After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918, the League of Nations
created Yugoslavia; a country consisting of Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia,
Slovenia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Vojvodina, and Macedonia.
Initially lead by socialist dictator Josip Broz Tito, the country maintained
peace with its multiple ethnicities and cultures under one government.
With the death of Tito though in 1980, nationalists began rising in power and promoting nationalist rhetoric and hatred
towards other republics within Yugoslavia. One such individual was Slobodan Milosevic who became leader of the Republic
of Serbia in 1989 and began spreading the idea of a pure Serb-dominated state of Yugoslavia (known as the "Greater
Serbia"), encouraging Serbian nationalists in Croatia to begin violent uprisings.
This lead to Croatia and Slovenia leaving the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991 with violent retaliation by the Serbian army in Croatia
due to a 12% Serbian population in Croatia wanting to remain part of the FRY (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) and see the "Greater Serbia"
formed.
Bosnia, fearing the idea of a Serbian Yugoslavia, held a referendum as to whether or not become independent
of the FRY, with the voting being overwhelmingly towards independence. This lead to Bosnia claiming
independence in April 1992.
But, because of Bosnia's population being made up of 31% Serbs, one month after claiming
independence, Bosnia was attacked by Bosnian Serbs, backed by Slobodan Milosevic and his
Serb-dominated Yugoslav army.
Significant Events Timeline
November 1990: Bosnia's government is divided into 3 parties based on the 3 main nationalities in
Bosnia: Muslims/Bosniak (44%), Serbians (31%), and Croatians (17%). A Muslim is elected
President of the Presidency of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, A Serbian is elected
president of Parliament, and a Croatian is elected prime minister.
September 1991: The UN imposes an arms embargo on all territories formerly part
of Yugoslavia to avoid aggressive conflict. Unfortunately, this cripples Bosnia the
most as Serbia inherits most of the firearms of the former Yugoslav army and
Croatia is able to smuggle in firearms through the Meditterranean.
October 1991: Serbian politicians leave the Parliament in
Sarajevo and form the Assembly of the Serb People of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, later named Republica Srpska.
This ends the tri-coalition government of Bosnia and
demonstrates serious political tension in Bosnia.
March 1992: The Bosnian government holds a referendum
as to whether to secede from Yugoslavia or not. The
referendum is boycotted by Bosnian-Serb politicians and
citizens, but the rest of Bosnian citizens vote overwhelmingly for
secession.
March-May 1992: Bosnia declares its independence and is eventually recognized internationally. The National
Yugoslav army leaves Bosnia and dissolves, joining the Serbian army and the Republika Srpska army (which was
supported by the Serbian army). In April, the capital of Bosnia, Sarajevo, is attacked by the army of Republika
Srpska, and the Siege of Sarajevo begins. The city is surrounded by 13,000 troops attacking with tanks, mortars,
rocket launchers, and snipers. Due in part to the UN arms embargo, the 70,000 Bosnian troops within the city have
little supplies and are unable to overcome the siege.
Mid-Late 1992: Serb forces begin an ethnic cleansing of
Eastern Bosnia (including Zvornik, Foca, and Visegrad),
following a similar process in each city/town they invaded as described by journalist Mark Danner:
1: Concentration - Urge Serbian residents to leave the city while bombarding it with artillery.
2. Decapitation - Execute Bosniak (Muslim) leaders and and important officials of the town.
3.Separation - Separate the women, children, and old men unable to fight.
4. Evacuation - Move the women, children, and old men to concentration camps
where forced labour, killings, and rape were prevalent.
5. Liquidation - Execute all Bosniak men able to fight.
July 1995: At this point, only 3 towns in eastern Bosnia remain under Bosniak control: Srebrenica, Zepa, and Gorazde - all 3 are considered "safe
havens" by the UN and protected by international peacekeepers. However, On July 11, Serbian forces, lead by General Ratko Mladic, invade the town,
overwhelming the Dutch peacekeepers there. As they had done numerous times before, the Serbians separated the women and children from the men
and sent them on buses to concentration camps, and killed all able-bodied Bosniaks, resulting in the deaths of over 7000 men. This attack was
known as the Srebrenica massacre, and lead to greater international response.
August 1995: After Serbians refuse to accept a UN ultimatum, NATO assists the now-combined Bosniak and Croatian forces by bombing
Bosnian-Serb positions and soldiers. This enables the Bosniak and Croatian soldiers to execute Operation Storm, a plan to push Serbian
forces out of northern Bosnia. Coupled with Serbia's weak economy due to UN trade sanctions, Serbia's leader Slobodan Milosevic agrees
to enter peace negotiations.
September - December 1995: A ceasefire is reached, followed by peace talks hosted by the United States in Dayton, Ohio. Eventually the
Dayton Peace Agreement is reached and signed by the presidents of Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia, marking the end of the Bosnian War.
1995 - Present Day: Due to the ethnic displacement from the wars, Bosnia-Herzegovina is divided into two major
entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska. There is also a small Brčko District in the north.
June 1992: Bosnian-Croat soldiers betray Bosniak soldiers, stating they have seceded from Bosnia and
have created the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia (CRHB) within Bosnia-Herzegovina. Backed by the
Croatian army, Bosnian-Croats begin the Bosniak-Croatian War. This war is known as a "war within a war" as
it occurs within Bosnia's war with Serbians.
May 1992 - March 1993: Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing occurs, where the CRHB destroyed
property and murdered, raped, and imprisoned Bosniak civilians of the region.
1993: Much of Herzegovina is taken over by the CRHB. The CHRB removed Bosniaks and Serbians from governmental positions,
harassed and deported Bosniaks to concentration camps, and took over the media and began spreading Croatian propaganda.
February 1994: The Bosniak-Croatian War officially ends with the signing of a ceasefire by the generals of the Bosniak and Croatian armies.
Who?
Perpetrators:
Serbian forces of the Serbian army and Republika Srpska committed mass murders,
torture, imprisonment, and rape of thousands of Bosniaks (Muslims).
Croatian forces of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia also committed murder, rape, and imprisonment of
Bosniaks, primarily in the Lašva Valley and Herzegovina.
Victims:
Bosniaks, Muslims living in Bosnia who were harrassed, severely abused, and
killed by Serbian and Croatian forces and nationalists.
Bosniaks tried to stop the atrocities by defending themselves with their own army, the Army of the Republic of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, yet the army struggled with a lack of supplies and firearms due to the UN arms embargo
against them. As well, their Bosnian-Croatian allies betrayed them early on in the war, resulting in Bosnia being
attacked and invaded from all sides. Eventually they were able to fight back with an alliance with Croatian forces and
the international assistance of NATO.
When?
April 1992 - December 1995
Role of Media:
Serbia
Slobodan Milosevic, President of Serbia from 1991-1997, took control of Serbian radio and television before and during the Bosnian War.
Before the war, he used media to spread ideas of ultranationalism, using the Serbian genocide in World War II as a means to establish an
enemy to bring hate upon. This enemy eventually became anyone opposed to Serbian ideals including the "Greater Serbia", and so
Milosevic began targeting Croatians and Bosniaks as primary enemies. During the war and the Siege of Sarajevo, Milosevic influenced the
media into showing images of Sarajevo from months back, making the Serbian population believe there was no atrocities occurring in
Bosnia.
Croatia
Similar to Serbia before the war, Croatia used media to spread nationalistic ideals and hate, believing itself to be superior compared to the
other republics of former Yugoslavia. During the war and the conquest of parts of Herzegovina by the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia,
Croatian propaganda, symbols, and currency was spread, attempting to expand Croatian culture and ideals into Herzegovina forcefully.
Lasting Effects
The total death count is still unknown and estimates range from 25,000 to 300,000 individuals. More mass graves are occasionally found.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) is an organization of the UN which was created in 1993 in order to prosecute and convict
individuals of war crimes committed in former Yugoslavia and in the wars that followed. In 2001 it convicted Serbian General Radislav Krstic of acts of
genocide, sentencing him to 46 years in prison. Slobodan Milosevic, who was also charged, was going to receive a similar conviction yet passed away in 2006
in his prison cell before a verdict was reached. The ICTY still continues on today.
One million Bosnians fled from the country during the wars to neighbouring countries including Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Germany, and Austria. Another 1
million were displaced yet remained within the country. According to the “Comparative Analysis on Access to Rights of Refugees and Displaced Persons” issued
by the Ministry of Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the end of 2005, around half a million Bosnians were still temporarily living outside
the country, searching for long term homes back in Bosnia-Herzegovina or somewhere else internationally.
To this day there continues to be tension between Croatians, Bosnians, and Serbians as a result of the atrocities and genocides committed during the war.
Role of Ultranationalism
Ultranationalism played a tremendous role in the building up to
the Bosnian genocide, primarily in Serbia. Ultranationalism can
be defined as "extreme nationalism that promotes the interest of
one state or people above all others" which was prevalent in
Serbia with the idea of a "Greater Serbia". In order to achieve
the "Greater Serbia", Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro,
and Macedonia would have to come under Serbian rule,
resulting in the invasion of all those regions for Serbian use and
control, similar to Nazi Germany's idea of Lebensraum. Serbians
believed the land occupied by those countries rightfully
belonged to them as a result of the great Serbian Empire which
reigned those lands in the 14th century before the Ottoman
invasion.
Ultranationalism also played a significant role in the ethnic cleansing
and genocides which occurred in Bosnia, especially in Srebrenica. As defined
by Dictionary.com, ultranationalism is the "extreme devotion to or
advocacy of the interests of a nation, especially regardless of the
effect on any other nations." This was evident in the Srebrenica
massacre for in the process of dominating Bosnia, Serbians would
stop at nothing, even if that meant murdering, raping, and torturing
thousands of Bosniaks in small towns. Serbian soldiers were so
devote to their cause that their morals were overpowered by their
national interest, resulting in 7000 Bosniak men being mass
murdered in a single day.
FYI: Although I interchange my use of Bosnia and
Bosnia-Herzegovina, they are the same place. I use Bosnia simply as
a quick way to say Bosnia-Herzegovina.