Calendar
mywilpf
Donate

Celebrating Feminists’ Voices, Inspiring Global Peace

Back to all news

What Happened to the Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

2 June 2014

The following blog is written by Nela Porobic the coordinator for WILPF’s project, Syrian and Bosnian Women Organising for Change. The blog provides a perceptive synopsis of the current situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) at the beginning of 90’s is still fresh in our minds – at least for us Bosnian people.  It is fresh because the wounds of our victims have not healed yet, because too many family members lay buried in numerous graveyards across the country, and too many family members remain still unaccounted for.

It is also fresh because the political, economical and social mechanisms and processes put in place by the Dayton Peace Agreement that stopped the war in 1995 did not turn to be sustainable solutions, nor something that brought real peace into our lives – just mere absence of war!

Divided in order to be preserved

Before the war BiH was part of Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). SFRY consisted out of six republics – Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The war in BiH was part of the dissolution of SFRY at the beginning of 90’s.

The war that raged in BiH between 1992 – 1995 was predominantly defined as an ethnic war by domestic political elite as well as the international community and media.

This simplistic understanding of the causes of war, prescribed to “ancient hatreds” between the different ethnic groups laid the ground for the solution sought at the military base Dayton in Ohio where the peace agreement was brokered.

The peace agreement was an outcome of “tour de force” of international diplomacy, and changing military balance on the ground. Another important reason for why the agreement was made possible is that at the end of 1995 almost all goals of the warring parties had been achieved – the separation of population and division of territory was almost complete.

The Dayton peace agreement created a de-centralised Bosnia and Herzegovina, dividing the country between two entities, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS), with a weak central government and an additional district, District Brcko, that belongs to neither of the entities.

How do we measure peace?

Whether the Dayton peace agreement is successful or not is contested. While many local politicians and representatives of international community would say yes, a deeper analysis of where BiH is today would require a somewhat more nuanced answer.

The Peace agreement had two main goals – ending the war and rebuilding the Bosnian society. The first one, securing a military cease-fire, has been implemented most successfully. The cease-fire has held firm and the number of armed forces has been reduced significantly. But if you ask whether it restored peace to Bosnian society – I would be very reluctant to say yes. Do we really measure peace in terms of absence of militarised violence? Is the absence of militias, weapons, shooting and killing a sufficient measurement of peace?

Where is Bosnia and Herzegovina today?

I do not mean to sound too pessimistic but sometimes I wonder where this country is going. Between the complicated systems designed to maintain ethnic balance and separation, veto rights, administrative division of the country that serves no other purpose than to further divide, political parties that more resemble a well organised mafia than anything close to political and ideological leadership, I really wonder if this country is beyond repair!

One can look at almost any segment of the BiH society and point to badly created mechanisms. In the educational system so called “two schools under one roof” were created separating Bosniak and Croat children apart, effectively recreating what the rest of the world thought to be long gone with the Apartheid regime in South Africa; Our Constitution is a product of the peace agreement negotiated between the international community and male elites representing the warring parties, effectively excluding the voices of BiH women and civil society and creating a dysfunctional and awkward structure of the state; Access to economical, social and cultural rights is severely hampered.

This is due to poor economical situation in the country, making it difficult to “afford” to implement those ESCrts guaranteed by our laws. But the access is also hampered because laws themselves are discriminatory, particularly in regards to the most war affected groups in our society – civilian victims of war including survivors of wartime sexual violence, internally displaced persons and returnees, workers left without jobs in the aftermath of privatisations enforced by the new neoliberal order introduced in BiH, many of them women, demobilised soldiers and so on; Our justice system has let down the victims of the war. It is hard to believe but in the past couple of weeks men who have been found guilty and imprisoned for genocide, acts of rape and torture, and executions, are now back on the streets and are not anticipating having to complete their sentences any time soon.

The law and those that are responsible for its interpretation have let down the victims and undermined the concept of accountability.

This is just the surface of the mountain of problems BiH is facing – one would need a book to describe them all. But it is still sufficient to see that the peace agreement, in the absence of influence from those who worked the hardest during the war and in the aftermath of war to build peace, namely CSO in general and women in particular, did not succeed in creating a sustainable peace – the kind of peace that would make the word “peace” obsolete in the minds of Bosnian people.

Share the post

Berit Aasen

Europe Alternate Regional Representative

Berit Aasen is a sociologist by training and has worked at the OsloMet Metropolitan University on Oslo. She has 40 years of experience in research and consultancy in development studies, including women, peace, and security, and in later years in asylum and refugee studies. Berit Aasen joined WILPF Norway five years ago. She is an alternate member of the National Board of WILPF Norway, and representing WILPF Norway in the UN Association of Norway, the Norwegian 1325 network and the Norwegian Women’s Lobby. Berit Aasen has been active in the WILPF European Liaison group and is committed to strengthening WILPF sections and membership both in Europe and relations across continents.

Your donation isn’t just a financial transaction; it’s a step toward a more compassionate and equitable world. With your support, we’re poised to achieve lasting change that echoes through generations. Thank you!

Thank you!

Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Mauris facilisis luctus rhoncus. Praesent eget tellus sit amet enim consectetur condimentum et vel ante. Nulla facilisi. Suspendisse et nunc sem. Vivamus ullamcorper vestibulum neque, a interdum nisl accumsan ac. Cras ut condimentum turpis. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia curae; Curabitur efficitur gravida ipsum, quis ultricies erat iaculis pellentesque. Nulla congue iaculis feugiat. Suspendisse euismod congue ultricies. Sed blandit neque in libero ultricies aliquam. Donec euismod eget diam vitae vehicula. Fusce hendrerit purus leo. Aenean malesuada, ante eu aliquet mollis, diam erat suscipit eros, in.

Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.