Srebrenica in the Aftermath of Genocide

442 Pages·2013·6.61 MB·English

by  Lara J. Nettelfield

SREBRENICA IN THE AFTERMATH OF GENOCIDE
The fall of the United Nations “safe area” of Srebrenica in July 1995 to
BosnianSerbandSerbianforcesstandsoutastheinternationalcommunity’s
mostegregiousfailuretointerveneduringtheBosnianwar.Itledtogenocide,
forced displacement, and a legacy of loss. But wartime inaction spurred
numerouspostwarattemptstoaddresstheeffectsoftheatrocitiesonBosnian
society and its diaspora. Srebrenica in the Aftermath of Genocide reveals
how interactions among local, national, and international interventions –
fromrefugeereturnandresettlementtocommemorations,warcrimestrials,
immigrationproceedings,andelectionreform–haveledtopositive,ifsubtle,
effects of social repair, even in the face of persistent attempts at denial of
thegenocide.Usinganinterdisciplinaryapproach,diverseresearchmethods,
andmorethanadecadeoffieldworkinfivecountries,LaraJ.Nettelfieldand
SarahE.Wagnertracethecrimes’reverberationsinBosniaandabroad.The
findingsofthisstudyhaveimplicationsforresearchonpost-conflictsocieties
aroundtheworld.
LaraJ.NettelfieldisaLecturerinInternationalRelationsatRoyalHolloway,
University of London, and author of Courting Democracy in Bosnia and
Herzegovina: The Hague Tribunal’s Impact in a Postwar State (Cambridge
University Press, 2010), winner of the 2011 Marshall Shulman Book Prize
oftheAssociationforSlavic,EastEuropean,andEurasianStudies.Priorto
joining Royal Holloway, she taught at the University of Exeter, Columbia
University,andtheInstitutBarcelonad’EstudisInternacionals.Shereceived
Ph.D.,M.Phil.,andM.A.degreesinpoliticalsciencefromColumbiaUniver-
sity;acertificatefromColumbia’sHarrimanInstitute;andanA.B.fromthe
UniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley.
SarahE.WagnerisanAssistantProfessorofAnthropologyatGeorgeWash-
ingtonUniversityandauthorofToKnowWhereHeLies:DNATechnology
andtheSearchforSrebrenica’sMissing(2008).Shepreviouslytaughtatthe
University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Harvard University. She
received a Ph.D. in anthropology from Harvard University, an M.A.L.D.
fromtheFletcherSchoolatTuftsUniversity,andanA.B.fromDartmouth
College.
ForSabraandMinkaMustafic´ andallofSrebrenica’sreturnees
Srebrenica in the
Aftermath of Genocide
Lara J. Nettelfield
Royal Holloway, University of London
Sarah E. Wagner
George Washington University
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(cid:2)C LaraJ.NettelfieldandSarahE.Wagner2014
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Firstpublished2014
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
AcatalogrecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationData
Nettelfield,LaraJ.andWagner,SarahE.
Srebrenicaintheaftermathofgenocide/LaraJ.Nettelfield,RoyalHolloway,Universityof
London[and]SarahE.Wagner,GeorgeWashingtonUniversity.
pagescm
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN978-1-107-00046-9(hardback)
1.YugoslavWar,1991–1995–Atrocities–BosniaandHerzegovina–Srebrenica.
2.Genocide–BosniaandHerzegovina–Srebrenica. 3.Genocidesurvivors–Bosniaand
Herzegovina–Srebrenica. 4.Postwarreconstruction–Socialaspects–Bosniaand
Herzegovina–Srebrenica. 5.Humanitarianassistance–BosniaandHerzegovina–
Srebrenica. 6.InternationalTribunalfortheProsecutionofPersonsResponsiblefor
SeriousViolationsofInternationalHumanitarianLawCommittedintheTerritoryofthe
formerYugoslaviasince1991 7.Democratization–BosniaandHerzegovina.
DR1313.7.A85N47 2014
949.703–dc23 2013009543
ISBN978-1-107-00046-9Hardback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracyofURLs
forexternalorthird-partyInternetWebsitesreferredtointhispublicationanddoesnot
guaranteethatanycontentonsuchWebsitesis,orwillremain,accurateorappropriate.
Contents
ListofMaps pagevii
ListofFigures ix
ListofTables xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Abbreviations xvii
Preface:ToIntervene xxi
1 Introduction: Intervention and Its Meanings 1
PartI. MemoryandMovement 31
2 Memorializing Srebrenica 35
3 The Politics and Practice of Homecoming:
Refugee Return 73
4 Special Status for a Special Crime 109
PartII. RedressbeyondBosnia 145
5 Srebrenica Abroad: Diaspora Connections,
Activism, and Controversies 149
6 Immigration Violations in the United States:
A Different Kind of Accounting 183
v
vi CONTENTS
PartIII. TheProductionandSubversionofKnowledge 213
7 Srebrenica in Court 217
8 Pushing Back: Denial 251
9 Conclusion 285
AppendixA:EconomicIndicatorsfortheSrebrenica
MunicipalityandRepublikaSrpska 301
AppendixB:2008and2012MunicipalElectionResults 303
Notes 307
Bibliography 381
Index 401
Maps
1.1 MapofBosniaandHerzegovina page9
1.2 MapoftheDrinaValley 11
1.3 MapofSrebrenica’sexecutionsitesandprimaryand
secondarymassgraves 13
vii