ROUND TABLE

For the sake of our emigrant friends present at this symposium, allow me to make something clear regarding the greatest and strongest Balkan problem pertaining to history and civilization. The problem at hand is Croatian-Serbian relations. Croatian-Serbian relations are the key and backbone of all Balkan relations. Serbians always managed to claim everything they found or anything that occurred on their territory, as their own. Anyone who accomplished anything meaningful was proclaimed Serbian. For example, few of us know that the founder of the Serbian academy of arts and sciences, Sanu, which, in a way, prepared this horrible war, was Croatian. He was Josip Pancic, a internationally known scholar and naturalist who was the first president of the Serbian Academy of Sciences. Pancic discovered a tree, later named the Pancic pine, after him. Some quasi students in Serbia attempted to change the name to “Serbian pine” in 1991, however, they did not succeed. We all know of Krleza’s famous discussion with a fictional Serb. I believe he said, “You Serbs are better at making artillery, and we, Croatians, are better at making sausages.” Most of us here probably do not even know that the first Serbian artillerist was Croatian as was the first Serbian pilot. I will end my discussion with a recollection of a Greater Serbian poet from the nineteenth century, Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj from Vojvodina. I am mentioning this because of my dear friend, Count Tolstoy, so that he can be made aware of this dimension, as well. In 1883, Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj , as a Serbian from Vojvodina, realized that Belgrade and Pest, that is, Serbia and Hungary were preparing something unpleasant for Croatians, behind their backs. His reaction was the following well-known poem:

A Croat will not fight to seize from others,
He will defend the holy flame on his hearth.
And while he does this throughout the most difficult times,
Both God and justice are on his side!
And the Serb, should he set off
On a path where there is neither God nor justice.

This is a poem written 112 years ago by the greatest Serbian poet of the time. Unfortunately, today, we cannot find a Serbian who would write a poem similar to this one, that would find fault with Serbia and Serbians for the outrageous aggression, crimes and atrocities, destruction of cities and villages, monstrous camps, crimes and criminals. This is especially tragic, considering that Serbian poets participated in these atrocities as well. Thus, we can say that the people and the poets stumbled into a horrible moral abyss, from which they might only be removed by the exceptional efforts of future civilized generations and then return to some sort of humane path.

Ante Beljo: And so, we conclude our meeting on this poetic note. I would like to announce that the second half of this symposium will continue in May, 1996 (May 23, 24 and 25, to be exact) in Dubrovnik. We hope that Dubrovnik will not be faced with the danger of shelling, just as Zadar no longer is. I believe that by then, many issues with respect to the Balkan territories will have been solved. In conclusion, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the lecturers and participants in our discussion, all our guests, and all of those who carefully followed our presentation. A special thanks, as well, to our translators, who did an excellent job translating. Once again, I thank you all.