Last week, the President of Bosnia, Dr. Haris Silajdžić, came to speak at a local event here in Washington, DC. Apparently disappointed with the lack of world attention to the International Criminal Court's recent ruling on the Bosnian genocide, he eloquently pleaded with the crowded conference room that all attending academics, politicians, and businessmen be attentive to the internal affairs of this small Balkan nation. Bosnia & Herzegovina, he said, remains a perilously divided nation, a result of the Dayton agreement, which split the warring factions into two entities - a joint Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (a mostly Bosniak and Croat entity), and the mostly Serbian Republica Srpska. The result of this constitutional situation was a divided nation in every aspect - a divided government, a divided economy, a divided educational system, a divided society. Such current divisions not only severely restrain any necessary reforms in the country, but, when combined with an apparent international disinterest toward Bosnia and Herzegovina, are ripe ingredients for a future conflict between Bosnians, Serbs and Croats, as divisions emphasize differences rather than commonalities.
Within these internal differences lie the seed of a conflict with international aspirations. As the ICC found Serbia guilty of not preventing genocide in the ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims - rather than finding Serbia guilty of genocide - President Silajdžić argued that the ruling had served to disparage the suffering of Bosnian Muslims a decade ago. Understanding that Iraq is inevitably occupying the current spotlight of international affairs, President Silajdžić nevertheless rhetorically asked "Should there be more important nations than others? Should there be more important people than others?" Failing to acknowledge the genocide of Bosnian Muslims, who already live in a divided society, may fuel frustration and resentment, leading to a fertile soil for Islamic extremism in the Balkan nation, retorted Silajdžić
Thus, while the world looks east to the explosive insurgency in Iraq, conflict may be quietly brewing closer to home. Should a conflict erupt in the Balkans, or a terrorist attack emanating from frustrated Bosnian Muslims astonish us all, President Silajdžić forewarning may well come to be seen in the future as ephemeral words that quickly dissipated in a world overly preoccupied with Iraq.
Within these internal differences lie the seed of a conflict with international aspirations. As the ICC found Serbia guilty of not preventing genocide in the ethnic cleansing of Bosnian Muslims - rather than finding Serbia guilty of genocide - President Silajdžić argued that the ruling had served to disparage the suffering of Bosnian Muslims a decade ago. Understanding that Iraq is inevitably occupying the current spotlight of international affairs, President Silajdžić nevertheless rhetorically asked "Should there be more important nations than others? Should there be more important people than others?" Failing to acknowledge the genocide of Bosnian Muslims, who already live in a divided society, may fuel frustration and resentment, leading to a fertile soil for Islamic extremism in the Balkan nation, retorted Silajdžić
Thus, while the world looks east to the explosive insurgency in Iraq, conflict may be quietly brewing closer to home. Should a conflict erupt in the Balkans, or a terrorist attack emanating from frustrated Bosnian Muslims astonish us all, President Silajdžić forewarning may well come to be seen in the future as ephemeral words that quickly dissipated in a world overly preoccupied with Iraq.
