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Home , Mladina, Taja Kramberger

POSTSOCIALISM,OR WHAT?DOMESTICATION OF POWER AND IDEOLOGY IN Irena Šumi Institute for Ethnic Studies,

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Prologue1 structural flux as to offer unique and unprecedented insights into human sociality. The entire field of postsocialism studies2 is organized, implicitly or explicitly, around The epistemological shortcomings of large the idea that the times of global flourishing portions of this enterprise were detailed at of (very diverse) absolutist regimes the beginning of our HESP ReSET project3 commonly denominated as socialist, and and need not be rehearsed again; in the final their rather thespian demise in Europe after instance, many of them can be attributed 1989, represent social turbulences of such simply to the more pragmatic and mundane magnitude that they must have had aspects of the ontology of a very specific profound, easily discernible, and mutually global industry that we call social . comparable impact on the societies in Instead, I would like in the following to question. Political singularities such as the briefly outline a different possible view of creation of numerous new nation-states, the life in a postsocialism state such as Slovenia emergence of thousands of kilometers of that does not give quite so much credence to new international borders, and radical the unique, decisive, or even fatal impact of changes of political systems within the political, formal, and ideological structures newly created and delineated state of power such as (post)socialist governance, formations no doubt held promise of societal formal democracy, capitalism, international situations so exceptional and in so much alliances and formations (European Union, NATO) etc. Rather, I would like to test the hypothesis that these structures can be, at least at certain very prominent levels of 1 I have to thank many colleagues for inspiring communal life, totally domesticated and exchange and instigations for this article, and a absorbed into the local web of social book project on provincialism that is planned relations that are much more enduring than within the HESP ReSET project Postcolony and political regimes, and are best represented postsocialism contexts in social scientific writing and observable in what I shall tentatively and teaching. My thanks goes to all the call ‘mentality dispositives’ (after the colleagues in the project, but especially to Martin Berishaj, Michal Buchowski, Duška Knežević examples and usages in Rotar 1998; 2004). Hočevar, Jasmina Husanović, Ivan Panović, I am well aware that the term could be Hannah Starman, Sari Wastell, Daniel Wildcat, associated with certain less fortunate and Nancy Ries. Special thanks goes to Drago episodes in the of social in Braco Rotar and Taja Kramberger with whom I spent long hours debating the issues of the very elusive Slovenian genius loci. Their eruditism, 3 The project’s homepage is at and incisive analytical insights were of great http://www.inv.si/hesp/; project description and help. main theses can be found at 2 See footnote #1, Page 3 of this issue. http://www.inv.si/hesp/project.htm. general, and in (colonial) anthropology in drive, prone to exclude all that particular, from generalized guesses at remains outside their ideology. ‘national character’ down to the rather It is clear from Močnik’s further numinously unfathomable notion of clarifications that he does not confine the ‘culture.’ I am not saying that all Slovenians emergence of ‘identity communities’ to possess a special national character, nor that, post-socialist contexts; on the contrary, he say, all Slovenians have a Kardinerian basic goes on to enumerate, as ideologues or personality structure. But I would venture to political proponents of such communities say that a national community like Slovenia whose discourses he subjects to his analysis, is organized along certain very persistent people like Dimitrij Rupel (the then, and the patterns of (self)perceptions, actions, and actual Slovenian Minister of Foreign modes of building of societal networks that Affairs) and George W. Bush alike. Having are much more enduring than any single all but said that precisely such ‘identity model of social organization superimposed community’ is an enduring type of social by political and ideological power. I would organization among Slovenians, I am almost also guess that this type of communality is tempted to say that it must have been a everything but exclusively Slovenian and Slovenian invention in the first place; such a not at all confined to postsocialism contexts, conclusion would certainly well represent but perhaps nowadays especially worthy of the specific slant that anything in such an social scientific attention as a model enclave ‘identity community’ is subjected to once it of parochialism that demonstrates surprising is filtered through the appropriate mentality abilities of resistance to ideological, legal, dispositives. and economic, commercial and other currents commonly referred to as The latter have both official and unofficial globalization. expressions. The former are manifest in all forms of public discourse, from media to In an interview for the Serbian based Blic , from science to , and news (Nikolić 2003), the renown Slovenian structured as recounting an elevated, tragic, sociologist Rastko Močnik commented on deep history of the nation: Slovenia is small the Serbian of his book entitled (but beautiful!); Slovenians are less than two ‘3 theories’ (1999). Among other things, he million, and throughout history on the very states: verge of extinction (not in the least because In the Introduction to the Serbian of genocidal inclinations of their Germanic edition of “3 theories,” I have and Romance neighbors); have always been radically changed my theories on subjugated by foreign powers (as one of my ideology, nation and institution. We informants, a middle-rank state official put no longer live in nations, we only it, ‘Slovenians cannot do without a Vienna think that we do, and we sometimes or a Belgrade, so now it is Brussels – no big harbor ill feelings about this type of difference here’4) and are therefore unduly community. It is my thesis that the timid and servile, especially in the dominant discourses introduce a type international political arena; and above all, of community that can be called identity-based. This is why I tend to write about the nation much more 4 From interviews conducted with state officials favorably than I used to, because a and bureaucrats within the research project nation is still a form of a pluralist entitled Processes of Ethnic Differentiation in collectivity, whereas identity Slovenia: Confronting the Perceptions (Procesi communities no longer maintain an etničnega razlikovanja v Sloveniji: soočenje internal pluralism. Rather, they are percepcij). At: Institute for Ethnic Studies, Ljubljana (financier: Ministry of education, folkloristic communities with a science and sports of Slovenia, 2001 – 2004; strong ideology and marginalization project no. J5-3543-0507-01.) Slovenians had their ‘national substance’ (a strayed into a certain bad civilizational form thing basically pseudobiological, but mostly of behavior’5 is widely read as both self- discernible through moral degradation) evidently true and exemplarily restrained in threatened for centuries (depending on the its formulation. A (female) journalist does political inclination of the speaker, the not hesitate to accuse one of the ministers of recent most perilous influences would be ‘hiding behind a woman’s back’ because he either communists or Catholics; but would not see her personally, but directed universally, people from the Balkans and her to his (female) PR person6 - and the their sloppiness, immigrants, the Roma, readership would sooner think of this turn of etc.). phrase as a heart warming allusion to the sacred treasure of folk proverbs than any Let me repeat, these are not marginally held kind of chauvinism. The debates on the , but obstinate leitmotifs in any European Union membership rarely if ever manner of public speech. On the unofficial address the benefits and costs; the all- level, outside public speech, these same pervasive topic about the EU in political messages are conveyed in a manner of ritual speeches, presidential addresses, and TV yammering (very reminiscent of ‘litanies round tables is invariably the hypothetical and lamentations’ that were described by danger of imminent ‘loss of Slovenian Ries, 1997: 83-125, in Russia during the identity’ in the EU. 1980s) that serves both as a suitable entrée into any conversation, and as substance of This obsession with ‘Slovenianess’ and many heated debates on Slovenianess. A ‘identity’ is perhaps the key diagnostic most striking feature of these verbalizations element of an ‘identity community’ in is that virtually every person has a set of Močnik’s sense, and presently the most elaborate diagnoses about life in Slovenia prominent mentality dispositive through (politics is corrupt, as it always was, before which all other themes are domesticated in it was the communists, now it is the liberals; Slovenia. But Močnik’s reorganizing yes, it is horrible and oppressive to live here, thought on contemporary community- it is suffocating; yes, Slovenians are petty forming can also be interpreted as saying and mediocre, every accomplishment, talent, that especially in the vast, multidisciplinary idea is suppressed; yes, Slovenians are field of studies of postsocialism and horrible racists and xenophobes; yes, it is “transitology,” the prevailing theoretical them Gypsies and foreigners and thinking on nation-building may have been that are destroying it for us); a palette of caught in a very misleading conceptual and romanticist beliefs (but we are so few; many terminological traditionalism. What was wanted to exterminate us, but we are universally seen as a process of ‘retrograde’ persistent; Slovenians should be more proud falling back to a 19th century type of of their nation and country; Slovenian nationalism in postsocialism Europe may in women should give birth to more children), fact have been a novel process of but invariably only one conclusion: nothing community forming based on radically can be done. homogenizing ideologies. As Močnik suggests in the above statement, It is probably surprising for any outside ‘nationalism’ as the designation of observer just how frequent and verging on postsocialism processes is a clear misnomer, obsessive are debates on these themes in any social setting in Slovenia. The discourse is saturated with an air of urgency and tragedy; 5 Janez Drobnič, quoted in Media Watch online this is probably why the notion of political by the Peace institute, Ljubljana, at: correctness is nonexistent and deemed, at http://66.102.9.104/search?q=cache:7aGO8aImf best, a hypocritical maneuver to obscure the 2AJ:mediawatch.mirovni- institut.si/bilten/seznam/19/mjezik/+civilizacijsk truth: a right-wing party MP’s statement that o&hl=sl. Slovenian Romas are ‘a population that has 6 Daily Delo, 19 Feb 2004, p. 16. as both civil and ‘ethnic’ state-building even in striking opposition to the notions of nationalisms of Europe’s past were ‘socialist regime,’ communist dictatorship, inclusive, ecumenical (and in some cases, all and economic backwardness that inform the way down to imperial) in nature, seeking both the official capitalist-liberal ideology to translate the impassable, ethnic difference and commonsensical public notions on into a soft, transient, cultural difference (cf. ‘socialism’ worldwide. This feature is, Šumi 2003). The ‘old’ nationalisms thus simply put, humor; or rather, the fact that in sought to unify local , linguistic, large portions of public memory in Slovenia and cultural repertoires by interpreting them nowadays, Yugoslavia seems to have been as signs of essential sameness by means of about a whale of (bitter) fun. invention of national histories, languages, In its 23 December, 2002 issue, the and culture, and/or by civil ideologies of Slovenian weekly Mladina published an egalitarianism. The new, post-1989 article entitled ‘Historic tourism: SFRY for ‘nationalisms’ (that Močnik, for one, does repeating students. A tourist guide of a non- not confine to postsocialism), on the other existing country.’7 The article brought a hand, take a reverse course: rather than a detailed digest of a book by Dejan process of unification and leveling out of Novačević (2002) whose work is reported to differences, it is one of purging out be inspired by an internet project dedicated everything and everyone that is not to the compilation of a ‘Lexicon of YU conforming to what is seen as very stable mythology.’8 Both the website and the book identities crystallizing from deep histories. are written in the sardonic manner of a A postsocialism state such as Slovenia can matter-of-fact sourcebook that organize therefore be said to base its ideologies of ludicrously fashioned ‘information.’ Both commonality on (a single) ‘folkloristic’ are attempting to reveal history as personal identity that is increasingly impervious to, memory, and are dedicated to ‘the and openly hostile towards, recruitment or preservation of cultural heritage of SFRY,’ exchange of personnel, to use the classical as the Mladina article informs the Slovenian Barthian term. As I shall try to show below, audience. Commenting on their work, the this easily observable parochialization is in authors of the webpage, and the book insist Slovenia widely seen as the goal of ‘national on a make-believe perspective and thus see independence’ finally reached, and a natural themselves as ‘writing in Diaspora’ from state of communal existence that both Yugoslavia – a country that, as Novačević includes and subsumes ‘capitalism’ and initially advises his readers, ‘is best visited ‘democracy’ – and the social memory on the in the time period of the 1970’s. recent past. The latter two are not seen as a novelty, but rather as a return to a sobered- The Tourist Guide is systemized into several up communal existence after socialism. headings. In the chapter on Culture, subheading Film, the reader is informed that Memories of socialist Yugoslavia as fun

To briefly illustrate this point, I should now like to turn to (seemingly) more light- 7 Zgodovinski turizem. SFRJ za ponavljalce. hearted aspects of Slovenian community and Turistični vodnik po neobstoječi državi. – The state building, as they are reflected in the term repetent in Slovenian designates a pupil memories of the Socialist Federal Republic who flunks school and has to repeat the year; of Yugoslavia (1945 – 1992). A prominent thus the book that the article reports on is meant feature of this public memory is in striking for those who failed to ‘graduate’ from opposition to the events that usually come to Yugoslavia ‘in the first term’, that is to say, who have not actually experienced it. mind when Yugoslavia is mentioned: the so- 8 called ‘interethnic’ warring, ‘ethnic Leksion YU mitologije. This webpage can still be found at cleansing’ and genocide, the despotic http://www.geocities.com/yu_leksikon/svipojmo regimes of Tudjman and Milošević, etc; it is vi1.htm. the most characteristic genre of the respected, especially their monetary Yugoslav film production is the so-called unit called “marka”. The distinct ‘Partisan movie’ which evolved into expression of respect of the local ‘Partisan film school’ – the term Partisans population for Germans is the motto being a well-domesticated abbreviation for Zimmer frei that is, as a welcoming the WWII Communist resistance movement sign, posted on every house from in Yugoslavia. The film that is most to the Skadrsko lake.’ representative of the school is Battle of the (Hrastar 2002: 57) Neretva river (Bitka na Neretvi) in which This comment on the tourist industry along the director, Veljko Bulajić, ‘transposed the the Adriatic coast in the socialist times has boundaries of film genres as he introduced several specific subheadings in the Guide. into the realism of a war epopee narration Mladina in its report chose an excerpt that the elements of thriller and science fiction.’ describes a specific aspect of German-loving This description seeks to comment on the attitude, and relates to sexual practices in way the Yugoslav socialist filmography Yugoslavia: “Statistically speaking, love in incorporated the perpetuation of WWII SFRY is a most prevalent occupation of the trauma that permeated all official discourses so-called galebi9 (Ger. Bumsenexperten), in Yugoslavia: the Communist anti-Fascist inhabitants of the seaside regions, especially resistance under Tito was an obsessive, and Dalmatia. …” (cited in Hrastar 2002: 58). obsessively compulsory, theme on all levels The galebi are males that seek to upgrade of public discourse through which the the tourist attractions of the Adriatic coast regime sought its legitimation. It was no and are easily spotted as they sport a distinct doubt also an aspect of the Tito cult and an professional attire: a golden chain with a expensive indulgence to the Marshal’s own pendant depicting the wearer’s astrological cinematic interests and aspirations, as the sign; a massive silver bracelet with a plate aforementioned Battle of the Neretva bearing the wearer’s name in italicized featured top international film stars such as inscription; white trousers and a floral- Yul Brynner and Richard Burton, the latter pattern shirt, unbuttoned; a tattoo depicting a portraying Tito himself. In an illustrative stylized anchor, and the acronym ‘JLA’ or, reference to benefit the ‘repeaters,’ the even better, JVM – the former standing for Tourist Guide cites “Saving Private Ryan” Jugoslavenska ljudska armija (Yugoslav as a recent example of Partisan movie genre. People’s Army), and the latter for The WWII trauma perpetuation in Yugoslav Jugoslavenska vojna milicija (Yugoslav public discourses is also reflected in the Military Militia). Two additional Guide’s Population and Demography paraphernalia are required: a very long and chapter. Aside from peasants (seljaci), carefully manicured fingernail of one of the Yugoslavia is populated by , a little fingers; and a gold-plated ring with a people that became extinct in the last decade large black stone, the meteorite. This ring of the past century; members of other, serves as the principal ‘contact facilitator’ smaller nations that ‘are very sensitive’ and with the target vacationing German female are therefore best referred to as population, as the luring verbal formula that ‘nationalities’; but above all, the most is used with it goes: ‘Schau, schau, mein numerous population are the Krauts (Švabe): Schmuck aus Himmel mit ein Meteorit ‘These are very bad indeed, as they tend to kommen.’10 kill off wounded Partisans.’ Under no circumstance are they to be confused with Germans, however: 9 ‘Sea-gulls’. 10 ‘The people of Yugoslavia have a “Look, look, my jewel coming from heaven with meteorit.” Author’s note: the grammar completely different attitude towards errors are from the German and Germans … as they are highly intentional. The Mladina article brings several other people stepped out from the world of highly entertaining translated passages from reason. the Tourist Guide; on the popularity of The notion that ‘Yuga’ was a lot of fun yearly Eurovision Song contests where local essentially says that in socialism, we have TV hosts impressed the public with their all lived in a world that was basically unreal command of foreign languages (‘neezerlans and unrealistic, childish, free of sree pointz’, ‘be’ibah troa pooan’11); on the responsibility; an enchanted world, a care- chief economic production field of free grace period before the present times of Yugoslavia, the so-called newly composed adulthood and seriousness. That the new folk music ‘performed on traditional musical times did away with laughable recitals of instruments (Dallape, Yamaha, Fender- utopian values which are increasingly Stratocaster)’ that replaced by solid, material valuables is, on …concentrate on basic metaphysical the other hand, widely seen as but a questions, especially theodicy (… necessary and logical aspect of the event of “Why, o Mother, do I have to suffer overarching importance: national so?”), but do not ignore individual independence. The nation has, perforce of scientific disciplines, e.g. circumstances, assumed a somewhat latent comparative sociology (“My village existence throughout socialism, but has is more beautiful than !”) or resumed its natural pre-WWII course in psychiatry (“I would so like to make 1992. The new ideologically protected out, but my mother wouldn’t let values such as capitalism, democracy and, as me”). (cited in Hraster 2002: 58) of late, membership in the European Union and NATO, are seen as bringing (back) The readers’ comment page at Mladina’s harsh life, threat of poverty and ruthless web page12 is replete with expressions of a competition, the same old, unfair, and warmest welcome to the article. One of the corrupt power game, albeit with a new readers says that ‘you have to be just the name, and a renewed threat to the ‘national right age to grasp the point. There is so essence’ (EU and NATO) in a historical much truth in all this, my eyes got misty.’ series of similar such threats. In this vein, Another does not admit to nostalgia, but Mladina’s readers expressed the particular ‘…did I have a laugh!’ Yet another reader Slovenian variety of ‘Yugonostalgia’: one of reports having ‘nearly died laughing.’ Still embitterment over five decades lost; another reader is more eloquent: Novačević’s naïve humor and literary Cool!!!! I did so laugh. The best manière are seen as a distinctly non- article in Mladina ever. I don’t feel Slovenian, Balkanian, sentimental if also nostalgic, but, it is a comedy from mocking, irrational way of reminiscing – if, start to finish. We were such a crazy of course, also entertaining. country, I couldn’t stop laughing. Brief flash: the political arena A less humorously disposed reader kept it Slovenian national exclusivism with respect short: to other parts of the socialist federation has a Yuga was one sheer stupidity in particular history of reinvention within post- which for 50 years, 20 million 1990 political discourse. When the united anti-regime coalition (DEMOS) took over the government in 1990, they must have shared this Mladina’s last quoted reader’s 11 ‘Netherlands, three points; Pays Bas, trois standpoint. In order to communicate the points.’ absurdity of the Yugoslav federation, and 12 the imminent Slovenian ‘return to Europe,’ a http://www.mladina.si/tednik/2002251/clanek/sfr specific adverb was invented to describe the j/. pro-European, pro-western social financing research has backed in the last odd evolutional goals of Slovenians that implied decade, not a single one has postsocialism in a strong contrast to everything ex- its title.14 Quite substantial funding, Yugoslavian, outdated, backward, and however, goes to projects that, predictably, socialist: the word, sounding pretty incorporate ‘Slovenian identity’ in their impossible in Slovenian from every titles. This is hardly surprising, as the grammatical point of view, was ‘Slovenian national question’ - commonly ‘civilizational’ (civlizacijski, -a, -o). translated into English as ‘ethnic studies’ - ‘Civilizational’ and its counter-concept, as a problem field in boasts a ‘non-civilizational,’ had an equivalent in the tradition of no less than eight decades. The then political planning of secession: the idea primary, if not the exclusive objects of study of an ‘asymmetric’ federation played on the have always been, and still are on one hand, notion of things Slovenian, national, the ‘autochthonous’ Hungarian and Italian progressive, indeed ‘civilizational,’ which national minorities in Slovenia, and on the also had a gradation: ‘civilizational’, and the other, the Slovenian minority populations in superlative, ‘general(ly) civilizational’ Italy, , and Hungary. More recently, (občecivilizacijski, -a, -o). This newspeak in 1991, the status of the Slovenians in the was used, for instance, by the presidential successor states of former Yugoslavia was candidate in 1990, Dr Jože Pučnik, in his TV also defined as an object of study. campaign, who declared that Occasionally, the Romany issues, and the recently politically acute question of the time in the rest of Yugoslavia […] is ‘Old-Austrian minority’ are also touched moving at a different pace than in upon. Only very recently did the so-called Slovenia. […] We have to follow ‘new minorities’ enter this repertoire, the our own general civilizational syntagm standing for people originating imperatives or face a fate of national from various republics of former extinction.13 Yugoslavia, members and offspring of a The adjective ‘civilizational’ has since labor immigration that began during the become widely used to denote anything 1960’s. These people, while citizens of perceived non-Slovenian and non-cultured, Slovenia, are now perceived as sufficiently its explanatory powers all but exhausted. culturally different, numerous, and This goes to suggest that an accomplished organized as groups to fit the same ‘identity community’ is one whose constitutional provisions on preservation of ‘development’ is seen by its members as cultural diversity. The steadily growing completed (hence its exclusivist, internally transient and permanent immigration from non-pluralist organization), and its space and the Far and Near East, Africa, former time of development, as well as inclusion socialist countries of Europe etc. is and equalization, saturated and set right – a summarily ignored as ephemeral precisely history set straight and resumed rather than because it is felt that there is no ended, to play on a Fukuyaman note. constitutional or legal compartment befitting them. It is clear from this repertoire that in The academic arena the research on the ‘Slovenian national and Postsocialism is hardly a term used in any nationalities’ (= national minorities) issues,’ manner of public discourse; same goes, not only those groups that are firmly surprisingly, also for social sciences in established, historical, indigenous, not to say Slovenia. Among several hundred research projects in social science and the humanities 14 that the national ministry in charge of The lists of financed projects can be found at the ministry's webpage at http://www.mszs.si/slo/znanost/rezultati_javnih_ 13 RTV Slovenia, 5 April 1992, special razpisov.asp; there are links to archive pages for broadcast Elections 1990. several fiscal years back. primordial, qualify as relevant – following but a possibly worthy exercise would be to closely those that are at the same time initially ask, who are the people – or rather, legally recognized by the Slovenian state in who do they need to be – who populate this its founding legal documents. Both social space, and who interiorize, perpetuate, academic and political discourse thus equate and communicate its meanings. the scientific problem field of ethnic studies References cited: with that of legally recognized national minorities in Slovenia. Hrastar, Mateja. 2002. Zgodovinski turizem. SFRJ za ponavljalce. Turistični Aside from the name of the field, vodnik po neobstoječi državi (Historic assimilated were also its outer symptoms: in tourism: SFRY for repeating students. A a manner akin to a caricature, the tourist guide of a non-existing country) in terminology of the Anglophone analytical Mladina, 23, December, no. 51-2, pp. 56 and thesaurus was made synonymous with the 58. extant Slovenian glossary. Thus for instance, ‘ethnic group’ (or even ‘ethnos/ethnie’); Nikolić, Vera. 2003. Močnik: Beograd je bio ‘ethnic boundaries,’ and ‘ethnic identity’ got i ostao jedina metropola na prostoru Balkana to mean ‘national minority,’ ‘(unjust) state [Belgrade was and remains the only border,’ and ‘national consciousness,’ and metropolis on the Balkans]. Interview with are extensively used synonymously. Rastko Močnik, in: Blic news online, Pointing out these conceptual errors is http://www.blicnews.com/no164/2intervju/I received, in the true perspective of a ntervju1.htm. provincial mentality dispositive, not as an honest professional intervention, but an immoral imposition, as it is invariably read as an attack on Slovenianess. To conclude The above three hasty examples of provincial mentality dispositives in Slovenia are but an excerpt of a possible path of analysis still contemplated. As hinted above, no cause-consequence type of history, and no speculation about the pivotal role of formal structures such as socialism or postsocialism can really explain the persistence, much less the contents, of the provincial habitus: those practical level, seemingly invincible, mentality dispositives that can absorb, domesticate, and transubstantiate with so much vitality. It may indeed be what anthropology in its romanticist golden years of colonial flourish termed, with a characteristically commonsensical and characteristically numinous word, as ‘culture.’ The mystery of culture can of course be unveiled with the aid of many conceptual tools, either as transgenerational mechanisms, as a system of beliefs, as function of complex systems, as discourse, habitus, social memory etc.;