VIEWPOINT FROM LONDON

ASHDOWN'S EDUCATION MANIFESTO

by Brian Gallagher

The Croatian Herald, Australia No. 987 - 10.10.03

Paddy Ashdown's manifesto commitments and his writings whilst he was leader of the Liberal Democrats in the United Kingdom shed a lot of light on his policies in Bosnia-Herzegovina. In particular, the details on education are of great importance, as that is a major issue right now in BiH, especially for the Croats. And Ashdown's views are very close to the Croats.

In BiH, reform of education is being debated by parliament. There is a push by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) to place education on the entity level away from the local level. In the Muslim-Croat Federation this would mean control passing to the education ministry in Sarajevo.

Croats are very concerned about this; not unreasonably they wish their children to be taught in their own language and about Croat culture, which they are able to do now at local level. They believe this may be compromised if it is placed at entity level; the Croats are significantly outnumbered in the Federation by the Bosniaks.

If a solution is not found, then Paddy Ashdown may impose one. If one considers his political track record then in theory his solution would be something Croats find agreeable.

In an interview for the Guardian last year, Ashdown stated that he is implementing the 1992 Liberal Democrat manifesto in BiH.

So it seems that Ashdown is drawing on his party policies as leader in running BiH. The 1992 election manifesto is very clear on education: Under "Putting education at the heart of the community" they discuss the independence of schools and colleges and their pioneering local management. They want education within a "democratically accountable framework of local education authorities". Local education authorities in the UK roughly translates into cantons in BiH, rather than the entities.

The manifesto also says that education is an area that "should be devolved from Whitehall (central government) and brought nearer to the people they most affect."

For Ashdown's 1997 manifesto - which I personally campaigned for - previous ideas are built upon, with more power to be given to schools. The "valuable role" of church schools is recognised, and where there is substantial community support, the major faiths can establish publicly funded voluntary schools.

Furthermore, the role of national culture and language is also regarded as important. The 1997 Scottish Liberal Democrat manifesto under "A new deal for Gaelic and Scots culture", states they "will support and maintain the diversity of Scotland's linguistic and cultural traditions." Specifically they will support and develop the provision of Gaelic in education and that they will "Promote a greater emphasis on Scottish culture in the mainstream curriculum".

It is obvious from all this that Ashdown's commitments as party leader were to local control of school and a strong recognition and support of religion, language and culture. The positive implications for Croats are clear.

In 1994 Ashdown wrote a book entitled 'Beyond Westminster - Finding Hope in Britain'. Essentially he travelled across the United Kingdom, including deprived areas, spending time with the diverse people of the country.

In East London, he speaks approvingly of Saturday schools run by and for ethnic minorities which "teach their religion, preserve their language and culture and supplement mainstream education". Croats of course are a constituent people, not an ethnic minority. They expect mainstream schools to do their job rather than having to organise separate schooling themselves. And East London is extraordinarily multi-cultural in contrast to BiH. The situations are very different.

But the critical point here is that Ashdown supports the preservation of people's language, culture and religions.

In Beyond Westminster's conclusion Ashdown declares his belief in local communities and people providing solutions - not centralised government.

In total, it is very clear that Paddy Ashdown's manifesto commitments as Liberal Democrat leader and his own words lean towards local control of education, an appreciation of religion in schools and supporting the development of local language and culture. This certainly would benefit Croats - but it also benefits Serbs and Bosniaks as well. No one group should be able to dominate another in any field in BiH under the guise of unity - Serb domination in former Yugoslavia was hardly a good idea.

Croats should set about reminding Paddy Ashdown of his manifesto commitments - and use them right now in support of their case for their schoolchildren and students to be taught in their own language and about their own culture.

If Ashdown has to impose a solution, it will be interesting to see what he does; I am sure many observers in Britain will be keen to see if he sticks to his principles.

© Brian Gallagher

My 'Viewpoint from London' column appears fortnightly in the Australian 'Croatian Herald' and thereafter at www.croatiafocus.com