Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 6-2001 The Politicization of Ethnicity as a Prelude to Ethnopolitical Conflict: Croatia and Serbia in Former Yugoslavia Agneza Bozic-Roberson Western Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the International Relations Commons, Political Theory Commons, and the Race and Ethnicity Commons Recommended Citation Bozic-Roberson, Agneza, "The Politicization of Ethnicity as a Prelude to Ethnopolitical Conflict: Croatia and Serbia in Former Yugoslavia" (2001). Dissertations. 1354. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/1354 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE POLITICIZATION OF ETHNICITY AS A PRELUDE TO ETHNOPOLITICAL CONFLICT: CROATIA AND SERBIA IN FORMER YUGOSLAVIA by Agneza Bozic-Roberson A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Political Science Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan June 2001 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE POLITICIZATION OF ETHNICITY AS A PRELUDE TO ETHNOPOLITICAL CONFLICT: CROATIA AND SERBIA IN FORMER YUGOSLAVIA Agneza Bozic-Roberson, Ph.D. Western Michigan University, 2001 This interdisciplinary research develops a framework or a model for the study of the politicization of ethnicity, a process that transforms peaceful ethnic conflict into violent inter-ethnic conflict. The hypothesis investigated in this study is that the ethnopolitical conflict that led to the break up of former Yugoslavia was the result of deliberate politicization of ethnicity. The model consists of three variables—ethnic entrepreneurs as actors, and mass media and political rhetoric as their tools for politicization of ethnicity. Ethnic entrepreneurs, with a conscious interest in mobilizing ethnicity, are given this opportunity in transitional societies in which politicized ethnicity has become the crucial principle of political legitimation. Specifically, this study seeks to explain how political leaders may turn into ethnic entrepreneurs and then draw upon existing non-violent ethnic tensions and conflict (a phenomenon existing in every multiethnic society) to generate ethnopolitical conflict. The propositions of the model will be tested through a case study of Yugoslavia, specifically, a comparative study of the Yugoslav subunits Croatia and Serbia. This research argues that it is necessary to conduct independent analyses of ethnic and political aspects of violent inter-ethnic conflicts. Only in recognizing the contexts in which ethnicity can be politicized and the mechanisms by which ethnicity Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. is politicized, can we recognize the true nature o f the violent inter-ethnic conflict and then develop strategies for the prevention o f such conflicts. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. 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ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 3017306 Copyright 2001 by Bozic-Roberson, Agneza All rights reserved. UMI___ ® UMI Microform 3017306 Copyright 2001 by Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Agneza Bozic-Roberson 2001 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. For my husband, Jonathan K. Roberson, and my parents, Jela and Vlado Bozic Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Working and completing my dissertation would be impossible had it not been for many individuals who assisted me greatly through this laborious process of research and writing. Working with my dissertation advisor professor, Dr. Alan Isaak, was one of the most fulfilling experiences a graduate student can hope for. I feel deeply honored for his devotion of time, knowledge, wisdom, and seeing me through all the exhilarating and difficult times that come with the dissertation process. To the other members of my dissertation committee, Dr. Barbara McCrea, Dr. James Jaksa, and Dr. Lawrence Ziring, I am exceptionally grateful and honored. Without their guidance, knowledge, and encouragement, this dissertation would probably have never been completed. To the Western Michigan University and to the Department of Political Science, I owe deep gratitude for offering me the opportunity to pursue graduate studies. I am especially grateful to Office of International Affairs for sponsoring my trips to Ljubljana, Slovenia and New York in 1996 where I received the opportunity to present the first outlines of my framework for the study of politicization of ethnicity and ethnopolitical conflict and hence my dissertation. Dr. Robert Stauffer of Kalamazoo College was extremely helpful in transforming my thoughts into a legible paper—to him I am very grateful. I also owe a great deal to Dr. Pavle Novosel, my professor o f Communication at the University of Zagreb, and Dr. Jim Gilchrist of ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Acknowledgments—Continued Western Michigan University for developing and keeping my interest in political communication. I am also grateful to Dr. Mitja Zagar, Director of the Institute for Ethnic Studies, Ljubljana, Slovenia, for finding my research o f value and for including me in all three international conferences the Institute sponsored. These conferences offered great scholarly stimulation and guidance. I owe an immeasurable debt to Mitja and other scholars and friends in Europe who assisted me by sharing their contacts and research resources with me. To Laudiana Pavlic, senior librarian at the Pula Public Library and Damjana Francic, senior librarian at the University of Rijeka Science Library, I stand in deepest gratitude. They often found the sources I could not find anywhere else. To Loredana Maravic and Tina Cehic I offer thanks for looking for books in many bookstores of Zagreb and Pula. To my mother, Jela Bozic, special thanks for bearing the costs of shipping too many heavy books to the United States. To Natka Buturovic and Mario Lepan I owe special thanks for sharing their precious libraries with me. I also am in great debt to many friends who offered moral support and encouragement throughout my graduate studies, George McCrea, especially. To Dr. Patricia Klein, Dr. Marion Wijnberg, Sarah Renstrom-Jaksa, Sarah McCrea Reidy, Diane Kusek, Trudy Stauffer, Erin Fleck, Shannon Sensibar, and other special women who always had the right advice when I needed it. Two most special colleagues, Dr. Ke Chen and soon-to-be Dr. Karl Hokenmaier deserve special mentioning, for they were always there when I needed their friendship and scholarly advice. iii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Acknowledgments—Continued My greatest debts are to my family. To my husband, Jonathan Roberson, whose support never faded during this long period of research and writing, there is no adequate thanks, and to my parents and brothers, whose encouragement meant a lot. The errors which remain in this work are my responsibility. Agneza Bozic-Roberson iv Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further