Bridge cannot span the divide

The city of Mostar lies on the River Neretva in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Before the Bosnian war of 1992-95, the Croats and Muslims of Mostar lived in a united city. Since the war, however, the city has been divided. The Croats live on the west bank of the river and the Muslims live on the east bank. Croats and Muslims go to different schools. They have different mobile telephone systems. Buses do not cross the river. If you live on the east bank of the river you cannot order a pizza from the pizza restaurant on the west bank.

During the war the Croats destroyed the famous old stone bridge over the Neretva, which the Turks built in 1566. The bridge fell into the river. Many people saw this as a symbol of the division of the city into two parts.

In March 2004, the international governor of Bosnia introduced some new laws for the city. He removed the old Croat and Muslim town councils and formed a new single council for the city. In June 2004 the Croat and Muslim firefighting services joined together and became a single firefighting service. Then in July the two ambulance services joined together and became a single ambulance service.

The last week something remarkable happened. Milan Milesovic, a Croat ambulance driver from the Croat west side of Mostar, drove his ambulance across one of the bridges over the Neretva River to help a sick Muslim on the other side. "I'm just doing my job. It's normal", he said.

The Croats have also said that Muslim schoolchildren can attend the beautiful old grammar school in September. They will, however, be on a separate floor and will have a different educational program from the Croats.

Finally, last week, the Old Bridge reopened again. The work took many years and cost $9m. The bridge is a perfect copy of the old Turkish bridge and is 27m long and stands 18m above the river. Princes, presidents and prime ministers from all over Europe attended the opening of the "new Old Bridge". Many people see the opening as a symbol of hope for the future.

But one western official, who has been in Bosnia for more than five years, is not so optimistic. He says that the Croat and Muslim politicians in Mostar are making the divisions between the Croats and the Mulsims even greater.