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Post-Communism

There was a rise in extreme nationalism after the collapse of communism in the 1990’s. When communism fell, it left many people with no identity. The people under communist rule had to integrate, and found themselves free to choose. Given free choice, long dormant conflicts rose up and created sources of serious conflict. When communism fell in Yugoslavia, serious conflict arose, which led to the rise in extreme nationalism. 

According to Benjamin Barber’s article Jihad vs. McWorld, large numbers of people will be searching for unity because of the fall of communism. Small scale wars will become common; groups will attempt to redraw boundaries, identities, cultures and ideologies.  When communism fell this allowed for an “us vs. them” mentality to sprout up. Governments became vehicles for social interests A country will attempt to form national policies based on the majority, for example culture, religion or ethnicity. Some newly sprouted democracies have large differences in policies on matters that ranged from immigration and human rights to trade and commerce.

At the root of nationalist conflicts is the demand for autonomy and a separate existence. Nationalism gives rise to powerful emotions which evoke in some extreme cases, a willingness to die for what you believe in, a fight for the survival of the group. After the fall of communism, political boundaries did not match ethnic boundaries. Serious conflicts often arose and escalated very easily.  Individuals and groups acted in ways that were brutal, creating death and destruction in their wake. When this would happen, those states who were unable to contain the conflict ran the risk of slowing their democratization progress.

Yugoslavia was established after WWI and was a merger of three separate ethnic groups; Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.  The national census numbers for a ten-year span 1971-1981 measured an increase from 1.3 to 5.4% in their population that ethnically identified as Yugoslav. This meant that the country, almost as a whole, was divided by distinctive religious, ethnic or national loyalties after nearly 50 years.  

Within Yugoslavia, separating Croatia and Slovenia from the rest of Yugoslavia is an invisible line of previous conquers of the region. Croatia and Slovenia to the northwest were conquered by Catholics or Protestants, and benefited from European history; the Renaissance, French Revolution, Industrial Revolution and are more inclined towards democracy. The remaining Yugoslavian territory was conquered by the Ottoman or Tsarists empires; are Orthodox or Muslims, are less economically advanced and are less inclined toward democracy.

In the 1970’s the leadership of the separate territories within Yugoslavia protected only territorial interests at the expense of other territories. In Croatia, there was almost a split within the territory between Serbs and Croats so any political decision would kindle unrest, and tensions could cross the territories adjacent; Bosnia and Herzegovina. Within Bosnia there was no group who had a majority; Muslim, Serb, Croat, and Yugoslav were all there so the leadership could not advance here either.  Political organizations were not able to deal successfully with such diverse nationalism. Within the territories the leadership could not compromise. To do so would create a winner in one ethnic group and a looser in another, raising the possibility of a serious conflict.  This strengthened the political stance promoting ethnic identities. This caused intense and divided political leadership within Yugoslavia.

In the 1980’s Yugoslavia began to break into fragments. The economic conditions within Yugoslavia were deteriorating. Conflict in the disputed territories was stimulated by the rise in mass nationalism and inter-ethnic hostilities.  The per-capita income of people in the northwest territory, encompassing Croatia and Slovenia, in contrast to the southern territory southern were several times higher. This combined with escalating violence from ethnic Albanians and Serbs within Kosovo intensified economic conditions. This violence greatly contributed to the rise of extreme nationalism of Serbs in Serbia and within Yugoslavia. The ongoing conflict in Kosovo was propagandized by Communist Serbian Slobodan Milosevic to further increase Serb nationalism. As mentioned, this nationalism did give rise to powerful emotions which grew the force of Serbian nationalism through highly nationalist demonstrations in Vojvodina, Serbia, Montenegro, and Kosovo. Serbian nationalism was so high, Slobodan Milosevic was able to oust leaders in Vojvodina and Montenegro, further repressed Albanians within Kosovo and eventually controlled four of the eight regions/territories. Slovenia, one of the four regions not under Communist control, favoring a democratic state.

Within Slovenia, fear was mounting because Milosevic was using the militia to suppress a in Kosovo, what would he do to Slovenia.. Half of Yugoslavia wanted to be democratic, the other wanted a new nationalist authoritarian regime. In fall of 1989 tensions came to a head and Slovenia asserted its political and economic independence from Yugoslavia and seceded. In January 1990, there was a total break with Serbia at the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, an institution conceived by Milosevic to strengthen unity and became the backdrop for the fall of communism within Yugoslavia.   

In August 1990, a warning to the region was issued when ethnically divided groups attempted to alter the government structure. The republic borders established by the Communist regime in the postwar period were extremely vulnerable to challenges from ethnic communities.Ethnic communities arose because they did not share the identity with everyone within the new post-Communist borders. This threatened the new governments. The same disputes were erupting that were in place prior to Milosevic and were compounded by actions from his regime.

Also within the territory the Croats and the Serbs were in direct competition for control of government. Elections were held and increased potential conflicts between Serb and Croat nationalism. Serbia wanted to be separate and decide its own future based on its own ethnic composition. But this would then give Kosovo encouragement to become independent from Serbia. Albanians in Kosovo were already independent from Kosovo. Serbia didn’t want to let Kosovo become independent. Muslims nationalists wanted their own territory but it would require a redrawing of the map, and would threaten neighboring territories. When communism fell in Yugoslavia, serious conflict arose, which led to the rise in extreme nationalism.

Nationalism again gave rise to powerful emotions which evoked in some extreme cases, a willingness to die for what you believe in, a fight for the survival of the group. The end of communism began a long period of conflict and war for the region. In the six years following the collapse 200,000-500-000 people died in the Bosnian war. Bosnian Muslims suffered at the hands of the Serbs and Croats. The war garnered assistance from groups; Muslim, Orthodox and Western Christian as well as state actors who supplied all sides; Saudi Arabia and Iran supported Bosnia, Russia supported Serbia, Central European and Western countries including the U.S. supported Croatia, and the Pope supported Slovenia and Croatia.