The Impact of Dayton and Ohrid Peace Agreements On
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THE IMPACT OF DAYTON AND OHRID PEACE AGREEMENTS ON THE EVERYDAY: HOW DO LOCAL PEOPLE LIVE THE PEACE PROCESS IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA AND THE FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA By Nikolina Talijan Submitted to Central European University Department of International Relations and European Studies In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Relations and European Studies Supervisor: Professor Emel Akçali Word count: 16 572 CEU eTD Collection Budapest, Hungary 2015 Abstract This research will provide the empirical contribution to the ongoing debate on the exportation of liberal norms during the peace-building process. It will do so by using the examples of internationally led peace-building processes in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnia) and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Macedonia). Through the Dayton and Ohrid Peace Agreements, respectively, the two countries have been targeted by the institutionalization of liberal norms that obviously fail to be internalized by the everyday people. Moreover, this thesis explores the limits of liberal norm exportation through the liberal international intervention in peace-building projects in Bosnia and Macedonia. Hence it will differentiate between the exportation of liberal norms by the so-called peace-builders in weak states and the actual internalization of these very norms by the everyday citizens in specific territories. Additionally, the research is primarily based on the interviews conducted with everyday citizens of the two countries and their personal opinions on the impact and role of the Dayton and Ohrid Peace Agreements in peace-building activities. CEU eTD Collection i Acknowledgements I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Professor Emel Akçali for the helpful comments, explanations, and engagement through the learning process of my Master’s Thesis. Furthermore, I would like to thank Ms Zsuzsanna Toth for guiding me through the writing process. Her constant feedback helped me gain confidence in my writing. Also, I take this opportunity to express my gratitude to Ali Diskaya and Milos Popovic for ideas and comments that have greatly improved my work. In addition, I would like to thank my parents for the unceasing encouragement, inspiration, and attention. Finally, I am very grateful to my partner who supported me through this venture. CEU eTD Collection ii Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................... ii Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................................... iii Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: Norm exportation and Humanitarian Governance in Liberal Peace-building Processes ............ 7 1.1 International Community and the Norm ‘Life Cycle’......................................................................... 7 1.2 Democratic Norm Exportation in Liberal Peace-building .................................................................. 9 1.3 Role of Humanitarian Governance in Norm Exportation ................................................................. 11 1.4 International Involvement in Bosnia and Macedonia: Export of Liberal Norms as a ‘Neocolonial’ exercise ................................................................................................................................................... 14 Chapter 2: Ways in which Everyday People Live the Peace Process in Bosnia and Macedonia ............... 19 2.1 Research Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 19 2.2 How do Everyday People Live the Peace Process in Bosnia? .......................................................... 21 2.2.1 Perceptions of Everyday Croats on the Dayton Agreement and its Impact on Life in Bosnia .. 22 2.2.2 Perceptions of Everyday Serbs on the Dayton Agreement and its Impact on Life in Bosnia .... 25 2.2.3 Perceptions of Everyday Bosniaks on the Dayton Agreement and its Impact on Life in Bosnia ................................................................................................................................................. 27 2.3 How do Everyday People Live the Peace Process in Macedonia? ................................................... 30 2.3.1 Perceptions of Everyday Orthodox Macedonians on the Ohrid Agreement and its Impact on Life in Macedonia ............................................................................................................................... 30 2.3.2 Perceptions of Everyday Albanians on the Ohrid Agreement and its Impact on Life in Macedonia ........................................................................................................................................... 33 Chapter 3: Evaluating the Success of Norm Exportation through Peace Agreements ................................ 37 3.1 Peace Agreements and International Involvement as a Response to Inter-State Conflicts ............... 37 3.1.1 Dayton Peace Agreement in Bosnia ........................................................................................... 37 3.1.2 Ohrid Peace Agreement in Macedonia ...................................................................................... 40 3.2 Interpreting the Results on Local Views of the Peace-Living Process ............................................. 43 3.2.1 Local Ownership in Liberal Conflict Settlement Processes in Bosnia and Macedonia ............. 43 3.2.2 Eurocentrism in Conflict Settlement Agreements in Bosnia and Macedonia ............................ 47 CEU eTD Collection 3.2.3 International Community's Paternalism in Conflict Settlement in Bosnia and Macedonia ....... 49 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................. 53 Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................... 56 iii Introduction Peace agreements have become an increasingly important tool in response to inter-state conflicts in the post-cold-war period.1 A peace agreement is generally defined as a contract “intended to end or significantly transform a violent conflict so that it may be addressed more constructively.”2 In theory, a peace agreement aims to create foundations needed for a conflict transformation that will enable a constructive conflict resolution in the long run. It is important to note that the creation and implementation of a peace agreement will settle the conflict, but will not resolve it. Hence, a signed peace agreement is a vital component within the conflict settlement that indeed does bring an end to fighting, but it is only the first step in the process of peace-building. In addition, after ending a conflict, the process of conflict resolution and transformation require careful understanding and addressing the root causes of the conflict itself in order to prevent its reappearance. Peace agreements signed during the last two decades have demonstrated that a signed agreement itself only prevents further physical violence. Unfortunately, providing a peace that continues after the fire is ceased, and which ensures concrete benefits to local people, is a long and challenging process. In the post-cold-war period inter-state ethnic conflicts have been a frequent phenomenon in numerous newly established sovereign countries. Naturally, the management of these conflicts has become significantly important for the stability of the entire international community. The most frequent agent in charge of peacekeeping is the UN3 as an ‘internationally neutral body’. In addition, other multinational and national actors have increased their work with the civil society CEU eTD Collection 1 “Post Cold-War Surge,” United Nationas Peacekeeping, accessed May 5, 2015, http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/operations/surge.shtml 2 Nita Yawanarajah and Julian Ouellet, “Peace Agreements,” Beyond Intractability, September 2003, accessed May 1, 2015, http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/structuring-peace-agree. 3 Jyoti Khanna, Todd Sandler, and Hirofumi Shimizu, “Sharing the Financial Burden for UN and NATO Peacekeeping, 1976-1996,” Journal of Conflict Resolution 42, no. 2 (1998): 176-195. 1 in conflict areas recently.4 The effectiveness of international involvement in conflict resolution remains questionable. However, it is obvious that without strong international pressure some conflicts such as those in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnia) and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Macedonia) would have taken even more civilian lives. Thus, this is not to say that the international involvement was not needed, but that it is difficult to assess whether the peace- building process in Bosnia and Macedonia was a success. Evaluating a peace-building effectiveness is challenging task as it requires taking in consideration relevant factors including the international community, local elites and politicians, and everyday people as the most important actors.