Tunel Spasa

I hope that you are still enjoying our wander around Bascarcije. I am.

The guide book suggests a visit to Tunel Spasa (The Tunnel of Hope) and this requires a bit of concentration, tram catching and empathy. Gather all of those things in your kit bag and follow me. We need to take number 1 tram line, just for four stops.

First, a bit of background information for those who are younger than 20 years old, or those who were in a coma between 1992 and 1995.

The Siege of Sarajevo is the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare. Serbian forces of the Republika Srpska and the Yugoslav People's Army besieged Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996 during the Bosnian War.
After Bosnia and Herzegovina had declared independence from Yugoslavia, the Serbs, lead by Slobodan Milosevic, (whose strategic goal was to create a new Serbian State of Republika Srpska which would include part of the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina), encircled Sarajevo with a siege force of 18,000 stationed in the surrounding hills, from which they assaulted the city with weapons that included artillery, mortars, tanks, anti-aircraft guns, heavy machine-guns, multiple rocket launchers, rocket-launched aircraft bombs, and sniper rifles. From 2 May 1992, the Serbs blockaded the city. The Bosnian government defense forces inside the besieged city were poorly equipped and unable to break the siege.

All roads were blocked in and out of Sarajevo, the airport was shut, power was cut, food supplies dwindled quickly as did supplies of water and medicine. Four hundred thousand residents were trapped inside the city as Serbian soldiers committed now documented offences against humanity. Thousands were killed and wounded. The term ‘ethnic cleansing’ appeared in the media – thousands of women were raped and many tragically people died of starvation. All buildings were damaged. It wasn’t until June of 1992 that the UN managed to airlift supplies into the besieged city, but the fighting continued.

It is estimated that nearly 10,000 people were killed or went missing in the city, including over 1,500 children. An additional 56,000 people were wounded, including nearly 15,000 children. The 1991 census indicates that before the siege the city and its surrounding areas had a population of 525,980. The current estimates of the number of persons living in Sarajevo range between 300,000 and 380,000 residents.

In January of 1993, Bosnians started digging a tunnel– it started in the garage of a house, went under the airport and ended 960 meters away, outside the area that was being attacked by the Serbians. It was1.5 m high and 1 m wide. Between the time that the tunnel was completed in mid 1993, and the end of the siege, it is recorded that 20,000,000 tons of food were delivered to the starving city through the tunnel, much needed medical supplies were provided and badly wounded civilians were taken through the tunel to receive medical aid. Estimates are that over a million people moved through the tunnel.

The city and its buildings were damaged, some irrepairably, but it would seem that the spirit of the people was not damaged – during the siege, the first Sarajevo Film Festival was held with films brought into the city via the tunnel. Another story is told as follows ; a customer went into a shoe shop to buy a pair of shoes – the owner of the shop said – please, we have already sold a pair of shoes today – our neighbour has a family and no food – please go and buy the shoes from him’.

I am not pointing the finger at the Serbians as the only ones who committed atrocities during the war – I just happen to be talking about Sarajevo.

There are only a few meters left of the original tunnel, but the owners of the house have created an amateurish museumto celebrate the achievement of the tunnel from the building. I don’t have any photos but if you follow this link, it will give you a virtual tour.

http://viewat.org/?i=en&id_aut=8&id_pn=3444&pag=6&sec=pn

What I did notice (bearing in mind that I was only in the city for two days, a mere snapshot really) was that despite everything that we know about the siege, and the huge amount that we will never know or understand, the city feels positive and vibrant.