I wrote 'Uniforms' at pace, for the subject had me gripped. I referred to Melanie Stevens' revulsion at events in Bosnia with the words "I lost my religion as well as my gender then"
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/fiction/22382/uniforms-6
Well, the Dutch have finally come to the end of a legal process that has taken 19 years. Melanie was right: the Dutch gave up the refugees, locked themselves in their barracks, and hid.
This is what I wrote:
"Things came to a head with Srebrenica, and my father’s joke was just so, so bad. The UN had declared it a safe haven, and the Dutch troops were there to protect the people, and in rolled the Serbs and butchered 8,000 while the cloggies hid in their barracks so as not to get hurt.
I know this s not how they see it, but that was what we saw and heard, and if they don’t like it they can tell it to the families of the dead.
We went in as part of a “peacekeeping” force, and all the politics and crap strangled us, and they took all the men and boys and shot them, and raped the women and girls before pillaging, and only then did they burn."
Comments
My heart....
...goes out to those families, of course, but also out to you. Thank you.
Love, Andrea Lena
The once and future soldier.....
My apologies to T.S. White for borrowing that line.
As an officer in the United States Navy, a service which I proudly partook in and surprisingly enough found myself returned to recently and unexpectedly, I am sickened by this.
I know that there are those who choose to serve for the wrong reasons, economic or otherwise, and there are those who have not chosen to serve but rather have been conscripted into service, but as one who considered my service to be a privelege - nay to be a requirement, a moral imperative if you will, I hang my head in shame that this would be allowed to happen.
I volunteered to serve because my honor required it. There were many things about my childhood and my upbringing that I am neither happy with or proud of, but one thing that I would not change was the need and desire to serve and protect those less capable of doing so which was instilled into me from an early age. From childhood I was taught that each of us has the obligation to serve to the best of our abilities. Some serve through the military, others in ways more fitting to their abilities and needs. Military service has a long tradition in my family - a tradition which I am happy to say is currently broken with my sons. They serve, but in different ways. My oldest is a teacher, my middle son a police officer, and my youngest is still in school.
I have nothing against military service, and am proud to have served - but I would not wish my demons on anyone. I would not hear my sons awakened screaming from a nightmare night after night as I have been. I would not have them live with the memories which I have, the guilt which I carry, the remorse over lost friends and colleagues that I suffer from. But I trust that if called they will perform with distinction and honor.
How any soldier can fail to perform their duty, how they can cower behind a locked door, how they can ignore the cries and pleading of those they were sent to protect - all simply out of fear for their own lives......
I can not express the disgust I feel over this. Words fail me.
I swore to protect those assigned into my care. I pledged to do my duty, no matter what the consequences to me. I lost my share of blood, dealt with the pain - both physical and emotional, and came perilously close to losing my soul in doing so - but I would still stand up tomorrow between peril and those entrusted to me if given the opportunity.
I believe the line goes something like, "We pledge our lives, our liberty, and our sacred honor......"
There is no punishment harsh enough for a soldier who throws his honor to the wind. Truly, I ask you, what is life without honor?
I don't care to find out.
Dallas
D. Eden
Dum Vivimus, Vivamus
I find this difficult to believe ...
... even though I know it to be true. It just seems to be so out of character.
We've had many cycling trips to the Netherlands; some have been long weekends ostensibly based in Belgium but, as the border is almost indistinguishable on back roads in those parts, a lot of the kms were over in the delta region. Others were much longer, and we've ridden right across the country to Germany a couple of times. We even sailed a 26' yacht across the North Sea and spent a few days exploring the canals and inland seas.
The Dutch have always seemed to be a supremely friendly, liberal and sophisticated people. That their armed forces could act in such a way seems incomprehensible to me and, I suspect, to many in the general population. My ideal cycle touring country would be France peopled by the Dutch - though to be fair, I quite like the French too :)
It's just so very sad at the least and tragic in fact. Possibly even criminal.
Robi
The Dutch
It shocked me at the time, but the simple facts are that the Serbs rolled up, the Dutch forced their guests out, and they were killed.
Shades Of Pontius Pilate
"I wash my hands of this affair" to paraphrase. Maybe the Dutch were under some sort of stupid Rules of Engagement but there comes a time when you have to stand up and be counted. These men would have handed Anne Frank over to those nice Nazis,
Joanne