First Lady Delivers Vow, Toys to Tuzla

Hillary Rodham Clinton paid a morale-boosting visit Monday to U.S. peacekeeping troops stationed here and pledged $25 million in aid toward the reconstruction of destroyed Bosnian homes.

“I’ve been amazed at how much has been accomplished in such a short period of time,” the first lady said as she made an eight-hour tour of outposts along the former front line in northeastern Bosnia-Herzegovina. “Children are out playing again, farmers are back in their fields, people are moving into homes that they haven’t been in for years.”

Mrs. Clinton said she hoped that the $25 million, to be channeled by the U.S. Agency for International Development through nongovernmental relief groups, “will serve as a model for the world donor community” and encourage further giving. She said the money will be spent on repairing 2,500 houses.

The first lady was traveling with her daughter, Chelsea, as well as singer Sheryl Crow and the comedian Sinbad. In addition to visiting U.S. soldiers at Tuzla Air Base and several smaller posts, the group toured wards at a mobile army surgical hospital and met with Bosnian officials and international relief providers. In the early evening they departed for Aviano Air Base in Italy.

About 500 cheering U.S. soldiers turned out to receive the visitors at the recreation hall at Tuzla Air Base, a dreary realm of mud, sandbags and concertina wire outside the gritty industrial city of Tuzla. Although troop morale has improved since the earliest days of the deployment, the men and women here still complain of bad or nonexistent telephone links, a ban on beer and other alcohol, confinement to their bases and other shortages and difficulties.

But Mrs. Clinton praised their work, saying, “I just hope you have some feeling of how proud and grateful America is.” The first lady said she had learned that the soldiers were having a hard time calling their families, and had brought with her more than 2,000 prepaid telephone calling cards, donated by U.S. telecommunications companies AT&T; and MCI.

Mrs. Clinton also brought videos, pencils and 22 boxes of toys. She told the soldiers they could distribute the toys to Bosnian children.

“We’re trying very hard to build human bridges, not just physical bridges,” she said, adding that perhaps Bosnians could see the visibly multiethnic U.S. Army and be reminded that it is possible for people of different backgrounds to get along.

In fact, the U.S. soldiers have limited contact with ordinary Bosnians because the soldiers are forbidden to roam about the region’s towns and villages.

“But when you’re on convoys, you can see all the little kids and they want to wave at you, so maybe they understand,” said Pvt. Brady Miller, a satellite communications technician from Columbia, S.C.

If any anger at President Clinton--who has been scorned by many soldiers as a Vietnam-era draft dodger--remained, it was not directed at the first lady Monday.

“It’s outstanding for them to come,” said Spc. Raul Gomez of Whittier, a driver for an artillery sergeant major. “We’re here 24 hours a day and we need to relieve stress and do something other than sandbagging.”