'Development and International Relations' at
Aalborg University...


Dzalila Osmanovic-Muharemagic
University of Bihac, Faculty of Education,
Department of English Language and Literature - undergraduate
University of Banja Luka, Faculty of Philology, Department of English Language
and Literature - graduate study


Rakesh Krishnan Simha
New Zealand-based journalist and foreign affairs analyst. According to him, he
writes on stuff the media distorts, misses or ignores.
Rakesh started his career in 1995 with New Delhi-based Business World magazine,
and later worked in a string of positions at other leading media houses such as
India Today, Hindustan Times, Business Standard and the Financial Express, where
he was the news editor.
He is the Senior Advisory Board member of one of the fastest growing Europe’s
foreign policy platforms: Modern Diplomacy.


Damiel Scalea
Daniele Scalea, geopolitical
analyst, is Director-general of IsAG (Rome Institute of Geopolitics) and Ph.D.
Candidate in Political studies at the Sapienza University, Rome. Author of three
books, is frequent contributor and columnist to various Tv-channels and
newspapers. E-mail:
daniele.scalea@gmail.com


Alessio Stilo,
Research Associate at Institute of High
Studies in Geopolitics and Auxiliary Sciences (IsAG), Rome, Italy, and Ph.D.
researcher at University of Padova, is IMN Country Representative in Italy.


Tomislav Jakić
Foreign Policy Advisor to former Croatian
President Stjepan Mesić


Zlatko Hadžidedić
Graduate of the London School of Economics,
prof. Zlatko Hadžidedić is a prominent thinker,
prolific author of numerous books, and indispensable political figure of the
former Yugoslav socio-political space in 1990s, 2000s and 2010s.


Mr. Nicola Bilotta
Nicola Bilotta has a BA and a MA
in History from Universitŕ degli Studi di Milano and a MSc in Economic History
from the London School of Economics. He works as a Global Finance Research
Assistant at The Banker (Financial Times) and collaborates as an external
researcher at ISAG (Istituto di Alti Studi di Geopolitica e Scienze Ausiliari)
N_bilotta@lse.ac.uk


Markus Wauran
Date and Place of Birth: April 22, 1943 – Amurang,
North Sulawesi, IndonesiaEducation: Bachelor in Public
Administration.
Writer was a member of the House of Representatives
of Indonesia (DPR/MPR-RI) period of 1987-1999, and Chairman of
Committee X, cover Science and Technology, Environment and National
Development Planning (1988-1997).
Currently as Obsever of Nuclear for peace.


Sooyoung Hu
Attached to the US-based Berkeley University,
Sooyoung Hu is a scholar at its Political Science and Peace and Conflict
Studies Department. Miss Hu focuses on international relations, international
organizations and its instruments.


Senahid LAVIĆ

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