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Fri, May 25 2012
No man’s land
Trust requires truth
At the meeting point of east and west is a fascinating mixture that is most evident in Sarajevo, the capital of the country. The name of the city with about 450 000 residents means "palace in the fields". World War 1 was unleashed here in 1914 with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
The 1984 Winter Olympics were held here. More than 11 000 people died here during the Serbian siege between 1992 and 1995. The 20th century began and ended here.
From Sarajevo it is a mountainous route deep into the Republika Srpska – to Srebrenica, site of the worst massacre in Europe since World War 2. In 1995 8372 Bosnian Muslims were victims of the massacre in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. On July 11 1995 – today a day of remembrance – the Serbian army captured the city.
Its commander Ratko Mladic, who is still on the run, spoke of an historic revenge against the Turks for the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. After mass murder and indiscriminate rapes, all of the survivors have their own pain, and are seeking their own justice.
"To ensure survival, we need trust and trust requires truth," says Zumra Sehomerovic, member of the "Movement of the Mothers of the Srebrenica and Zepa Enclaves", which supports bringing the guilty to trial. The population is not guilty, which is why it is all the more important to call those chiefly responsible to account, says Sehomerovic.
"The Republika Srpska is built on the remains of our loved ones," says Sehomerovic. Many cases of harassment by the Serbian authorities are known, as are the names of more than 800 people who were actively involved in the events at that time. Of these, 504 are currently active in public administration and the police, and some are even mayors. Truth is always individual and in Bosnia and Herzegovina there are many truths, depending on the ethnic group. The crime that Serbia sowed is still omnipresent.
Corruption is key problem
The message from western diplomatic circles is that, 14 years after Dayton, it is time for more political independence. There is little sign, however, of reconciliation. The population is additionally punished by its anti-reform political elite, whose unwillingness for compromise does not allow for any progress.
The fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina needs constitutional reform is clear. Dayton was a ceasefire, not a constitution. It is also clear that Brussels can accept only one, rather than three contact people. It would also improve the functionality of the state and make political decisions faster and cheaper. Currently only representatives of the three ethnic groups can become state president.
That excludes members of the Jewish community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, who came to the country from Spain in the 14th century. The president must be a "Serb", "Bosniak" or "Croat" – there is no such thing as a "Bosnian" and therefore no feeling of cohesion. Identity refers to ethnic group and not to the state.
Bosnia and Herzegovina will be the last west-Balkan country to become an associated member of the EU, following the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). However the mills of Brussels diplomacy grind slowly and the agreement has not yet been ratified by every member country. Nihad Imamovic, the 56-year-old president of the employers’ federation since May 2008, is confident that the country will join BusinessEurope in the coming year, however.
Real economic potential
Despite income tax of 69 per cent (52 per cent in the RS) and an unemployment level of 40 per cent, the country has potential, particularly in the areas of agriculture, cars, water and wind energy, as well as tourism. The country has more resources than it needs. There are no ethnic problems in companies, Imanovic stressed. "Here, only politics is a problem," he says.
The high level of corruption – Transparency International ranked Bosnia and Herzegovina 99th in a list of 180 countries in its last corruption index – holds back development. Everything is a grey area in Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is said in diplomatic circles. Despite a high rate of illiteracy, the country boasts the most doctorates per capita, but nobody abroad wants these "specialists".
The country is getting poorer and the judiciary more inefficient. "We are wallowing in mud," says the forthright economist Svetlana Cenic.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is still an experiment and does not fully belong to anyone. In addition to the problems of all transition countries are the ethnic components and memories of the war.
The country can only progress when the ethnic groups’ mutual fears subside. Possibly the wounds will only be able to heal when the country is in the security of the EU and Nato. The EU, however, has become so big that unco-ordinated admission before entry criteria are fully met is no longer possible. Brussels learnt that with the overly speedy accession of Romania and Bulgaria.
Double-edged sword
Pessimistic voices believe that the country would be in freefall between ramifications of the war and EU integration without the presence of the international community. However, the longer this is present in the country, the more points of attack it offers the nationalists.
"Whether something is constitutional is decided by the constitutional court and not by any old quasi lawyer who comes along, says the prime minister of the RS, Milorad Dodik. Bosnia and Herzegovina cannot make any progress as long as the Office of the High Representative is in place, he argues. Without the OHR there would no longer be any excuses. Bosnia and Herzegovina still has some steps to take before it is ready to serve as a symbol of reconciliation and integration in the Balkans.
At the meeting point of east and west is a fascinating mixture that is most evident in Sarajevo, the capital of the country. The name of the city with about 450 000 residents means "palace in the fields". World War 1 was unleashed here in 1914 with the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
The 1984 Winter Olympics were held here. More than 11 000 people died here during the Serbian siege between 1992 and 1995. The 20th century began and ended here.
From Sarajevo it is a mountainous route deep into the Republika Srpska – to Srebrenica, site of the worst massacre in Europe since World War 2. In 1995 8372 Bosnian Muslims were victims of the massacre in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. On July 11 1995 – today a day of remembrance – the Serbian army captured the city.
Its commander Ratko Mladic, who is still on the run, spoke of an historic revenge against the Turks for the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. After mass murder and indiscriminate rapes, all of the survivors have their own pain, and are seeking their own justice.
"To ensure survival, we need trust and trust requires truth," says Zumra Sehomerovic, member of the "Movement of the Mothers of the Srebrenica and Zepa Enclaves", which supports bringing the guilty to trial. The population is not guilty, which is why it is all the more important to call those chiefly responsible to account, says Sehomerovic.
"The Republika Srpska is built on the remains of our loved ones," says Sehomerovic. Many cases of harassment by the Serbian authorities are known, as are the names of more than 800 people who were actively involved in the events at that time. Of these, 504 are currently active in public administration and the police, and some are even mayors. Truth is always individual and in Bosnia and Herzegovina there are many truths, depending on the ethnic group. The crime that Serbia sowed is still omnipresent.
Corruption is key problem
The message from western diplomatic circles is that, 14 years after Dayton, it is time for more political independence. There is little sign, however, of reconciliation. The population is additionally punished by its anti-reform political elite, whose unwillingness for compromise does not allow for any progress.
The fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina needs constitutional reform is clear. Dayton was a ceasefire, not a constitution. It is also clear that Brussels can accept only one, rather than three contact people. It would also improve the functionality of the state and make political decisions faster and cheaper. Currently only representatives of the three ethnic groups can become state president.
That excludes members of the Jewish community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, who came to the country from Spain in the 14th century. The president must be a "Serb", "Bosniak" or "Croat" – there is no such thing as a "Bosnian" and therefore no feeling of cohesion. Identity refers to ethnic group and not to the state.
Bosnia and Herzegovina will be the last west-Balkan country to become an associated member of the EU, following the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). However the mills of Brussels diplomacy grind slowly and the agreement has not yet been ratified by every member country. Nihad Imamovic, the 56-year-old president of the employers’ federation since May 2008, is confident that the country will join BusinessEurope in the coming year, however.
Real economic potential
Despite income tax of 69 per cent (52 per cent in the RS) and an unemployment level of 40 per cent, the country has potential, particularly in the areas of agriculture, cars, water and wind energy, as well as tourism. The country has more resources than it needs. There are no ethnic problems in companies, Imanovic stressed. "Here, only politics is a problem," he says.
The high level of corruption – Transparency International ranked Bosnia and Herzegovina 99th in a list of 180 countries in its last corruption index – holds back development. Everything is a grey area in Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is said in diplomatic circles. Despite a high rate of illiteracy, the country boasts the most doctorates per capita, but nobody abroad wants these "specialists".
The country is getting poorer and the judiciary more inefficient. "We are wallowing in mud," says the forthright economist Svetlana Cenic.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is still an experiment and does not fully belong to anyone. In addition to the problems of all transition countries are the ethnic components and memories of the war.
The country can only progress when the ethnic groups’ mutual fears subside. Possibly the wounds will only be able to heal when the country is in the security of the EU and Nato. The EU, however, has become so big that unco-ordinated admission before entry criteria are fully met is no longer possible. Brussels learnt that with the overly speedy accession of Romania and Bulgaria.
Double-edged sword
Pessimistic voices believe that the country would be in freefall between ramifications of the war and EU integration without the presence of the international community. However, the longer this is present in the country, the more points of attack it offers the nationalists.
"Whether something is constitutional is decided by the constitutional court and not by any old quasi lawyer who comes along, says the prime minister of the RS, Milorad Dodik. Bosnia and Herzegovina cannot make any progress as long as the Office of the High Representative is in place, he argues. Without the OHR there would no longer be any excuses. Bosnia and Herzegovina still has some steps to take before it is ready to serve as a symbol of reconciliation and integration in the Balkans.
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BTW we have the same problem with some of our Kings - Samuil for example, is considered Makedonian, by the FYROM-sti and we are told in school that he was a Bulgarian ruler.
Chances are that Tvrtko himself, had no clue that there are any differences in nationality between Serbs and Bosnians, just like Samuil, who had many other problems, besides splitting hairs like that...
Love,
I agree with all that, (except Tvrtko, who was crowned King of Serbia and all of Bosnia - in the 11 century no-one there had national awareness, as it is a post- French revolution phenomena.
The Serbs went about the whole brake up of Yugoslavia in the worse way, de facto losing any moral standing.
What the Bosniaks, on the other hand, refused to recognize is that no Orthodox Christian would voluntarily agree to live in a Muslim ruled country, after the long history of abuse by the Turks.
I am [...]
Read the full comment Bulgarian and I do dearly love the Turkish friends I have, yet I fear Islam, and see it as a backward culture with no hope at all.
The last thing I'd do, if I could help it, is to live in one of their countries. I couldn't handle the head covers, and the rest of the symbols that come with it, much less its conservative essence.
To me America is way too conservative and sexually oppressed , what's left for even the most enlighten Muslim place.
I am interested in what you think you can do with RS?
Another war perhaps that would cleanse it from Serbs like the Krajina example you sited?
You stated that:
"The first Bosnian King was Tvrtko, who was crowned as "King of Serbia and all of Bosnia" and sure enough he wasn't a Muslim"
You're absolutely right! He was a Bosnian !!! The problem with Bosnia today is that people have wrongly assigned religious affiliation to their nationality. The "Bosnian Serbs" are in fact Bosnians who follow the Orthodox christian faith, the "Bosnian Croats" are in fact Bosnians who follow the Roman Catholic faith, and the "Bosniaks" are in fact Bosnians who follow the Islamic faith. They are all [...]
Read the full comment Bosnians as were their ancestors. The "nationalist" or "ethnic" divisions were really formed during the Ottoman occupation in which Bosnian's were discriminated and segregated from each other based on their religion and during the Austro-Hungarian occupation in which Bosnian Orthodox citizens started identifying themselves with their fellow Orthodox Slavic neighbors (i.e. the Serbs) and the Bosnian Roman Catholic citizens started to identify themselves with their fellow Roman Catholic Slavic neighbors (the Croats). The Bosniaks, being Muslims by faith, were unable and unwilling to identify themselves with any of their neighbors and instead chose to stick with their own Bosnian identity which was formed in the 11th and 12th centuries. Fundamentally all Bosnian citizens are Bosnians and their homeland is Bosnia and Herzegovina. Those who don't see it that way are only depriving themselves of the homeland they have and the privileges they can enjoy from having it.
King Tvrtko was king of Bosnia and all Bosnians.
Valeri
As you know the Croatian Serbs got the raw end of the deal when they tried to declare their independence from Croatia and attempted to ethnically cleanse Croats from their homes in Croatia's Krajina region. The "RS" entity was created through ethnic cleansing and genocide and it has no validity with the majority of Bosnia's citizens. As the saying goes "if you live by the sword you will die by the sword", this also applies to the Bosnian Serbs. Since the Bosnian Serbs used ethnic cleansing to form the "RS" entity they could also lose [...]
Read the full comment it by being ethnically cleansed from it themselves. Certain wrong decisions made by Bosnian Serb politicians could lead to a very bad outcome for Bosnia but an even worse outcome for the Bosnian Serbs. I would prefer to see the country move towards becoming a normal democratic and multi-ethnic state that can join NATO and the EU. That's the choice before us, democratic development or renewed fighting. I hope that you agree with my belief that democratic development and the peaceful return of refugees to their homes is the best possible path for Bosnia and Herzegovina to follow.
From the article above:
"Not long before, the parliament of the RS had passed a constitutional proposal which would not only have cemented the far-ranging independence of the RS.."
What is the difference between this and the Bosnian referendum of '92? (and spare me the history)
I am just illustrating the danger of separatism - it doesn't stop when you get what you want. It keeps on going.
Well, 66% are the Muslims there. Obviously a large % of Bosnia doesn't want to live together, otherwise RS wouldn't exist.
I think this is something we need to respect, just like we respected the wishes of the Albanians not to live with the Serbs - something that started long before that stupid Serb "cleansing" of Kosovo.
Going back to history to justify current ambitions is pointless and I think this is what the problem is in the Balkans. Most of its history Bosnia was under other's domination, and so was BG frankly. The first Bosnian [...]
Read the full comment King was Tvrtko, who was crowned as "King of Serbia and all of Bosnia" and sure enough he wasn't a Muslim.
Bosnia was a kingdom for 100 year until the Turks took over. 10 years a go Bosnia was born as a country, extremely different from the one that the Turks invaded.
So what? Nations are born and they disappear. SP was just born so lets respect that.
Partition, join the EU and then every one can get their property back, and move where ever they like, with the EU guarantees behind.
Why would you partition a country if you are willing to let all people live together in peace? Something is missing in your argument here-wait I found what it is: logic. By the way the only people who get to decide about the future of the country are its citizens. If you are familiar with the 1992 referendum held in Bosnia then you know that 66% of the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina wanted the country to become independent. Any questions regarding the political or administrative divisions in the country would need to be agreed on by all three ethnic [...]
Read the full comment groups living in the country and any decision would have to be sanctioned by the country's supreme court.
Valeri
If you want to know more about Bosnian history you should read a history book. Bosnia has been a nation for a thousand years, it's current borders have existed for hundreds of years. That's what makes it different from Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia was a confederation of nations that included Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Bosnia and Herzegovina has always been a nation.
Love,
I generally agree with that, my only question is what makes Bosnia different from Yugoslavia? The Muslims there didn't fight for the right to move and live anywhere within Yugoslavia, but wanted to separate from it in a country, which as far as I know, doesn't have much different history of self-rule than Republika Srbska.
Why not partitioned the two, as it was done with Yugoslavia, and then allow Muslims to move to RS, and Christians to move to Bosnia if they should all desire?
I am all for guaranteeing rights of return. [...]
Read the full comment
This comment has been removed by the moderator because it contained не е по темата на статията
Valeri
Please don't give me that "ethnic purity is a guarantor" nonsense. That's what Hitler thought and he was proven wrong. The only long-term stability that can be achieved is one in which all Bosnian citizens can have their rights protected in every part of the country. Only through tolerance and democracy can Bosnia, and the entire Balkans, become peaceful and stable in the long term.
Also you seem to be ignoring the fact that in Bosnia every person can choose in which city and town they want to live and are free to move about the county to find better employment or living accomodations. Bosnia is a country in which its citizens are free to move about freely regardless of their ethnicity or religious affiliation.
Valeri,
You're talking utter nonsense. There was never any "population exchange" that took place in Bosnia, there was ethnic cleansing and genocide. The people people that were ethnically cleansed from their homes have every legal and moral right to return to them, and many are choosing to do just that. Every person that was forcefully removed from his or her home has a right to return it.
Valeri,
I support the return of all displaced peoples to their former and proper homes, as the Dayton Peace Accords stipulate. Why shouldn't people return to their homes? And who is going to stop them from returning to their homes?
Yeah Love, when everything goes back to normal, Bosnia goes back to Yugoslavia and every one goes back to their homes, when the Palestinians come back to their homes, and the Sudeten Geramans go back to their homes, or when the Prussians go back to Kaliningrad..
That boat has sailed..
Sometimes population exchange is the only insurance for future stability. It's happen countless times in history.
People who were forced out of their homes need to feel safe enough to return to them and to resume their lives in peace and stability. Only by having people return to their homes can Bosnia recover from the war and genocide that took place in the country.
OK Tony,
so then what is to be done - forcefully mix them back together?
I think that Peggy is actually correct with her analogy about the little Yugoslavia, and perhaps the Serbs probably outdid the others in their atrocities, but it was largely a 3 way affair. The Serbs did try to keep the big YU together, obviously because it was under Belgrade, so what is the problem now?
Ones you start recognizing breakaway regions, why stop now? When do you draw the line? When you get the country that you want, then [...]
Read the full comment all the further partitions have to stop?
This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained квалификации.
Tony M, you are truyly one demented and pathetic creature. You cannot help yourself with all this crap you probably believe.
I really won't bother answering your crap any more because to continue any further would be lunacy for me. You see, a wise person comes to a point when he/she realizes who they are talking to and to continue to talk to that person would only make them foolish as well.
By all means, continue with your delusional crap but no sane person will pay any attention.
[...]
Read the full comment I will let reputable people guide me and people like you are best forgotten.
This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained авторски права.
Tony, the accusation about organ harvesting comes from Carla DelPonte. When she was the chief prosecutor and smeared dirt all over the Serbs you Albanians were supporting her, but now that she no longer has to tow the company line and is free to tell the whole truth, you don't want to hear it.
The truth is coming from her, not Serbs so how can it be Serbian propaganda?
Funny, when she worked in the Hague she was honest and told the truth, now that she is out of Hague and free to talk [...]
Read the full comment she is a liar according to you.
Which one is it then? A liar or an honest person?
Tony, you really should give up. I have already told you what I and many others think of western propaganda against the Serbs.
A lot of distortion of facts and inflated numbers is normal when you want to spread propaganda around the world.
Sure, Serbs killed your lot and your lot killed the Serbs and continue to kill the Serbs to this day. Now why is your lot killing Serbs today? Elderly and young are being killed in Kosovo.
What happened in 2004? How many churches and monasteries were burned down by your lot and this all happened AFTER the war?
You talk about killing during the war but your lot continues to harrass and kill even now. Funny how KPS can't ever find any suspects. They are either keystone cops or just plain don't care.
This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained квалификации.
Tony M, you wrote this,
Remember a modern genocide in bosnia, loughin on camera while executing innocent children who soiled themself by the brute intimidation shown from your "heros",
Give us some evidence of this. Unless you can back up ridiculous statements like this with some sort of evidence, kindly keep quiet for you seem to have a very evil imagination.
This is the sort of thing I can expect from organ harvesting ghouls like Albanians. Perhaps you have the two confused.
This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained квалификации.
Well if big Yugoslavia could not exist because every ethinic group wanted their own country, how then can mini Yugoslavia (Bosnia) be expected to exist?
If people could not live together in a larger country, those same ethnic groups cannot live together in a small country. It's only logical.
Why break up big Yugoslavia only to replace it with a mini Yugoslavia?
Tony, ethnic cleansing was done by all three sides and every civil war is brutal and bloody. This was a civil war where people of those [...]
Read the full comment regions fought against each other.
Horrible yes, but it certainly makes all three sides guilty of the same crimes.
This comment has been hidden by the moderator because it contained квалификации.
Can someone explain to me, what is so important about keeping two separate entities like B&H and Republika Srbska, as parts the same fictitious state, when they have already de facto gone through population exchange and are ethnically separated and contiguous?
The question isn't even one of minorities, considering that there are few in both, albeit, as result of unfortunate cleansing.
Why is it not OK for B&H to separate and it's OK for Kosovo?