Tran: The Sarajevo Story

Vedran Smailović (the inspiration for The Cellist) playing in the National Library 1992.


I didn’t realize Sarajevo was the longest siege in modern history and I have a feeling most of the class probably didn’t either which says a lot. It goes to show that even though Sarajevo was so recent, it isn’t remembered as much as it should especially since there is a lack of knowledge surrounding it. Though many people know about the Yugoslavian Genocide, most don’t know the details or circumstances of it. I don’t think anyone either in Sarajevo or in the world community expected the siege in Sarajevo to last so long.

The novel The Cellist of Sarajevo and the film Welcome to Sarajevo shows the two sides of the siege: the locals caught in the siege while the other side deals with the media and those outside looking in. One of the scenes that really stood out in the film was when Michael showed the footage of the attack on the streets in which everyone was covered in blood, wounded, and bodies severely detached. Later his producer said that it wouldn’t be the channel’s main story, but instead the divorce of a Duke and his wife. This suggests the lack of importance the media world was giving Sarajevo and how no one showed much attention to it. Also in the film there were clips where the UN director said Sarajevo was only the 14th worst place on earth, and one where someone says, “They should not expect the West to come in and fix everything. We will not.” The West was making a point it was not coming in to do anything about the situation.

Though there were journalists and international committees coming to view Sarajevo, it must have not been important enough because nothing was done and the situation lasted for so long. The citizens of Sarajevo after time got use to the constant fears of shelling, artillery fires, and snipers. There is another part in the film where it says, “We will not evacuate Sarajevo because that would mean we’re giving up and letting the other side win.” It almost shows a lack of concern for the citizens even after the siege had been going on for so long. It is more important to stay and keep fighting when no one was allowed to leave the horrible conditions of the city. They should have at least given the residents a choice, but every exit from the city was guarded. The lack of concern from city officials and the international community left residents of Sarajevo in a complicated situation where they had to simply fend for themselves while people were innocently shot and killed daily for just being in the streets. In the article by Andreas it says, “Siege dynamics were often more about controlling humanitarian supplies and smuggling routes than about military success or failure.” It was a power struggle to control the city and control supplies which regular residents weren’t getting. It was never about the people in Sarajevo, they were just caught in the middle and expendable of war for both sides.

Galloway’s novel takes the perspective even further through the views of Sarajevans. The novel shows the different sides of the war from locals who are trying to survive with their family, defend the city, or simply wonder what has become of their society. One of the scenes that was memorable in the book was Dragan’s where he wonders to himself if the snipers would waste a bullet to shot a dog, but they would shoot a human. He asks, “Do they recognize more of themselves in a dog or in a human” (Galloway 113). It questions the value and worth of a person because they are now targeted and easily shot as though an animal. Arrow too makes a difficult decision in the book whether to kill the sniper or not and later to kill the innocent man walking up the hill because he might be the father of a rebel in the hill. Hasan says that there are only two sides in the war: us and them. People are no longer even people, but simply targets and no longer just people.

The film and novel reflect that in a time of modernization and humanism, events like Saravejo and the Bosnian Genocide can still occur. Even after all the history that has taken place in the 20th century, they still allow the siege of Sarajevo and the killings in Bosnia to happen. Modern warfare has shown that mass killings aren’t so shocking anymore and it will continue to happen especially now since people now seem to be desensitize to these events. I think with the siege carrying on for so long, after awhile the international community simply got used to it and just allowed for it to play out and settle itself, disregarding the needs of the residents of the city. There were people there covering the stories, but not enough people cared. Henderson tried to humanize the situation by reporting on victims like the orphans, while others said there were more important issues, or news-worthy stories to cover. The siege deprived the people of necessities of life, in turn showing the little value of their lives and the unimportance of a human life when it comes to war.