Bosnia and Herzegovina has been busy with its first post-war census during the past two weeks. The results of this census will have enormous implications on the future governance and government of that country that existed and still exists of three main ethnic communities – Bosniak, Serb and Croat. This census will, by all accounts, be the crossroad in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the “ground zero” that will redefine relations within the country.
Will the census results show that Croats have in fact been the biggest victim in the Bosnian war of 1990’s? Will it demystify the Bosniak “victim syndrome”? While we know that the Serbian Republic (Republika Srpska) region was ethnically cleansed and the census results are sure to demonstrate that fact, will the census results also show that where the Bosniaks are today the areas have also been ethnically cleansed of non-Bosniaks and where the Croats are, are the only areas left in Bosnia and Herzegovina that are in fact multi-ethnic?
How reliable will the census results be? How politically charged and manipulated will the results be? How will the Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina fare in this future that has all the hallmarks of seemingly never-ending unrest because it is a country in which the international powers have tolerated and helped fortify political entities, such as Serbian Republic, forged in genocide and ethnic cleansing, and has failed miserably at taking on and systematically dealing with the crimes committed by Bosniaks (Muslims)? (Ina Vukic, Prof. (Zgb); B.A., M.A.Ps. (Syd)
Today the Bosnian census official came to end: media from around the world (here, here and here) took this opportunity to devote some space to Bosnia that evokes little international attention as the permanent crisis of the country is no longer newsworthy.
So why the census? Formally, the results will have few immediate consequences. The quotas in the public administration for members of different “constituent people” are linked to the so called completion of Annex 7, i.e. the chapter to refugee return. These formal criteria are of course a farce. There is no significant refugee return in Bosnia for nearly a decade and while there continues to be a slow trickle, for all practical purposes this chapter is closed. Otherwise the distribution of offices is enshrined in Dayton that does not provide for any formal link between demographic distribution and power it endows group-representation. Of course, the…
As I just visited Bosnia & Herzegovina the article was really interesting for me…
…as mentioned at the beginning – in Western Europe you hardly read anything about any country in the Balkans. (This is also one of the reasons I find your blog very interesting.)
Why are you so obsessed with Ina? Given your strange obsession, one would think you’d look at her tag cloud and realise she has covered topics about BiH, especially those relating to Bosnian-Croats, numerous times before this. Oh wait, don’t tell me – you think only Muslims belong in BiH and only their problems are valid? You think no one but you is allowed to have opinions on Bosnia?
You need a new hobby, Amir. Try something a little more healthy for the mind, one that doesn’t involve obsessing over Ina and Franjo Tuđman. Take up rock climbing or hiking, get off the computer for a while and clear you head, God knows you need it.
Kat,thanks for nice words,Do i need a hobby ,I would say no but this is what i like to do after work,spend couple minutes a day to help Ina spread the truth around.I mean this used to be my full time job but i have realized i have won as the time went by,At least i was Bosnian/Bosniak all the time wich i could’t say for Ina,I mean a pic is of ‘OLD BRIDGE’ in Mostar ,BIH,and yet Ina takes all the compliments for it even tho it has nothing to do with her … DELETED AS INAPPROPRIATE
Amir – I do not need your help to spread the truth not have I asked for it. However, you as anyone else are welcome to comments as long as your comments comply with this blog’s policy.
Fascinating article. I’m not sure all your questions can be answered or will be answered just by the publication of the census data. It would be worth a study in a University to really address your questions. Scholars here in the US examine census data and analyze it over time. I imagine that will happen there, too. It may take years to fully play out before anyone can be sure what the answers are.
Everyone can relate to these issues, because no population is free of someone else hating their ancestors. In my writing class we have protestant and catholics from Ireland. Hundreds of years of hating, warfare and violent deaths. I would like to believe knowledge = peace. I wish it really did. So far we have peace in my writing class, even as we discuss this past of hatred.
Thanks Brenda, yes once the new census data comes out it will certainly be interest to analyze and “predict” political issues that will affect lives and perhaps set the scene for eternal damnation of true peace. As you example serves here: unless true reconciliation of guilt, acceptance and acknowledgment of guilt comes, unrest and hatreds can linger for centuries… And so yes, knowledge=peace as you say, to me knowledge includes clarity of facts
Yes, without truth or clarity of facts, you can’t have knowledge, can you? But you also have to understand and process the facts. I wish you luck on your mission. It isn’t easy to remember events like those and feel any peace of mind. I know people who lost family in WWII in concentration camps or endured forced sterilizations by Hitler’s government, and who could not have children. Their descendants remember. Their families are small. But we do all have to move on, and try to understand each other and find peace.
I was born in Croatia and live Australia. I have been described as a prominent figure known for my contribution to the Croatian and wider societies, particularly in the context of Croatia’s transition from communism to democracy, as well as for my many years of work as a clinical psychologist and Chief Executive Officer of government-funded services for people with disabilities, including mental health services, in Australia. In 1995, the President of the Republic of Croatia awarded me two Medals of Honor, the Homeland War Memorial Medal and the Order of the Croatian Trefoil for her special merits and her contribution to the founding of the Republic of Croatia. I have been a successful blogger since 2011 and write extensively in the English-language on issues related to Croatian current affairs and democracy, as well as the challenges Croatia faced and still faces in its transition from communism. My goal is to raise awareness of these connections and issues worldwide.
Croatia, the War, and the Future 
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