Can Bosnia be put back together again?

World Regional GeoraphyAfton’s Class July 15, 2009

Map quiz

•London

•Paris

•Berlin

•Frankfurt

•Amsterdam

•Spain

•Bosnia

•Hungary

•Ireland

•Switzerland

•Sweden

•Alps

•Rhine River

•Iberian Peninsula

•Danube

Territory: A Generic Definition

• A general term used to refer to a portion of space that is occupied by a political actor.

• Examples? • Link to the concept of scale?

Other Key Terms, Locations, and Actors

• Domicide – the intentional destruction of homes and residences to prevent the return of displaced populations

• Iconic landscapes – cultural representations depicted in the built environment.

• Republika Srpska – the Serb-controlled part of Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH)

• Srebrenica – site of the mass killings of Bosnian Muslim men and boys by Serbs in July 1995.

• Radovan Karadzic (Political leader of the Bosnian Serbs during the war) and Ratko Mladic (Military commander in charge of Serb forces in Bosnia; directly responsible for Srebrenica)

A Timeline of Events in the Former Yugoslavia

• After World War II, the interwar monarchy becomes a communist republic under Prime Minister Tito, now called the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. It was composed of six republics: Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Slovenia, and Montenegro, as well as two provinces, Kosovo and Vojvodina.

• Tito's tight rein on Yugoslavia keeps ethnic tensions in check until his death in 1980. Without his pan-Slavic influence, ethnic and nationalist differences begin to flare.

• Slovenia and Croatia declare independence in June 1991

Timeline continued…• Bosnia declares independence in April 1992. The

most ethnically diverse of the Yugoslav republics, Bosnia is 43% Muslim, 31% Serbian, and 17% Croatian at that time. Ethnic tensions strain to the breaking point, and Bosnia erupts into war. Thousands die and more than a million are displaced, with the most horrific killing occurring at Srebrenica. By the time a tenuous peace is achieved in 1995, the country has been partitioned into three areas, with each region governed by one of the three ethnic groups.

• In November 1995, Bosnia, Serbia, and Croatia sign the Dayton Peace Accord to end the war in Bosnia.

• Kosovo Slobodan Milosevic sends troops into the region in March 1998 to quell ethnic tensions; NATO intervenes to prevent further population displacement and killing in March 1999.

Soft Power: Constructing Iconic Landscapes

War Memorial tosoldiers in the Republika Srpska

Karazdic: The Great Transformation

Circa 1995 July 2008 December 2008

Domicide: Some Examples

The Result?The impact of ethnic cleansing and ethnic territoriality in Bosnia-

Herzegovina

Preferences for Ethnic Separatism – by Nationality and Ethnic Group Pride

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9

Ossetian not Ossetian proud

Lezghin not Lezghin proud

Avar not

Avar proudDargin not

Dargin proudKumyk not

Kumyk proud

Russian not Russian proud

Kabardin not Kabardin proud

Mean N. Cau

Mean BiH ratio

Serb not

Serb proudCroat not

Croat - proudBosniac not

Bosniac proud

A Broken Bosnia Remains…

- Bosnia remains a divided country; you can’t put Humpty-Dumpty together again.

- The struggle for political control continues on the local, national and international scale.

- Future prospects? EU membership as a carrot for economic and political reform.

Other concerns: Kosovo

• Became independent in February 2008, despite Serbian and Russian opposition.

• Flag of independent Kosovo:

http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1145467.html