The politics of nationalism and ethnic cleansing broke up the federation, leaving successor states blighted by economic crisis, corruption, and dependency on the international community. Yet amidst deep controversy over the Hague tribunal and the future of Kosovo, a still raw democratic politics is developing across the region. Reimagining Yugoslavia reassesses the lessons of tragedy, its wider historical and international context, and discusses the possibilities of a future beyond fate.

Srebrenica: genocide and memory

Ed Vulliamy
The Bosnian Serb massacre of around 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica in July 1995 has left deep wounds. Ed Vulliamy revisits the scenes of a terrible crime, meets families and survivors, and reports on the search for human remains and justice.

The snow lies deep, the air is still and seven degrees below zero – but the shiver is not from cold. It comes from somewhere within this accursed terrain, covered by a layer of virgin white.

Serbia's election: more defeat than victory

Eric Gordy 21 May 2012

The elevation of Tomislav Nikolić to Serbia's presidency, unexpected by many observers, owes much to the political record and direction of the country's coalition government, says Eric Gordy.

Bosnia: blood, honey, and war's legacy

Peter Lippman 7 February 2012
A film portrayal of the horrors of systematic rape during Bosnia's war of 1992-95 highlights the victims' suffering and bravery. But the romantic thread of Angelina Jolie's work fails to convince, says Peter Lippman.

Ante Marković: the last Yugoslav leader

Goran Fejic 12 December 2011
A sustained effort to reform Yugoslavia before the country was drowned in tide of senseless nationalism has been near forgotten. The death of the prime minister who led it has lessons for today, says Goran Fejic.

ICTY vs Mladić-Hadžić: good defence, better history

Eric Gordy 27 July 2011
The arrests of the wartime Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladić and the Croatian Serb president Goran Hadžić are a vital step in completing the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. In the context of previous trials, their courtroom testimony promises to deepen understanding of the conflicts and crimes of the 1990s, says Eric Gordy.

Ratko Mladic and justice: another route

Katharine Engelhart and Ozren Jungic 6 June 2011

The effect of the international tribunal where those accused of crimes during the Balkan wars face trial is to reinforce divisions in the region. It’s time to consider other justice mechanisms that could address this problem, say Katharine Engelhart & Ozren Jungic.

Ratko Mladic’s arrest and international justice

Benjamin Ward 31 May 2011

The forthcoming trial in The Hague of the arrested Serb warlord is an occasion to assess the achievements of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, says Benjamin Ward.

Bosnia: what course after the storm?

Christophe Solioz and Wolfgang Petritsch 28 May 2011
Between the advocates of interventionism, who think that only action from the international community can prevent Bosnia’s implosion, and those who, on the contrary, deem Bosnians to be the only ones who should be responsible for their future, we are convinced of the necessity of a middle path: one of shared responsibility, with a demanding partner who can go beyond the past errors and put the country on the road to EU membership

Ratko Mladić's arrest: a start, but let it not obscure how much more is needed for justice

Heather McRobie and Sadzida Tulic 28 May 2011
Poisonous ethno-nationalist political rhetoric, genocide denial and the celebration of war-time leaders are still routinely permitted in the discourse of Bosnian politicians, the media and citizens – if ‘citizens’ is the right word to describe the Bosnians who live in this protectorate-state purgatory

Bosnia’s politics of paralysis

Peter Lippman 19 October 2010

Bosnia’s tenth election since the end of the war of 1992-95 highlights the damaging influence of a post-war settlement that institutionalises ethnic politics, says Peter Lippman.

Kosovo, law and politics

Engjellushe Morina 30 July 2010
The International Court of Justice ruling on Kosovo’s independence offers the European Union a vital opportunity to lead the process that must follow, says Engjellushe Morina in Pristina.

Kosovo, Serbia and Bosnia: after the ICJ

Florian Bieber 28 July 2010
The International Court of Justice ruling on Kosovo’s declaration of independence benefits Serbia too. But what of its effects on Bosnia? Florian Bieber considers the implications of the ICJ opinion.

Srebrenica, fifteen years on

Peter Lippman 15 July 2010
The dignified commemorations of the massacre of Bosnian Muslims in July 1995 retain their integrity and human core, even as the leaders of a divided Bosnia seek to channel the grief into political pageantry. Peter Lippman, in eastern Bosnia, reports.

Midnight in Belgrade, dusk in Brussels

Goran Fejic 12 July 2010
Europe’s symbolic effort to prevent Yugoslavia’s breakup in mid-1991 has a lesson for the continent today, says Goran Fejic, then an advisor of Yugoslavia’s foreign minister.

Visegrad, memory and justice

Peter Lippman 17 June 2010
The survivors of a terrible but neglected atrocity in a historic Bosnian town continue to campaign for remembrance and accountability. Peter Lippman joins them on their return to the site.

This week's editor

Heather McRobie


Niki Seth-Smith is a freelance journalist and co-editor of OurKingdom.

Europe from the bottom up

European Union stars in Paris. Flickr/notarim. Some rights reserved.

A new Europe can only come from the bottom up
Etienne Balibar

A social Europe must be a political Europe
Bo Stråth

As Europe is provincialized: a reply to Etienne Balibar
Sandro Mezzadra

European debate

More

Democratic Wealth

More

Nuclear non-proliferation

More

Women and the Arab Spring

More

oDRussia at journalismfestival .com

More

Mali - the plot thickens

More

Remote control war

More

The media in Europe

More

Syndicate content