Minesweeper

Living in Bosnia or merely spending a limited amount of time in this country means being confronted, sooner or later, with the issue of  mine fields. Even a decade after the war, mine fields still abound and growing up in an atmosphere of constant uncertainty and threat thus requires a certain degree of acquiescence. Hence, an integral part of this camp constituted prevention and education about this very issue. In this regard, the Swiss Red Cross invited three experts who arrived on a sweltering monday afternoon to give us some insights into their work, and the Bosnian mine issue in general. Three Austrian EUFOR commanders from the Mines Information Coordination Cell, equipped with maps, leaflets, and 'Topgun' attire, gave an entertaining presentation, which seemed to be of greater interest to the blissfully ignorant Swiss volunteers, a fact evidenced by the astounding number of Bosnian Red Cross volunteers who took the opportunity to rest their eyes.

Two of the Austrain LOT officers in Bosnia

This comes as no surprise, since many schools in the Republic and the Federation take mine education very seriously and even organize competitions among themselves in order to test their students about the dangers of mine fields. For the Swiss noobs, however, this was an excellent opportunity to discover a crucial aspect about life in Bosnia, and to some extent, about the mentality of its people; the number of anti-personnel mines is estimated to amount to 220,000 spread over a surface of 1589 square kilometres, sixty per cent of which have been discovered and secured. This means that around forty per cent of these mines are still buried, hidden, and remaining invisible in unknown areas, thus constituting a constant life threat. 

It is especially the military fronts that had been drawn between the opposing  forces during the war that hold most of the mines, as well as abandoned houses, formerly inhabited by soldiers who would mine them before leaving for another quarter. 

The crux of the matter is that during the war, a vast number of soldiers and paramilitaries carried around mines which they spread without a specific plan, meaning that it is impossible today to find their location on military maps or in strategic documents. Trial and error. Trial and error. Hence, mine experts depend, to some extent, on accidents in order to find new, undiscovered mine fields. Sometimes however, they also receive leads from local scouts who occasionally find old maps with indicated mine fields. Thus, maintaining good relations with the civilian population is crucial.
Nevertheless, locals sometimes enter mine fields despite the numerous warning signs, because they look to chop down trees to sell wood. To this end, they deactivate mines, bury them somewhere else, and activate them again once the job is done, so as to keep competitors from getting to the precious trees.

Given that it took more than a decade to locate and secure sixty percent of the mine fields, estimations of the international community to clear all of Bosnia from mines by 2030 seem far too optimistic; funding for these operations has dried up and the Bosnian government is less and less inclined to invest in further clearing operations. It is understandable; with every new generation the danger of active mine fields becomes less urgent, merely a part of everyday life. People have gotten used to the warning signs, the uncertainty, and the occasional accidents. The mine problem is becoming an abstract issue,  entrenched in inaction and difficult to grasp if one is not directly affected, but nevertheless one that requires solving.