Worlds Apart: Bosnian Lessons for Global Security
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Worlds Apart Swanee Hunt Worlds Apart Bosnian Lessons for GLoBaL security Duke university Press Durham anD LonDon 2011 © 2011 Duke University Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America on acid- free paper ♾ Designed by C. H. Westmoreland Typeset in Charis by Tseng Information Systems, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data appear on the last printed page of this book. To my partners c harLes ansBacher: “Of course you can.” and VaLerie GiLLen: “Of course we can.” and Mirsad JaceVic: “Of course you must.” Contents Author’s Note xi Map of Yugoslavia xii Prologue xiii Acknowledgments xix Context xxi Part i: War Section 1: Officialdom 3 1. insiDe: “Esteemed Mr. Carrington” 3 2. outsiDe: A Convenient Euphemism 4 3. insiDe: Angels and Animals 8 4. outsiDe: Carter and Conscience 10 5. insiDe: “If I Left, Everyone Would Flee” 12 6. outsiDe: None of Our Business 15 7. insiDe: Silajdžić 17 8. outsiDe: Unintended Consequences 18 9. insiDe: The Bread Factory 19 10. outsiDe: Elegant Tables 21 Section 2: Victims or Agents? 24 11. insiDe: The Unspeakable 24 12. outsiDe: The Politics of Rape 26 13. insiDe: An Unlikely Soldier 28 14. outsiDe: Happy Fourth of July 30 15. insiDe: Women on the Side 33 16. outsiDe: Contact Sport 35 Section 3: Deadly Stereotypes 37 17. insiDe: An Artificial War 37 18. outsiDe: Clashes 38 19. insiDe: Crossing the Fault Line 39 20. outsiDe: “The Truth about Goražde” 41 21. insiDe: Loyal 43 22. outsiDe: Pentagon Sympathies 46 23. insiDe: Family Friends 48 24. outsiDe: Extremists 50 Section 4: Fissures and Connections 55 25. insiDe: Family Ties 55 26. outsiDe: Federation 56 27. insiDe: School Days 59 28. outsiDe: Forces and Counterforces 63 29. insiDe: Blood 66 30. outsiDe: Trade- offs 68 31. insiDe: Grim Lullaby 71 Section 5: The End Approaches 73 32. outsiDe: Security and Cooperation 73 33. insiDe: Sarajevo Cinderella 76 34. outsiDe: Failure at Srebrenica 77 35. insiDe: Magbula’s Parrot 82 36. outsiDe: The Accident 85 37. insiDe: Boys Pretending 87 38. outsiDe: Bombs and Bluffs 88 39. insiDe: Side by Side 90 40. outsiDe: Decisions at Dayton 92 Parti i : Peace Section 6: After Dayton 97 41. insiDe: Morning Has Broken 97 42. outsiDe: Waiting for Christmas 99 43. insiDe: Serb Exodus 101 44. outsiDe: Refugees in Austria 103 45. insiDe: Refugees at the Residence 105 46. outsiDe: Diplobabble 107 47. insiDe: Displaced 107 48. outsiDe: Sowing and Reaping 110 49. insiDe: Banja Luka Bitterness 113 viii | contents Section 7: Imperfect Justice 117 50. outsiDe: War Criminals 117 51. insiDe: Uncatchable 122 52. outsiDe: Evenhanded 124 53. insiDe: No Justice in Srebrenica 126 54. outsiDe: The Tribunal 129 55. insiDe: Waiting for the Truth 131 56. outsiDe: Intelligence and Political Will 135 57. insiDe: Professor, Perpetrator, President 137 Section 8: International Inadequacies 142 58. outsiDe: The Fourth Warring Party 142 59. insiDe: City Signs 144 60. outsiDe: Out of Step 148 61. insiDe: By a Thread 149 62. outsiDe: Missing 151 63. insiDe: Surviving the Peace 153 64. outsiDe: Press Tour 154 Section 9: Women’s Initiative 157 65. insiDe: Organized for Action 157 66. outsiDe: Lyons 160 67. insiDe: “What’s an nGo?” 164 68. outsiDe: Skewed 165 69. insiDe: A League of Their Own 168 70. outsiDe: “With All Due Respect” 171 Section 10: Recreating Community 173 71. insiDe: Beethoven’s Fifth 173 72. outsiDe: “Neither Free Nor Fair” 176 73. insiDe: Sarajevo Red 178 74. outsiDe: Re- leaf 180 75. insiDe: Watermelons 182 76. outsiDe: Arizona 183 77. insiDe: Three Hundred Gold Coins 185 78. outsiDe: Mistrust in Mostar 191 79. insiDe: New Bridges 192 80. outsiDe: Air Force One 194 Bridging: Six Lessons from Bosnia 199 1. Test Truisms 200 2. Question Stereotypes 206 3. Find Out- of-P ower Allies 211 contents | ix 4. Appreciate Domestic Dynamics 216 5. Find Fault 222 6. Embrace Responsibility 226 Epilogue 235 Notes 239 Index 253 x | contents a uthor’s note Many readers, including me, make a habit of flipping to the end of a book before plowing into the beginning. Some will find that practice particularly helpful with this volume. The policy analysis at the end an- swers the “So what?” that haunts every author hoping to impinge on the precious time of her audience. Instead of leaving it up to you to cheat, I might have interspersed in the text allusions to those lessons. But pointing to my conclusions throughout the book would have been at the expense of a different goal: letting you arrive at your own understanding even as your awareness meanders or is yanked from one setting into another. My bias is that in- sight gained through such a personal process is richer and more lasting. Thus the vignettes that follow are described as I understood them at the time I experienced them. No one was ready then to apply what we were learning to conflicts in Rwanda, or to ponder a future application to violence brewing elsewhere. That said, if you open to the last section first, don’t feel guilty. Other- wise, move through the experiences as I did, and let the realization come to you that despite moments of courage and beauty, there was something very, very wrong with the way this war and this peace were waged. And what was wrong, we need to—and can—make right. 14° 16° 18° 20° 22° The boundaries and names shown and the designation AUSTRIA used on this map do not imply official endorsement or M acceptance by the United Nations. u ra Maribor Ptuj HUNGARY Kranj Celje Drava Varazdin Szeged Arad 46° 46° Ljubljana THE FORMER Pécs Subotica YUG IA ITALY Bjelovar OS LAV SLOVENIA B Tisa Zagreb D A rav R Timisoara a A Novo Mesto Virovitica N Sombor Trieste J Becej CROATIA A Sisak Kutina Daruvar Osijek Erdut Gulf VOJVODINA Venice Rijeka ˆ of Karlovac S L A V O N I A Zrenjanin Sa Vukovar is Venice va N.Gradiska Slavonski Novi Sad Ogulin A Kostanjnica im Brod T Vrsac Slunj N Una Vinkovci Rovinj Krk Senj Velika Ruma ROMANIA I Prijedor Rakovica Kladusa a Beograd s n J Banja a s (Belgrade) Pula b o Brcko S r B Bihac´ Luka V S be A u Rab Bijeljina ava D an Kulen Sanski Doboj Sabac ‹ Losinj Gospic R o Pozarevac Vakuf Most Maglaj v E e K Loznica r Tuzla de Udbina BOSNIA AND me Pag S Velika Plana Gracac Bosansko Mrkonjic´ Jajce Zvornik Negotin Mas Grahovo Grad Travnik Zadar len Zenica Vares S E R B I A A N D ic R 44° D. Zemunik a Donji Vakuf Vitez Srebrenica M 44° or Dugi Otok a A Bribirski HERZEGOVINA Zepa v Zajecar Knin a S A N Mostine Visoko Uzice Cuprija´ Vrbnik Livno Gornji Sarajevo MARINO D Kornat Vakuf Prozor Pale Cacak B Sinj Z Sibenik . M orav a Divulje Gorazde Aleksinac Jablanica Konjic a Kraljevo BULGARIA R Primosten n Priboj N i ere r Split G. Dreznica v a D MONTENEGRO Nis ‹ I I Solta Brac ‹ Mostar Pljevlja T ar M Hvar a o r A S a Vis A N K v Ploce´ Pi D Z A Leskovac a Metkovic´ v a A Ivangrad ‹ T ‹ Korcula Peljiesac Sofia MONTENEGRO Kosovska THE FORMER Mljet I Lastovo Niksic´ Mitrovica Pristina Dubrovnik Pec´ Vranje YUGOSLAVIA C Podgorica KOSOVO International boundary Prevlaka Dakovica a Peninsula k s r Lake Dr Republic boundary o Cetinje in Prizren ot Scutari Kumanovo K S 42° Autonomous province boundary ka t 42° Bo Skopje r Bar u National capital Tetovo Petrovec Kocani m S a Administrative capital Gostivar THE FORMER Railroad E Titov Veles Stip Principal road YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC A Secondary road Kicevo Tirana OF MACEDONIA 0 50 100 150 km Prilep Lake Durres Ohrid Doïran 0 50 100 mi ALBANIA Bitola Lake Lake GREECE Ohrid Prespa 14° 16° 18° 20° 22° Map No. 3689 Rev. 10 UNITED NATIONS Department of Public Information February 2003 Cartographic Section Prologue This book is about Bosnia—and beyond. Its lessons reach to Egypt, Iraq, Korea, Congo . any place we, as an “international community,” try to stabilize a chaotic world. It is a story of grand intentions and missed opportunities, heroes and clowns, and a well- meaning foreign policy establishment deaf to the voices of everyday people. The former Yugo- slavia is the setting but only the backdrop for this study in contrasts that play out whenever outsiders try to be helpful without including all the stakeholders in the decision making. There have been oh-so-many words written about Bosnia1—mostly from two radically different perspectives. This volume is constructed from those disparate vantage points. One is from inside the conflict—life experiences chronicled in journalists’ accounts, coffeehouse conversa- tions, and love letters. The other perspective is from outside—the words and actions of government officials, military leaders, and other interna- tional actors who were often an ocean away from the conflict. First, inside: In the heat of the war, people on the ground, particularly humanitarian responders, journalists (Yugoslav and international), and human rights workers, tried to awaken the world’s conscience with vivid portraits: a child’s wide-eyed hope, a soldier’s callous remark, a mother in tears. The accounts were chilling, as their sleuthing revealed rape campaigns, concentration camps, and mass graves, opening the way for an international war crimes tribunal. Then outside: Throughout the war, policymakers acted from their lim- ited perspective. Then, after the conflict ended, as if to document their achievements, they hit the lecture circuit, describing ultimate victory over false starts, apathy, and deceit.