#3 Resist or Serve! Yugoslavia - 1991/1992 Just The Beginning of What was Inevitable...

The disintegration of Yugoslavia did not happen overnight. Nor did its nations instantaneously declare war on each other. The series of events began to generate a steady momentum of violence that would engulf an unstoppable war.

One preliminary catalyst of disaster was the declaration of independence by Slovenia and Croatia on 25^th of June 1991. It prompted the Yugoslav Prime Minister Ante Markovic (who was a Croat) to sent JNA troops to secure the international borders. This plan was an immerse blunder, namely, Milosevic and Kucan had already agreed  on Slovenian departure from the Yugoslav Federation. In Slovenia the vast majority of the population were Slovenians. Croatia on the other hand was much more important for Milosevic – with over 500.000 Serbs it was a piece of precious land to keep.

During the short war – the Slovenian population implemented huge anti-JNA propaganda campaign. The Slovenian strategy was very effective, the JNA was blocked, attacked with an open fire on the trapped columns. The war in Slovenia ended quickly, the swift intervention of international community, made it happen. Notwithstanding the circumstances – the EC known latter as the European Union saw an opportunity with the crisis in Yugoslavia to assert itself in a new post-Cold War reality.

On 7^th of July 1991 the Brioni agreement was submitted, it ended the fighting between Slovenia and JNA, despite of that small success, another conflict was inevitable, the structure of the Yugoslav Federation became fragile. Bear in mind, quick ceasefire in Slovenia gave an elusive and misleading feeling that it all may be dealt with the powerful words of diplomacy, upcoming months proved Europe was wrong.

“(…) the attitude towards wars is peace, so it was claimed by the greatest philosophers of our time; Immanuel Kant. Kant was arguing against wars.  According to him ‘war only came about because of the aristocracy, and the monarchs who enjoyed it’. But in fact they had nothing else to do with the time spend only during between two wars. Moreover Kant claims that if we could eliminate the ruling class, did not introduce democracy, we would have rational people in charge of societies. All problems could be solved by reason. What he presents is an ‘idea of perpetual peace’. Kantian vision is balanced, there is war going on which eventually brings people together to obtain peace. Before any peace agreement is going to be signed, long time has to pass to overcome human hostilities. Wars are very terrible but lead to perpetual peace. (…)”

Tragically, the failure to deal with the Balkan problem decisively at the earliest possible stage condemned thousands of people to brutal deaths as a slow-motion pace.

Croatia was an important spot for Milosevic, the border skirmishes began at the same time the conflict in Slovenia eased. The tension was manifested by slogans, threats, ethnic beatings, intimidation, broken windows, random killings. Local politicians encouraged and justified such behavior. Lazar Macura sow the seeds of mistrust between Croats ad Serbs. The historical sources agree on one thing – it was Milosevic who unquestionably dominated media industry at that time, people had a completely divorced perspective on the havoc Serbs were inflicting on their neighbors. Despite  of lack of strategic direction the military superiority of the JNA began to assert itself. The ethnic cleansing spared throughout the area. The nightmarish footage was presented by international media with disbelief.

The EC chief negotiator Lord Carrington and his counterpart, the American statesman Cyrus Vance  tried to mediate a ceasefire with no success. The sanctions imposed on Serbia in 1991 and 1992 did not stop the fighting. To make bad things worse Bosnia and Herzegovina announced it wants independence, as well. The separation was an unavoidable step forward, Bosnia did it against all odds in 1992 by implementing a referendum. The European Community recognized B&H independence on 6^th of April 1992 and it was the day of a great disaster.

Milosevic took a particularly hard line, he masterminded ethnic cleansing and genocide. To stop the overwhelming bloodshed the EC sent UNPROFOR (The United Nation Protection Force) it was supposed to protect and guide the stability in Croatia and B&H – as the war spred to this area.

The concentration camps in Omraska and Srebrenica represent a sad testimony of the genocide. In 1992 the huge war began, it lasted for three next years. These were years of brutality, loss of dignity and helplessness.

Bibliography

1. David Martin, Ally Betrayed: The Uncensored Story of Tito and Mihailovich.
2. "Participation of Former Yugoslav States in the United Nations".
3. Allcock, John B.: Explaining Yugoslavia. New York: Columbia University Press, 2000
4. Cigar, Norman, : Genocide in Bosnia: The Policy of Ethnic-Cleansing. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1995
5. Cohen, Lenard J.: Broken Bonds: The Disintegration of Yugoslavia. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1993
6. Fisher, Sharon: Political Change in Post-Communist Slovakia and Croatia: From Nationalist to Europeanist. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006
7. Gutman, Roy.: A Witness to Genocide. The 1993 Pulitzer Prize-winning Dispatches on the "Ethnic Cleansing" of Bosnia. New York: Macmillan, 1993
8. Hayden, Robert M.: Blueprints for a House Divided: The Constitutional Logic of the Yugoslav Conflicts. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2000
9. Owen, David. Balkan Odyssey Harcourt (Harvest Book), 1997