USA Bishops Conference delegation in five days visit to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina

Zagreb, 6. 3. 1996. (IKA) – USA Bishops Conference delegation arrived, 2nd March, For five days visit to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The head of the delegation is New York Archbishop Theodor McCarrick who is at the same time the president of
he Bishops Conference Commission for help to Catholic Church in Middle and East Europe. Director of the Bishops Conference International Department of “Justitia et Pax” father Andrew Christiansen came with Archbishop McCarrick, too. American
delegation visited the Secretary of Croatian Bishops Conference, 2nd March, and they talked with Croatian Bishops Conference general secretary prelate Vjekoslav Milovan and with Croatian Bishops Conference vice-secretary father dr. Ilija Živkoviæ. The
delegation was informed with the activities of Croatian Bishops Conference, its structure, the connection with INTERNET and with the materials about destroyed ecclesiastic objects in Croatia, After the visit to the Secretary, apostolic nuncio in Republic Croatia Archbishop Giulio Einaudi received the delegation and talked about the work of the Nunciature and about the situation of Catholic Church in Croatia.
Zagreb Archbishop Franjo Cardinal Kuhariæ received Archbishop McCarrick and informed him of actual activities of the Church in Croatia, Dayton agreement that he considers as unjust solution for Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, specially for
Croatian population at Bosanska posavina, because, by the agreement, the majority of 160.000 Croats of that region became homeless.
The delegation left, in the evening, for Orašje. They stayed at Franciscan monastery at Tulisa during the night. On Sunday, 3td March, USA Bishops Conference representatives visited the USA base of IFOR in Tuzla. Archbishop McCarrick celebrated the Mass for American soldiers, there. USA general Cherrie informed the guests with the IFOR mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the priorities of their activities, specially with building the bridge between Orašje and Županja. He, also, presented his vision of the Bosnia and Herzegovina future, emphasizing that their mission will not succeed if all NATO countries and other countries of the whole world will not help the economical renewal of Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Without economical support, there will be no peace in the future at the territories of Bosnia and Herzegovina”, said the general. In the afternoon, the delegation met and talked with military and civil representatives in Orašje. They presented their difficulties towards realization of Dayton#!s agreement at the region, and they asked the delegation to intercede for help to Croatian population at that territory and to ask their government to help the realization of Dayton agreement in the most just way. Dean of Orašje and Brèko Dean#!s Office talked about the problem of village Oštra Luka that had been divided in two so that Catholic church and the cemetery are under the Serbian control, in spite the front line was outside of the village, during the war. Guardian of Plehan monastery expressed his wish for the rebuilding of the church and the monastery Plehan, and talked about the plans of Franciscan Province Bosnia Argentina. The problem of the return of refugees was also emphasized at the meeting. On Monday, 4th
March, American Archbishop with bishop Franjo Komarica visited the refugees from Banja Luka in Kutina and Sisak. They celebrated the Mass at the parish of St. Cross Exaltation. Archbishop expressed the solidarity with the refugees, and told them that he will intercede in spiritual and material way for help to the refugees. After the Eucharist, bishop Komarica addressed specially the believers from Banja Luka and called them to forgive and emphasized that he had never accepted that Croats have to
leave those territories. He also tallced about Dayton agreement and said that its realization will be slow, but they have not give up hope “because people have right to stay there where they were born” and “ethnical cleansing is unnatural and can not last forever”. After his visit to Kutina and Sisak, Archbishop McCarrick visited Mostar, 5th March. He met the European governor of Mostar Franz Koschnick who presented him his vision of the Federation#!s future and said that it will survive with help of “a great Word#!s economic injection”. After the meeting with Koschnick, Archbishop met Mostar mufti who talked about the problem of Muslims in Mostar. After this meeting with mufti Archbishop met the mayor of Mostar Milo Brajkoviæ and talked about his vision of the Federation#!s future and about problems of Croats and Muslims living together in Mostar. Mostar-Duvno bishop Ratko Periæ with American Archbishop went to see the renewal of the Cathedral, the building of pastoral center and the works at Bishop#!s See. At the end of his visit to Mostar, Archbishop visited the Franciscan
monastery in Mostar. The delegation left for USA on Wednesday, 6th March.