Former Yugoslavia Essay Research Paper The

Former Yugoslavia Essay, Research Paper

: The Former Yugoslavia

“…79 this is 72….72A has just exploded…..They just disapeared. They must have hit a mine. I think they’re all dead……” On the 15th of the September 1992 Sgt. James Davis’ armoured personel carrier struck a TMA-3 anti-tank mine, although his comrades had thought them dead, they both survived the ordeal with little or no injury. The next day a Combat Engineer by the name of Sgt. Mike Ralph was killed on the same road while clearing the road for mines by another anti-tank mine, laid by one of the opposing factions to destroy there enemy’s vehicle’s. Sgt. Mike Ralph left behind his wife, and two daughters.

This story has been told countless times in the former Yugoslavia, not only by Cannadians, but by the French, British, Nepalease, and dozens of other countries who committed thmselves to ending the bitter fighting in the former Yugoslavia. The fight for independence by various ethnic and religious factions has gone on in wha tis now known as the former Yugoslavia, since the early 19th century; fighting to gain control of the balkan state has gone on since the late 13th century. For over 700 years there have been large scale conflicts faught in the former Yugoslavia. (Communist state) There is now a large concerted effort to end the centuries of fighting by the International community. The root of the problem in the balkans is the longevity of the issue and centuries of ethinic and religious hatred that have been passed along from genreation, to generation. Is it really possible for the internaional community to quell this hatred. Sober second thoughts suggest that the type of peace imposed on the Balkans by the Dayton Accord continues to fuel these flames of discontent. This political agremant was quickly crafted in the waning days of the Clinton Administrations first mandate and

To understand the weaknesses of the current peace accord it is necessary to examine the past in more detail.

As with manuy complex historical issues the problems that are in question, stem not from recent history, but lie in the seeds of the past. This is the case in the former Yugoslavia. One can date back fighting in the region back to 1371at the battle of Maritsa, and the battle of Kososvo in 1389. Both were critcal battles faught by the rising Ottoman-Turkish empire, which subdued the then serbian state. In 1453 Constantinople (Istanbull), fell the Turks this marked the decisive estblishment of their foot hold in Europe. On two occasions, the new European power laid seige on Veienna. Although they drove that far north there success against the Austrians, and Hungarians was futile, in large part to a large military frontier, populated mainly by Serbs. Those Serbs were largley the same serbs who had fled from the Turks in the past two centuries. The Hungarians, espeacially had a keen liking to the serbs, who they gave refuge too. The hungarians gave them land, freedom of religion, and the power to elect their own officials. All this came at price, the serbian willingness to fight the Turks. The favorable conditions produced by the Hungarians produced a large flux of migration from the serbian population and thousands left their homeland. At the same time most south slavs living under Turkish rule were forced to convert to the faith of Islam, most times under death. This is the point were one can begin to see the beginings of the large split in the baltic state. In the early 19th century the subjugated Serbs statred two uprisings against the waning Ottoman-Turkish power, in 1805, and 1815. By 1850 there was once again a Serbian rule, and in 1878 Serbia recieved International recognition. The south slavs being politically concious, because of foreign rule, became aware of the new Serbian self rule. As a result many Slavs visited the new state. This visitors discovered that they spoke a cousin language, very similar to serbo-croation which was spoken in Serbia. Next they they discovered they were Christian, they themselves being mainly, Roman catholic, and many Islamic. Among all the salvs there was a strong sense of subjugation which was a uniting power.

These similarities were also seen by the two powers at the time (Austria-Hungary, Ottoman-Turkey). At this time the two powers sowed the seeds of distrust in to the southern slavs who the craving for independence that serbia had. This was directed mainly at Serbia whom both empires feared. At the same time the then young and fragile serbian state realized that large populations of serbs and other slavs were living not in the state of Serbia but mainly abroad. They also realized in order to strenghten themselves. In 1844 the Serbs created a foreign polocy document known as the “outline” which was a call to unite al the neighbours of Serbia, into one united country. This plan never materialised formally, but was in the back of the minds of many serbs, and ambitious Southern slavs. By the end of the century Serbia thought they would come to realize they’re dream of total rule of all serbs. Towards the end of the 19th century the large group of southern slavs began to split into three major groups. The Croation , Muslim, and of coarse Serbain groups of people. These three groups all had there own ideas of what a unified country should be. This made the job of unification three times more difficult. The goals of Serbia were courageous, and valiant, but th