The Royal British Legion (RBL) today marked the 30th anniversary of the end of the Bosnian War with a Ceremony of Remembrance at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.
400 veterans and family members attended the commemorative service at the Armed Forces Memorial to pay tribute to the thousands of British service personnel who served in Bosnia and remember those who lost their lives.
The act of Remembrance was held at dusk as veterans and families joined an illuminated procession with votive lights beside the names of the 59 British personnel inscribed on the Memorial who lost their lives in the conflict.
The event Remembering Operations in Bosnia was hosted by the Royal British Legion, the UK’s largest military charity and national champion of Remembrance, to pay tribute to the crucial contribution of British Forces in the international efforts to secure peace in the Balkans.
Guests included Sir John Major, Prime Minister during the War, and General Sir Michael Rose, Commander of the UN Protection Force in Bosnia in 1994, and the service began with a flypast by a Wildcat helicopter and an opening video address by former BBC war correspondent Martin Bell.
Lynda Atkins, RBL National Chair with Sir John Major KG CH and General Sir Michael Rose KCB CBE DSO QGM
The service was for all UK personnel who had served in the UN and NATO missions in Bosnia since 1992, and their families, to come together for an afternoon of reflection and comradeship.
A film of veterans sharing their war experiences was shown including reflections on how the efforts of the British Armed Forces in Bosnia made a difference to the people who were left and those they protected.
“The Royal British Legion is immensely proud to bring our community together on the 30th anniversary of the end of the Bosnian War, to have veterans and families with us today to remember the service and sacrifice of those who served and those who sadly lost their lives. We pay tribute to the immense courage and professionalism of the men and women of our British Armed Forces who were there in Bosnia, and who put themselves at risk to protect others. Thirty years on, the RBL continues to support Bosnia veterans living with the mental and physical challenges following their service in the war, and we will always be here for them.”
Philippa Rawlinson, Director of Remembrance at the Royal British Legion
Army veteran Warren Howell, 51, from Warrington, who developed PTSD after serving in Bosnia with the Queen’s Lancashire Regiment and has been supported by the RBL, led the procession as families joined the illuminated act of Remembrance at the Memorial.
“It’s been very emotional coming here today and I want to thank the Royal British Legion for bringing us together and doing this for the Armed Forces community. Bosnia was a difficult conflict. When you’re there, you just react, you get fired upon and you witness ethnic cleansing, but afterwards it hits you, the mental health issues started and remained undiagnosed for years. When I came back, things got worse, I was having nightmares, flashbacks, I was angry all the time."
“The RBL helped me to understand that PTSD tries to make you live the way that PTSD wants you to, avoiding social situations, keeping yourself protected and locked in, so that makes every day a challenge, but you have to keep going. I’m in a much better place thanks to the RBL.”