A SOLDIER back from war-ravaged Bosnia has spoken of his sadness at seeing a beautiful country torn apart by religious bigotry and politics.

Lieutenant Colonel Brian Pickup retired from the territorial army Queen's Lancashire Regiment 4th battalion two years' ago but was kept on the regular army reserve of officers.

He was mobilised to the former Yugoslavia on January 6 and served for seven months as liaison officer for Stabilisation Force headquarters in the British division. He is now back home managing the day-to-day running of Fearns High School, Stacksteads.

Mr Pickup said: "It is such a beautiful country and such a shame that religious bigotry and politicians created such havoc. It is always the ordinary people who suffer. Their husbands, wives, brothers and sisters have been killed. "The region has mountains and beautiful rivers and plenty of room. People had their own land and grew their own crops. It was a beautiful country."

Besides liaising with troops from different countries, he also found himself turning disc jockey to present four half-hour programmes each week on the local radio, explaining the projects to rebuild schools and hospitals.

And proving it is a small world, Mr Pickup came face to face with former Fearns pupil Karl Nolan, from Bacup, who was working in an office next-door.

Thousands of people were killed in the area where Mr Pickup was based through ethnic cleansing in Kozarac and Hamberine and in two concentration camps at Omarska and Keraterm.

Mr Pickup, 51 this week, said: "The soldiers' role is to provide stability and international organisations are providing money but the will to return to homes and rebuild lives has to come from the people. "Since spring a lot of refugees and displaced persons have gone back and a lot of rebuilding has been undertaken. But many roads are in a bad state and bridges out.

"People are still worried because it is not yet two years since the end of the war. There are professional armies with state of the art technology and weapons.

"The economy is wrecked and the infrastructure gone and there is not enough electricity to power factories. Many are badly damaged anyway.

"The people must learn to live together again because in many cases it was neighbour against neighbour and village against village.

"I would like to go back in five years to see what it is like and how it has improved. "

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