Health Fitness Revolution magazine is bringing you an exclusive first look at Samir Becic‘s letter to 100 U.S. Senators and the 435 members of the House of Representatives (adding up to 535 individual letters) about the perilous situation unfolding in his country of birth, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The official “fitness czar” for the City of Houston and HarperCollins author of the book “ReSync Your Life” is gravely concerned about the recent events escalating and unfolding in the Balkan region. He hopes that this letter will help halt the attack on democracy and prevent a repeat of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s grim history which culminated in the genocide at Srebrenica:
Dear Senator/Representative:
I write to you as a concerned American citizen, and native-born Bosnian, to ask for your assistance and support in addressing the increasingly dangerous events that are currently taking place in my former home and birthplace.
Since I emigrated to this country over twenty years ago, I have devoted myself to improving the health and fitness of all Americans through lectures, community outreach, publishing, and serving as the “fitness czar” for the City of Houston. I have also devoted myself to promoting American values of peace, freedom, security, and self-determination here at home as well as abroad, including in my birth country, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Sadly, I write to you today to share my grave concern for the future of these great American values in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Currently, forces of division, separatism, and expansionism in Bosnia and neighboring countries are attempting to annul the Dayton Accords and de facto eliminate Bosnia and Herzegovina’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. To cite but one example, Milorad Dodik, the member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina from Republika Srpska has recently threatened to attack Bosnian armed forces, dismantle key state institutions, and work for the secession of the Republic Srpska from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
These actions, and others like them, have created enormous anxiety among the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina that history is repeating itself, and that the bloodshed of 1992-1995 – which resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives, the creation of millions of refugees, and the infamous genocide of Srebrenica – will soon be revisited upon them. This was a time of unspeakable tragedy, which I witnessed firsthand. In my birth city of Kljuc alone, more than 700 people were killed, many of whom were my family members, friends, and neighbors. Events such as these cannot be allowed to repeat themselves.
Since 1995, the U.S. sponsored Dayton Accords have kept the peace in the Balkans and assured the security of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Today, that peace and security is at risk. Therefore, I ask as an American citizen, and on behalf of the people of the country of my birth, that you contact Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and Special Envoy Gabriel Escobar, and/or State Department Counselor Derek Chollet and communicate to them your support for the Dayton Accords and the security and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Very truly yours,
Samir Becic
