ABSTRACT: Emma Bonino, secretary of the Radical Party, and Ottavio Lavaggi, MP, in charge of foreign affairs for the Republican Party and a member of the Radical Party, say that what is happening in Bosnia could have been avoided with timely and determined political and diplomatic initiatives. The guilty passivity of the West has lead us instead into a situation where a military intervention could well become the only effective option. Europe has repeated these mistakes vis-à-vis Macedonia, accepting Greece's blackmail. The only comforting signal is the Italian Council of Ministers' decision to host the international tribunal on crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia. But after the referendum a new approach will be needed, with a government capable of carrying out effective foreign policy actions.

(IL GIORNALE, April 19th, 1993)

The Italian and international public opinion is witnessing, with growing concern and dismay, the new steps of the long martyrdom of Bosnia, the dramatic consequences for the civilian populations of the powerless and complacent passivity of the West, which has done too little (and too late) in ex-Yugoslavia to defend those principles of right to life, freedom and equality which represent the foundatioun of our civilization, which we relentlessly uphold the universal value of.

The sense of frustration we have today stems from the awareness of facing a preannounced, foreseeable tragedy, which could have been avoided with timely and resolute political and military actions, even in the absence of a military intervention, which has not been avoided because of a guilty passivity, forcing us into a situation in which, as days go by, a military intervention seems to become the most effective option. We are also aware of the fact that what is happening today in Bosnia could happen tomorrow in Macedonia or Kosovo, and the slowness and indecision shown so far by the international community on these two problems cannot reassure us on the matter.

A first step to guarantee peace and rule of law in Macedonia, a country torn by ethnic divisions and tensions that remind us of the ones in Bosnia, should have been an international recognition of its sovereignty, the formal condition to obtain the cooperation of its government to the embargo decided against Serbia - which Macedonia borders with - and to order the dispatch of contingents of blue helmets with "peacekeeping" functions.

This was the sense of the conclusion of the Badinter Commission, set up by the EEC after the secession of the republics of former Yugoslavia to verify, for each of them, the existence of the requirements for recognition.

And yet the European Community, which rapidly recognized Slovenia and Croatia and subsequently Bosnia itself, waited a full year to recognize Macedonia, accepting the absurd blackmail of Greece, which wanted to deny the new State the right to choose its name and flag.

While a member of the EEC for twenty years, Greece continues to behave with a wholly Balkanic logic that makes it into the natural ally of the Serbian coreligionists.

The fact that Greece pursues this policy may be disturbing, but it is in its right. What is less understandable is the fact that the entire European Community and our country in particular have accepted for more than a year to be paralysed by the Greek pressure, in the name of a touted unity of action which has proven non-existant, considering Greece's persistent refusal to recognize Macedonia despite the decisions assumed in this sense by the UN Security Council on April 7th and by four countries of the EC, including Italy, on April 15th.

Despite the repeated affirmative statements of President Amato, for four months our foreign minister chose not to apply the indications of Parliament (last December 17th the Chamber committee for foreign affairs bound the Italian government to act) and instead of recognizing Macedonia - the necessary condition to make the embargo decided by the UN against Serbia effective - found nothing better to do than make an official visit to Belgrade on January 21st to meet Milosevic, the president of a State never recognized by Italy, violating the diplomatic isolation decided by the EC against Serbia. Regretfully, his action was immediately copied by the French President, Mitterrand.

A further proof of the understandably scarce consideration and credibility of our country within the EC came last Thursday, when Germany, Denmark and Belgium recognized Macedonia, without, obviously, seeking an agreement with our country, which made a similar step in extremis that same evening.

On Friday the Council of Ministers instead made a positive and important choice. At the suggestion of the Italian Minister of Justice, Conso, Italy offered to be the seat of the International Tribunal on War Crimes in ex-Yugoslavia, a step which places our country in a position of particular responsibility.

Actions must be taken immediately at the international level to urge the establishment of the organ decided by the UN and to turn it into a permanent body with competence over the territories affected by conflicts. This would represent a fundamental contribution for the actual opportunity of applying the international law.

At a moment in which Italy, after today's referendum, is preparing to form a new cabinet, it must be placed in the condition to face the new and urgent problems of internal policy as well as carry out an effective foreign policy action, namely as far as the dramatic situation of ex-Yugoslavia is concerned.

In Great Britain, where a majority system is in force, they have a foreign minister who governs and a "shadow minister" of the opposition who controls and criticizes him. In Italy, as we wait for a majority system, we have already adopted an offspring of the British model: we are governed by the shadow of a minister.

Here too, it's high time to change system.

Likewise, it is time to change in the sense that the political decisions on major issues of our time should be taken with the active involvement of the public opinion and the members of Parliament at the international level--an objective which the transnational radical party has long been pursuing and which is tragically up-to-date now.