FAR from the horrors of war, Aida Hotic, a 10-month-old Bosnian girl,
is cradled in the arms of her grandmother, Hasnija, in temporary refuge
in Glasgow.
The two are part of a group of 44 women and children from the town of
Bosanski Petrovac who are being cared for by Islamic Relief, a voluntary
group working for Bosnian refugees.
Both of Hasnija's parents and her daughter, Aida's mother, have been
killed in the territorial conflict between Serbia and Bosnia. Aida's
father is being held in a Serbian concentration camp.
Most of the 16 women in the group have had horrific experiences of the
war, including rape and having their husbands murdered, and many are
still deeply traumatised. One teenage boy in the Glasgow refuge had to
bury his murdered father at night before making his escape.
''They are so afraid that, even here, they don't trust anyone,'' said
Haq Ghani, a Glasgow-based volunteer working with the refugees.
The citizens of Bosanski Petrovac came to the UK in April, well before
yesterday's ban on former Yugoslav nationals entering the country
without a visa.
The Home Office estimates there are 40,000 former Yugoslav nationals
in the UK on visitor visas and 4424 have applied for asylum. Refugee
agencies estimate that Germany is considering 200,000 applications for
refugee status, with Sweden dealing with 44,000 applications.
The move by the UK Government has angered many like Haq Ghani who hold
out hope for the women and children in the Glasgow refuge being allowed
to settle in Scotland.
He said: ''You have seen on your television screen what is happening
in Bosnia. It is unbelievable that a European nation can sit back and
watch this slaughter in another European country, and instead of going
in and making plans to prevent it, they are stopping people coming out
and forcing them to be killed.
''It contrasts very sharply with how quickly the Western countries
moved to help Kuwait, an undemocratic country, during the Gulf war.''
Up to two dozen refugees from the war in Bosnia are to find a haven in
Orkney. The war victims will be housed in a hostel in one of the
island's country schools for six months, during which their request for
asylum will be considered by the Home Office.
A network of volunteers has been set up on Orkney's main island to
cover every aspect of the refugees' needs and, during their stay, the
Bosnians will have certain legal rights which will entitle them to
social security benefits and medical and dental treatment.
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