A few hits
Sir: Having recently endured the assault of broadsheet leader columns dictating with a clarity and confidence which is only the privilege of the partially informed, I looked forward to reading the considered opinion of Noel Malcolm on events in Bosnia. What a disappointment!
Noel Malcolm usually writes with smart weapon precision, but this was not the case in 'The whole lot of them are Serbs' (10 June). Instead, he lined up most of the senior political and military figures associ- ated with the international community's efforts in Bosnia and simply machine- gunned accusations at them.
This was bound to result in a few hits, even if the calibre of invective on this occasion was small, but it is hardly incisive journalism. Rather than exposing any institutional bias or personal prejudices that would stand any real test, we were treated to some selective quotes and hearsay evidence. One of the silli- est targets was the British contingent of Unprofor who faced the accusation of being permeated with pro-Serb sentiment. This invisible hand of prejudice, when not swap- ping regimental cap badges, is passing the received wisdom on to subsequent comman- ders. What arrant nonsense! The motive for this 'instinctive camaraderie' is apparently respect for Serb commanders, 'most of whom had been full-time soldiers in the Yugoslav federal army'. How inconvenient for Mr Mal- colm that the supreme commander of the Bosnian army, his chief of staff, all six corps commanders, not to mention countless oth- ers, were also professional soldiers in the JNA. It is probably tedious to point out that the same applies to the Bosnian Croat army. By trying to demonstrate a coherent psy- chology at play in Unprofor generally and British forces specifically, Mr Malcolm merely displays that he is an academic spec- ulating from afar. Surely, the more interest- ing area to investigate is the paralysis of decision-making caused precisely because there is no identifiable UN psychology?
P.R. Watkins
former Head of ECMM Bosnia Hercegovina, 30 Regency Green, Colchester, Essex
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