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= __ **The Overview of Bosnia-Kosovo Conflict** __ =

Yugoslavia
After the end of the cold war, there was a large rise in nationalism in the Yugoslav providence. The country was rapidly breaking up into multiple countries which resulted in constant conflict during the 1990s. Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian’s communist party leader, quickly became the most powerful man in the Yugoslav province

Map of fracturing Yugoslavia

**Bosnia War**
War broke out between Croatia in 1991 when they voted to secede from Yugoslavia and became Bosnia and Herzegovina. There was fierce backlash from the Bosnian Serbs, lead by Milosevic. More than 100,000 people were killed(1). The war was primarily seen as a territorial war, with Serbs trying not to lose the Bosnian territory. NATO intervened in 1995 using airstrikes in the Operation Deliberate Force. The war was ended with the Dayton agreement in 1996, which preceded the war in Kosovo.

**Siege of Sarajevo**
On April 6, 1992, the Bosnian Serbs began their siege of Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was the longest recorded siege of a capital in history resulting in 10 to 12 thousand deaths. It started the 5th of April 1992 and lasted until February 29th 1996. Three military personnel were convicted of many war crimes, two of whom were sentenced to life in prison (2) In the opening statements at the trial, the presiding judge said that “…one must go back to world war II to find a parallel in European history”. (3)

Bosnian Parliament building burning
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**Srebrenica genocide**
The Srebrenica genocide refers to the July 1995 killing of more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslims. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY unanimously considered this an act of genocide in 2004 (4). The main victims were men and teenage boys (around 15), many of the women and children. The zone was originally deemed a refugee camp in 1993, however due to lack of resources the zone no longer was protected by the UN. Burial cite of 775 victims

**Kosovo**
Kosovo is providence in-between Serbia and Albania. Large dispute over who owned the land, the Kosovo province was sacred to both peoples and both people lived in Kosovo. In 1986, a study released argued that many Serbs were leaving Kosovo due to Albanian aggression and threats (5). Albanian nationalism had been growing and a mood for independence set in the Kosovo province. The report was widely contested and criticized.

**Leading up to conflict**
In 1989, Serbian assembly proposed changes to constitution which took independence from institutions within Kosovo. President Milosevic said they were necessary to protect Kosovo's remaining Serbs against harassment from the Albanian majority. Many of the new provisions also restricted cultural activities. Massive protests occurred, however over the next few years Serbians increased their power over the Kosovo area. Kosovo on several occasions voted overwhelmingly for independence. Ibrahim Rugova then become the elected president of Kosovo and advocated independence through non- violent resistance. Independence still not granted.

**KLA**
The Kosovo Liberation Army was a political organization that wanted full independence for Kosovo. They believed the best way to get the attention of world at large was to use violence. They would get the US interested if they started to attack the Serbians. Many have argued that the KLA were the main reason for violence and were provoking violence with the Serbians. US diplomat Robert Gelbard publicly calls KLA "without any question a terrorist group" (6) and the KLA was listed as a terrorist group until 1998.

**Prekaz Massacre.**
After KLA attacks on police, Serb security forces massacre over 50 members of the Jashari family in the village of Prekaz. They were the family members of a prominent member of the KLA. A picture of dead Albanian was put on front page of New York Times, this created support for intervention. Madeline Albright, secretary of state, used the massacre to build up support for intervention into the area. She wanted to use her position as secretary of state to send a message that such actions would not be tolerable (6)

**NATO intervention**
US did not want to invade the region alone, so they approached NATO, wanting a unified force against Milosevic to prevent an all out war from occurring. Richard Holbrook, a US diplomat, is sent to negotiate with Serbians, saying that there will be retaliation from NATO bombers if they do not negotiate a truce (6). NATO flies 85 jets over Albania and Macedonia, known now as the Balkan Air show, as a show of force (6).

The Serbians did not believe that NATO had a right to intervene. They were fighting against a group of terrorists and that this was an internal matter. Fighting occurs in the Drenica region, which was the birthplace of the KLA and thousands of civilians are pushed from their homes in early August, 1998. This assault marked the beginning of the Kosovo war.

**The Rambouillet Conference**
Last ditch effort to create a lasting peace talks. It soon became clear that Milocovitch would not sign onto the deal, and then the Albanians refused to sign. The plan did not give them full independence which was their primary goal. Madeline Albright threatened the Albanians that if they did not sign on, they would not receive and help from NATO in the future. The Albanians, US and UK signed onto the deal, but when the Serbians didn’t it was a clear signal for invasion.

**NATO Bombing**
On March 23rd, President Clinton gave a speech comparing what was happening in Kosovo to the Nazi’s genocide against the Jews, saying “What if someone had listened to Winston Churchill and stood up to Adolph Hitler earlier the president asked. How many peoples lives might have been saved And how many American lives might have been saved.” (7) NATO began bombing on March 25th, 1999. NATO was originally given a list of targets they could bomb over a 3 day period. The thinking was that Milocovitch would back down after he sees a showing of force. 3 days had passed and Milocovitch did not yield. He continued his campaign into Kosovo which displaced an estimated 850,000 Albanians (6) = = Building bombed in Belgrade
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Bombings continued over the next several weeks but showed little success. A ground operation was seriously considered. President Clinton had previously promised that ground forces were off the table for the United States. However he did allow the CIA to determine if there was a way to destabilize Serbian government (8). NATO increases ground troops in neighboring Macedonia to 48,000, saying they are peace keepers but could be contrived as a invasion force. After weeks of bombings and with NATO bombing the power supply for Belgrade, Serbians agree to a peace deal and withdraw from the Kosovo province.

**Lasting Legacy**
One lasting phrase that has come out of the bombing is the idea of “Humanitarian Warfare”. The term is credited to then President of the Czech Republic, Václav Havel, who has since denied that he coined it (9). The idea is that through intervention into areas, massive catastrophes can be averted.

** Cynical memory culture **
There have been many cynical criticisms of the invasion of Kosovo. An immediate criticism was that the intervention came right on the heels of the Monica Lewinsky trial which has led some to say the war was constructed as a way to divert attention away from affair. The movie, wag the dog, pokes fun at this idea, depicting a president whom is seeking re-election create a war in Albania to take attention away from him.

** Criticism of Intervention **
Critiques on the left, such as Noam Chomsky and Edward Said have suggested that the war was simply a reflection of US imperialism, Chomsky saying that to call what was going on in Kosovo genocide is “insulting to the victims of Hitler, in fact it’s revisionist and extreme” (10) Claiming that the war was simply an attempt to eradicate the last “working model of socialism” (10) in the Europe in the new age of globalization. Critiques on the right, such as then governor George bush and House Majority Leader Dick Armey charged that the war had nothing to do with national security and should have been avoided all together.

 [] (1)  [] (2)  [] (3)  [] (4)  [] (5) [] (6)  [] (7)  [] (8)  [] (9)  [] (10) = = = __**Notable Figures**__  = = = This section is going to detail some of the main leaders involved in the Bosnia/Kosovo conflict:

= =

//Slobodan Milosevic//
= = Milosevic served as the Serbian President from May 8, 1989 untill July 23, 1997 and the Yugoslavian president from 1997 to October of 2000. Many have attributed him to break up of the Yugoslavian empire and the conflicts that followed. In the late 1980's, Serbs felt as though they were being treated injustly by Albanians in Kosovo, which caused him to force plans into action. He wanted to initiate separation from Kosovo based on his national pride and would no longer stand for minority serbs to be treated in justly there. Milosevic was often opposed because people felt that he was a nationalist who only wanted to further the advancement of Serbs in Kosovo and no other minorities located there. Throughout his tenure as president he gradually changed their government from Communist to a more Socialist regime. Milosevic was known as "The Butcher of the Balkans" where he displaced over 3 million people and killed well over 200,000. Milosevic was a very evil man who deceived his people and wanted them to believe that they were being victimized by Muslims and Albanians and that their only choice was to rid the planet of these people. Following Hitler and his antics during World War II, we said "never again" meaning we would never let something of this magnitude happen again. Milosevic drew many comparisons to Hitler in his diplomacy and beliefs in general. On April 1, 2001, Milosevic was imprisoned by the Serbian government for "opposing Serbia". = =

//Madeline Albright//
Madeline Albright was the first woman to serve as the United States Secretary of State. As a child, she was forced to escape from Czechoslovakia in 1939 because of the Nazi regime. She lived in Europe for a short period before moving to the United States. She took office as the 64th Secretary of State in 1997 as the highest position a woman has had in the United States government. She developed very influential policies in the Bosnia and Kosovo Conflict which caused for much mixed feelings towards her from the Serbs. People were relieved to have someone like Albright take office after Warren Christopher served as Secretary of State. He was a very reserved, old fashioned, type of diplomat and Albright was quite the opposite. There was some skepticism in that she persuaded Clinton to bomb the Serbs which would cause them and Milosevic to back away but that was not the case. Albright backed up her reason for wanting to bomb them by saying that Milosevic is someone who is familiar with the use of force and people who do that can only be removed with force. The war was often referred to as "Madeline's War" referencing her decisions in the conflict and putting the blame on her for what was going on in the Kosovo conflict. Overall, she was praised for her work while she served as the Secretary of State and very influential in her diplomatic endeavors during this time. = //**Richard Holbrooke**//  = = = Richard Holbrooke was a long time American diplomat and served as the Assistant Secretary of State. He was also nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 1995 for his work in crafting the Dayton peace accords. His role was changed however, when President Clinton asked him to serve as a special envoy to the Balkans based on his expertise of the region. He worked diligently to mend the relationship between Serbia and the Kosovo Liberation Army. In early 1999, he was sent to Milosevic to give an ultimatum before the NATO bombings occured. He was well known for his ability to get leaders into an environment where they could negotiate peace talks. He was able to build a rather strong relationship with Milosevic during his time serving as the special envoy. Holbrooke and Milosevic sometimes would have a drink or go out to dinner together while Holbrooke would try to convince him to end his assault on the Albanians in Kosovo. Milosevic had such a big ego and felt that his strategies were the most important, it was very hard to deal with him in a sensible way. It was difficult to breakthrough to Milosevic so the bombing inevitably took place. The police made it difficult to intervene because they were not responsible people, they let certain events happen that would have been seen as intolerable in other nations. Milosevic would often portray to Holbrooke that it wasn't in fact a genocide that was taking place, rather a civil war where these people were killing each other. Holbrooke would leave a lasting legacy in the Kosovo conflict, which the people of Kosovo praised him for.

Quote following his death:

"The 'Buldozer' diplomat will be forever remembered by my entire country for his outstanding contribution to peace in Kosovo. He was so much loved by all of Kosovo, and he will be remembered as true friend and supporter, not only of Kosovo, but of all peace-loving people." **Ukshin, Pristina, Kosovo** **Holbrooke on Kosovo:** []

= //**Ibrahim Rugova**//  =

Ibrahim Rugova served as the leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), he was and Albanian and served as the first President of Kosovo. The KLA was a guerilla unit in Kosovo that was often criticized for their use of violence and destruction. He stirred up much controversy between the two fighting parties and It is widely felt that he was responsible for the armed conflict that ensued in Kosovo. Kosovo has long struggled with a series of leaders who were communists that weren't honest with their people. Rugova was very clear that he wanted Kosovo to become an independent nation. He was criticized because he was concerned with Kosovo as a whole and didn't take into account much the priorities of minority groups inside of Kosovo. In the heat of the 79 day long NATO bombing, Rugova went to Milosevic to try and negotiate a peace settlement, this was seen as an act of treason by his people. The KLA was set up to kill important leaders and there were even rumors that they were going to try to kill their own leader, Rugova. Before Kosovo was liberated, he was in the process of setting up a parallel government while there was already a government in power. This was obviously not a well respected move by Milosevic at the time. Rugova was viewed as a very honest man and was praised for his work while giving new jobs to people who were displaced by Milosevic and his regime.

= __ Trials __ =

**//The Nuremberg Trials//**
The International Crime Tribunal, known as the Nuremberg Trials, was a four year beginning on November 20th, 1945. The tribunal was held for the war crimes committed during World War II. There were held to discover the guilt or innocence of four charges. The first count was for crimes against peace and war crimes against humanity. The second count was for crimes against peace an preparation and waging of an aggressive war. The third count was for certain war crimes, violations of the laws of war. These violations being murder or ill treatment of populations or prisoners of war. The fourth and final count was for crimes against humanity, extermination, enslavement, and other inhumane treatment of civilizations before or during the war. This included persecution on political, racial, or religious groups. The Trials were established to design a deterrent for future aggression of countries. Before the surrender of Germany evidence shows many accounts of committing these accounts. Evidence shows the cruel prewar assaults on Jews, deliberate aggression towards Czechoslovakia, Poland, and other European nations, USSR, and the United States. Germany was charged for systematic and massive devastation of a continent and the deportation of millions of slave laborers, and the mistreatment and execution of prisoners of war and the murder of Jews, Slavs, Gypsies, and other rebel. The defining element Germany was committed for was the mass murder of millions of Jews. During the Nuremberg Trials, were given the chance to defend themselves against the evidence used to commit them. The defendants were allowed to choose their lawyers as well as receive the evidence held against them. The Nuremberg Trials ended in the acquittal of 3 defendants, 12 sentenced to hang, and 7 sent to prison 10 years to life.

The ICTY was created in May of 1993. It is being held in the Hague, The Netherlands for the war crimes committed in the 1990's during the Balkan wars. 160 individuals have been charged either genocide, crimes against humanity, violations of the laws and customs of war in form
 * ** //**International Crime Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY)**// ** ||
 * ** //**International Crime Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY)**// ** ||

er Yugoslavia, and finally grave breaches of the Geneva Convention involving treatment of soldier and civilians during war times.

The Tribunal was divided into three section. The Registry which performs the administrative duties, T he Chambers which is a panel of three judges that hear the cases, and the Prosecutors Office which manages the investigation of the war crimes, develops indictments, and tries cases. To discover judgement against individuals, the panel of judges must h
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ear guilt proved beyond a reasonable doubt. The ICTY is still in progress due to the absence of charged individuals. So far two people have been acquitted and 30 individuals have been sentenced 30 to 552 months in prison.

**//Comparison of the Nuremberg Trials and ICTY//**
Both trials have included the sentencing of individuals on counts of Crimes against Humanity, Genocide, Violations of laws of war, and breaches of the Geneva Convention. The ICTY is a much more complicated tribunal. There is a difference in power, politics, logistics, and an access to evidence. The ICTY does not have the benefit of a great army to help collect evidence, individuals, and logistics. The Nazis had well kept documents of their actions where as in the Balkan wars, there is a lack of a paper trail. The ICTY relies heavily on oral testimonies. The process of collecting evidence is very expensive. The ICTY must rely on mass graves which requires forensic evidence. A significant deterrent to the completion of the ICTY is that it operated during a on going conflict and now on unsteady peace. Some of the individuals committed of crimes have not yet been apprehended and it is unsure that they ever will be. The ICTY also deals with many different sides to the crimes committed in the former Yugoslavia. Those charged in the Nuremberg Trials were Nazis, but the ICTY has looked at crimes committed by all. Critics of the Nuremberg Trials called it a "victors trial." The tribunal was set up and conducted by the Allied Powers and the major powers had all the pull when it came to a verdict. The judges who decided the verdicts were from Great Britain, the United States, France, and the Soviet Union. The ICTY has taken a different approach. Every ethnic group in the Balkan states have been charged including, Serbs, Croats, and Muslims. The judges of this tribunal are not only from every major power in the world. These judges range from countries of Malta, South Africa, China, Italy, along with 12 other judges not affiliated with the Balkan Wars.The ICTY's goal is to deter the commission of war crimes both by those who have been indicted by other political and military leaders around the world. Rehabilitation is the central theme. The ICTY has no control over the treatment of convicted war criminals. The criminals are cared for by the national government of their state. The ICTY is still in Progress. If you'd like to view any of the court sessions or keep up with current ICTY events, go to []
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= __**Remembering Bosnia and Kosovo**__  = The act of remembering a certain event or tragedy is not a new notion. Dating as far back as the ancient egyptians, memory culture has been one of the oldest and most cherished ways to respect tradition and remember losses. Hieroglyphics embedded into rock, paintings made with pigments from dirt and clay, all symbols of remembrance that date back to B.C.E. So when a tragic event, such as the Holocaust, or "ethnic cleansing" occurs, it is almost a knee jerk reaction to somehow want to commemorate these atrocities. And the ethnic cleansing that took place in Bosnia has been no different. There have been many novels, films and memorial sites erected in the honor of the thousands lost during the war.

__**Memorial Sites:**__
__**Bosnia:**__ Sarajevo Rose The Bosnian army surrounded, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo. Their goal was to stop any traffic from exiting or entering the city, in an effort to prevent the home troops from deploying. This was soon the be called the siege of Sarajevo. The Bosnian Serb Army fired mortar shells into the city, and it said on average around 300 shells were released into civilian territory on a daily basis. The memorial sites surround the city of Sarajevo. Explosion marks filled with red resin show where a death (or many deaths) occurred. Unfortunately as the city begins to repave their roadways the Sarajevo Roses are starting to disappear.

===  **Srebrenica-Potočari Memorial and Cemetery for the Victims of the 1995 Genocide**  ===
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This memorial site is located in Srebrenica at a location now known as the memorial-complex. The site is meant to recognize the death of 8,372 victims of genocide during the massacre that took place in July, of 1995. The crimes were said to be the worst in Europe since the second World War. The victims were mainly men and boys. The women and children, were bused to a central location while the men were split into groups and forced to dig their own mass graves. The cemetery has gravestones, placards and pavilions with names of all the loved ones lost in the massacre.


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Jasharai memorial site
The Jasharal Memorial site was built for Adem Jashari, one of the founders and commanders of the KLA. In 1998, him and 52 memebers of his family were killed by the Serbian Police Army. Many people visit the site as he was a figure of independence for Kosovo during the time of unrest.

The memorial of KLA martyrs in Morinë, Skenderaj
Built to resemble the Vietnam Memorial in D.C., It memorializes the Men and boys lost.

Zahir Pajaziti Statue
Pajaziti was a liberation army commander from Podujeva. He symbolizes independence because he was one of the founders of the KLA, and is given legendary status "in the narrative of the Kosovan national struggle."

Martyrs Hill
The memorial site is a host for the graves of the KLA fighters. The wooden crosses and simple, and lie beneath the Albanian flag, and are covered with flowers and wreaths. Over the hill is where the tomb of Ibrahim Rugova, a restrained marble plinth, sits. This is controversial because Rugova was very passive in his leading, however KLA fighters were know for their brutality.

**__Literature__:**
Many books have been written not only to inform the population of the events of hate crimes between Bosnia and Kosovo, but also to clear up any misconceptions of the war. Such books as //Sociology after Bosnia and Kosovo: recovering justice// By Keith Doubt, // From Bosnia to Kosovo: the re-Islamization of the Balkans// by Raphael Israeli and //The Balkans: a short history// By Mark Mazower, have all been written to further public knowledge, and differentiate between fact and fiction.


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__Films:__
For most people is it hard, or even near impossible, to fathom death and destruction to such an astronomical degree. An important part of memory culture has embedded itself in the form of film. Films on the events of the Bosnian war and the genocide that took place, range from documentaries, factual or true story-lines, or even love stories. Starting as early as 1994 there has been nearly 80 films produced about the events that took place in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

one major film includes //No Man's Land// directed by Danis Tanovic.

[]

Other movies include; //Wag the Dog,// a Black Comedy Film parodies the events that took place, from the president's affair, to the "fake war." Sarajevo Rose, a documentary based upon an Bosnian-American Psychiatrist who survived the Siege of Saravjeo, and his and fellow survivors' stories.

[|Sarajevo Ros]

Citations:

"BBC NEWS | Europe | Clinton Unveils Bosnia Memorial." //Clinton Unveils// //Bosnia Memorial//. BBC News - Home, 20 Sept. 2003. Web. 22 Nov. 2011. < [] >.

"Kosovan Liberation Army and Memorials." //A Journey Around Kosovo //. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. < [] >.

Krasniqi, Eli. "Monuments and Memorial Sites - News Blog - Kosovo - KosovoGuide."//Kosovo Guide: Places, Restaurants, Tours, Events, Hotels,// //Accomodation, Travel | Your Free and Open Guide to Kosovo - KosovoGuide//. Kosovo Guide, 27 Mar. 2010. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. < [] >.

"Sarajevo Roses." //Sarajevo Roses - A Film by Roger M. Richards //. Digital Vision Network. Web. 27 Nov. 2011. < [] >.

"Srebrenica-Potočari Memorial and Cemetery." //<span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16px;">Memory and Justice //. International Center for Transitional Justice. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. < [] >.