Political Islam and Bosnia and Herzegovina
The role and function of Islam (not only as religion and fate, but also as a civilization and cultural circle) in the context of modern, global political, economic, ideological, and cultural trends and its competitive intersection (particularly in the example of Bosnia and Herzegovina) is almost constantly impregnated by a large dose of negative attitudes and relationships on the side of "western" mankind - the Christian, that is, the Christian civilization and cultural circle.
THE GENERAL AND DIRECT ELECTIONS FOR PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC SHOULD BE ABANDONED
In the beginning of April this year, a president of the Republic of Macedonia was being elected. The thesis that I advocate in this text is that instead of general and direct elections for a president of the Republic, which antagonize the society, especially the ethnic groups, Macedonia needs a greater social cohesion. This may possibly be achieved more successfully if the president is elected by the Parliament...
A Historical Background to the Macedonian-Albanian Inter-Ethnic Conflict
Where do conflicts originate? The aim of this paper is to look at the origins of the current Macedonian-Albanian inter-ethnic conflict from a historical perspective. For this purpose, it assesses the influences of certain historical developments to the development of a strained relationship defined by fear, suspicion, and possibly hatred. In view of these, it will pose the question: was it all expected?
Peace piecemeal1
The news from Bosnia makes sustainable peace seem impossibly remote, more remote than it actually is. The images are, indeed, bleak. In summer 2000 we saw pictures of busloads of Muslim Bosniac women seeking justice for the massacre of their husbands and sons that took place at Srebenica five years ago and we saw the hostile reception they received from the current Serb residents of Srebenica when the women returned for their ceremony of remembrance.
Between ‘the Balkans’ and ‘Europe’: A study of the contemporary transformation of Macedonian identity, 1991-2002
The above statement, which comes from the pen of a Bosniak intellectual, provides a vivid illustration of some of the themes examined in this paper. First, it identifies the existence of a Balkan image saturated with negatively charged characteristics. Second, it places such an image within the context of a set of dichotomies: the Balkan lack of civilisation and reason, the prevalence of stupidity and war, versus the opposite—wisdom, reason, negotiation, dignity and peace. Third, it shows a main Macedonian political strategy of trying to distance the nation from the presented negative ‘Balkan’ features. And fourth, it demonstrates the fluidity of these identified categories: Whereas Bosnia was before firmly entrenched in the Balkans, now it finds itself in a position to speak on the previously ‘elevated’ but now ‘fallen from grace’ Macedonia.