EARTHQUAKE IN BANJA LUKA AND BOSNIAN KRAJINA IN 1969

Banja Luka and 14 other municipalities of Bosnian Krajina (western Bosnia and Herzegovina) were hit by a series of strong earthquakes on October 26 and 27, 1969. The quake area had a population of over 750,000 in 803 settlements. The total estimated damage in the entire area affected by the earthquake amounted to 7,150 million dinars and there were also human losses. Assistance to the affected area came from all over the country and from abroad. Western countries (mostly the USA, Switzerland, Italy and FR Germany) sent money and goods of five times higher value than the socialist countries. The structure of international aid shows that it was almost exclusively conditioned by the prevailing political relations. Until 1974, the question of the amount of financial resources needed for reconstruction caused a political crisis in the relations between the Prime Minister Mitja Ribicic and the leadership of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also within the League of Communists of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where important personnel changes took place. Under pressure from the Yugoslav President Josip Broz Tito, Bosnia and Herzegovina's leadership has agreed to reduce the funds originally earmarked for reconstruction by one-third. This was opposed by old wartime communist cadre. This served the new, young leadership to remove Osman Karabegovic, Avdo Humo, Hajro Kapetanovic and Cedo Kapor from the political life. These officials opposed the confederalization of Yugoslavia and the strengthening of the statehood of the republics, which was insisted on by the new leadership, led by Branko Mikulic. The greatest intensity of reconstruction was immediately after the earthquake. At the beginning of 1976, the state settled its obligations to Bosnian Krajina.