Občan, spoločnosť, národ v pohybe slovenských dejín

Author(s): Milan Zemko / Language(s): Slovak

The author of the book pays attention to four major problem areas in the modern history of the Slovak nation, the society and the country. The research is focused on the Slovak history in the first half of the 20th century and, particularly, the period of the Czechoslovak Republic between the two World Wars. In chapters of Part 1 entitled Slovak Society within Changes of Historical Time the author tried to classify relatively short period of interwar Slovak history in wider historical interrelations. In the first chapter he examines the problem of periodization of the Slovak history within the context of history of the other Central European nations, and points at the open methodological questions of the Slovak history research ensuing from insufficient investigation of the changing collective identity of the Slovaks. The next two chapters of Part 1 are devoted to historical heritage of the Slovaks and its peripetia related to generation of Ľudovít Štúr, as the first politically oriented and functioning generation in the modern history of the Slovaks, and following generations up to the origin of Czechoslovakia in 1918. The topic of the following chapter is the examination of historical traditions and stereotypes of the last two centuries which support, eventually weaken the renewed democratic political system in Slovakia after the fall of the Communist regime in 1989 and the origin of the independent Slovak Republic in 1993. Next two chapters research a historical memory of the Slovak society relating to the autoritarian Slovak Republic between 1939 and 1945 and to the Slovak National Uprising of 1944, being the symbol of anti-fascist struggle and democratic future of Slovakia. The last chapter of Part 1 deals with the simplifying contradiction between the civil and national principle in the history and the present time, as manifested in expert discourse as well as in journalism upon renewal of the democratic regime after 1989. In Part 2 entitled Politics and Its Faces on Interwar Party Arena the author is concentrated on domestic policy in interwar Czechoslovak Republic. The first chapter deals with violation of some democratic rules in the first decade of existence of the new Czechoslovak State. The further two chapters are concerned with the question of relations between the Agrarian Party, as the largest government party and Hlinka’s Slovak People’s Party in the time of functioning in the joint government coalition in the second half of twenties of the former century and the conflict relations between two head personalities of the Slovak agrarians Milan Hodža and Vavro Šrobár. The subject of the author’s study is also the trend of authorities to keep the cult of the first president of the Republic T. G. Masaryk already during his lifetime in dimensions unusual for the European democratic countries. The last but one chapter of this part of the book examines the fragility and weakness of the Slovak democracy which had fully manifested itself in autumn months of 1938 after adoption of Munich Agreement by the Czechoslovak government. The People’s Party had managed then, also due to inability of the weakened democratic parties to remove in a short time the parliamentary democracy and to set down an authoritative rightist regime in Slovakia. The loyal service of the Slovak intellectual Vladimír Clementis to the Communist movement and regime, for which he was “rewarded” by death penalty and execution in 1952, is depicted in the last chapter of this part of the book. Part 3 of the book entitled Political Echoes of Ethnic Colourfulness of the Republic in Interwar Period is devoted in its five chapters to one of the most remarkable features of interwar Czechoslovakia and its consequences – to question of more or less conflict coexistence of nations and ethnic groups living in this Republic. The examination of regional aspects of the ethnic problem in the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava, is treated in the first two chapters of this part of the book. The next two chapters are concerned with policies of the national minority parties in the Czechoslovak Republic and participation of the German minority parties in the government coalitions of the interwar period. Based on the research the author comes to the conclusion that the proportional electoral system of interwar Czechoslovak Republic enabled in principle equitable representation of national minorities in the Parliament, and some German minority parties took an active part in the government policy since mid-20’s up to spring 1938, when the political game was energetically encroached by a strong external factor – Nazi Germany. The last chapter is devoted to interwar sources and inspirations for, in final consequences, unsuccessful attempt of radical “solution” of Hungarian question in Czechoslovakia after World War II. The final part of the book entitled Slovakia in the Modern Central European History includes the chapters with a various themes concerning the position of Czechoslovakia and, in its context, of Slovakia in the Central European area: a sharp critique of Czechoslovak-Soviet Treaty of 1935 from the point of view of radical rightist and nationalist newspaper Nástup, differences in views on postwar future of Central Europe by two prominent exile politicians – the former president Edvard Beneš and the former prime minister Milan Hodža during World War II, complex interwar and war geopolitical challenges for Czechoslovakia faced with by E. Beneš, as well as the CzechoslovakHungarian and Slovak-Hungarian disputes about the southern border of Slovakia since the Trianon Peace Treaty of 1920 up to the Paris Peace Treaty in 1947. The influence of the modern Central Europe history on international position of the Slovak Republic after attaining of its independence in 1993 is outlined in the final chapter of this part of the book. To the book is added, as a historical document, a politological reflection of the spring 1968 entitled Socialism and National Democracy drafted as a contribution to a discussion on the future of the Slovak society in the period of the so-called Prague Spring, that is, before occupation of Czechoslovakia by the Warsaw Pact armies.

Rok 1968. Eto vaše delo

Author(s): / Language(s): Slovak

The book Rok 1968 Eto vaše delo is based on lecture cycle, organised by the Slovak Institute in Prague in cooperation with the Institute of History of the Slovak Academy of Sciences and Institute for Contemporary History of the ASCR. The aim of this lecture cycle was to remember about the 40th anniversary of the reform process in Czechoslovakia in 1968. The lectures presented by Slovak historians, were extended and collected as papers, that are part of this book. The aim of the particular papers is to analyse the main aspects of the reforms, further their ideological roots, as well as their political, social and economic casualties. The authors intended to reflect the immanent development of the autonomous reform process in Czechoslovakia, taking into account both political, constitutional, national-political, socioeconomic, cultural and confessional issues. The opening paper written by Professor Ivan Laluha is an authentic testimony about the gradual maturation process, that was proceeding the reforms in the field of economic theory, which is the main field of interest of the author. The author’s goal was to outline the efforts undertaken in order to achieve a further development of reforms in the constitutional and national-political sphere. Jozef Žatkuliak is analysing the genesis of the ideas proposing a new, federal constitution for Czechoslovakia. The key focus of Slavomír Michálek’s study is based on the American political context of the Czechoslovak attempt for reform of Socialism. There is no doubt, that, during that time, the United States of America and the Soviet Union were trying to reach an agreement and that both sides were conducing a bipolar détente politics. On the one hand, in Washington there was a kind of sympathy for the reform process taking place in Czechoslovakia, but on the other hand, it was perceived as an internal problem of the Soviet Bloc. Two following studies writen by Stanislav Sikora are dealing with the ideological background of the Prague or Bratislava Spring, involving a critical analysis of the term „Socialism with human face”. In his study, Miroslav Londák is explaining the main principles of the economic reform in Czechoslovakia in the 1960s by going to the roots and anatomising the process of industrialisation of Slovakia since 1948. Furthermore, Londák is paying close attention to the efforts of Slovak economists undertaken in order to replant the special economic needs of Slovakia; these efforts were closely connected with the preparations for a federalization of the Czechoslovak state. The study of Jan Pešek is dealing with the process of a limited regeneration, under conditions of the Communist regime, of Churches. Elena Londáková is broaching the issue of reform movement in culture. She emphasised, that it were above all the exponents of cultural life, who acted as the pioneers of the reform movement and, in the same time, as the main critics of the whole social and political system.

Slovensko a svet v 20. storočí. Kapitoly k 70. narodeninám Valeriána Bystrického

Author(s): / Language(s): Slovak

The chapters of the 20th century history creating this book deal with the important moments from the history of modern Slovakia in the changing world. The authors – friends and disciples of PhDr. Valarián Bystrický, DrSc. – are presenting here the newest results of their research and its critical evaluation. What they all have in common with Valerián Bystrický is the conviction that the 20th century Slovakia kept the same developing rhythm as the rest of the world. They agree with his opinion that the Slovak history of this period has to be studied and interpreted from a global perspective. The detailed knowledge of internal changes in Slovakia following its separation from Hungary, of amalgamating the Czechs and Slovaks in the common Czechoslovak state with all its internal and international problems and with its Central European political, economical and cultural context, enables to understand also the contemporary shape of the Slovak Republic – a sovereign state and a member of the European Union. The 20th century world had been changing as well as the Slovak historiography that reflected those changes. And as it is shown in the first chapter of this book, the scientific achievements of Valerián Bystrický are important and integral part of it. They deal with international affairs between the two world wars, with the interwar problems of the Balkans and in the same time with the history of Slovakia. In not so distant period the regime pressure on a creative individuality was hardly bearable. Not every scientist was able to resist it in the same way even on the ground of one academic institution. But Valerián Bystrický succeeded to preserve the clean shield in clash with this period as an author of historical writings and after 1989 as a manager of science. In 1998 – 2006, being a director of the Institute of History of the SAS, he had helped to create the healthy conditions for a free scientific research, where no methods of one historical school would prevail over the others. He should be respected for that. This book intentionally begins with the chapter on demographic development of Bratislava. In the end of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th centuries, protagonists of the Slovak national movement often regretted that Slovakia did not had a significantly Slovak, city-like national and administrative center. In 1919 it was Vavro Šrobár, the minister for Slovakia, who insisted on the Slovak character of Bratislava. Milan Zemko begins his chapter with the statement that the development of every capital of each state, the progressing of its social and national structure, indicates a lot about the development of the whole country. In the 20th century, Bratislava was officially the capital of an independent state only in 1939 – 1945 and then again from 1993. But already in 1919 it started the career of an informal political administrative, economical and step-by-step also cultural centre of Slovakia – a country with 3 million inhabitants that was part of a newborn Czechoslovak state. This new situation strengthened by internal and external political factors, had caused great changes in “the city upon Danube”, including the changes of its ethnical structure. And Milan Zemko concentrates mainly – using the statistics from the first half of the 20th century – on the transformation of the Bratislava multiethnic character and its gradual “Slovakization”. The following three chapters deal with the history of the Czechoslovak and Slovak political parties in interwar period. Natália Krajčovičová examines the history of the Slovak agrarian political movement – the formation of the Agrarian Party in Slovakia, its unification with the Czechoslovak agrarians and the following development of the party, which significantly influenced the Slovak and the Czechoslovak political scene until the turbulent year 1938. Jaroslava Roguľová focuses on the autonomist program of the Slovak National Party and its significant theoretical ideas and deals also with the standpoints of this party towards reforms of the political administration. The result of her analysis is the characteristic of the four periods of the Slovak National Party autonomist program from 1918 to 1938. In the chapter written by Alena Bartlová the Czechoslovak agrarianism crosses the borders of the republic. In the focus of it is the participation of Dr. Milan Hodža on the international cooperation of agrarian political parties in the Eastern-Central Europe in the 1920s and the first half of the 1930s. The text shows Hodža’s efforts to cooperate with the politicians from Polish and Bulgarian Agrarian Parties and also its limits: the agrarian politicians were not able to consider the broad spectrum of their societies and the crucial specific problems of other classes. After the World War I Europe hoped for everlasting peace, social justice, stability and prosperity. But this optimism of citizens failed. Instead of it there had risen fear of the countries, which were not satisfied by the peace treaties and wanted to revise them. Czechoslovakia tried to face it by building and strengthening its armed forces. Miloslav Čaplovič in his chapter writes about the specific and important theme – organization and activities of the Czechoslovak military intelligence service in 1919 – 1939. In another chapter Bohumila Ferenčuhová focuses on problems of regional and European security from the perspective of diplomacy. She examines the negotiations that had led to the treaty between Romania and France in 1926 and analyzes the role of this treaty in the Versailles peace treaties system. Even in the period of European pacifism, Central and South-Eastern Europe from the Adriatic to the Baltic had to consider interests, positions and the territorial claims of the two for this once returning powers – Germany and the U.S.S.R. Not long ago the objective analysis of the great power policy of Russia and the U.S.S.R. towards Central Europe and the Balkans was a theme that belonged to less frequently researched and almost taboo themes in the Soviet block historiography. Ľubica Harbuľová in her chapter brings a detailed analysis of contemporary results of the Russian historiography dealing with the Czechoslovak history, which are based upon the materials from the former inaccessible archival funds. The Munich of 1938 represents one of the key and dark moments in the Czechoslovak history. The chapter written by Jindřich Dejmek follows less known aspect of this problem. He analyses the permanent and persistent diplomatic activities of Dr. Edvard Beneš that led in 1942 to the declaration of the Munich Agreement for not valid. His success helped to restore the postwar Czechoslovakia in the borders from 1938 (without Sub-Carpathian Ruthenia). The part prepared by Ondrej Podelec deals with the Slovak Republic in 1939 – 1945. It is a thorough analysis of the trials in which the Slovak courts of justice tried in absence the members of political exile and the author examines their legislative background and judgment practices. Due to long lasting procedures of the tribunals some cases were not concluded till the decline of the state in 1945, as it was the trial with Štefan Osuský and co. This analysis also shows, that since autumn 1944 the Slovak judicature was not able to resist political pressure of the regime and the German occupation forces. The chapter written by Slavomír Michálek bridges the war and postwar periods from the perspective of the U. S. – Czechoslovak economic relations. Projects like lend – lease and UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration) were part of a specific U. S. help for the countries that had suffered under the German occupation and expansion. Among them was also Czechoslovakia. Her citizens understood very well that the massive UNRRA activities were an American project. Therefore the Czechoslovak communists played down its importance and trivialized its economic effect, because the help from the capitalist country did not fit to their schemes and political goals. After World War II, the limited parliamentary democracy was restored in Czechoslovakia. But this regime differed from the parliamentary system of the first Czechoslovak Republic. The so-called people’s democracy considered the Czechoslovak citizens (except German and Hungarian minorities) as a special kind of plurality and democracy. But it had not been an idea only of the communists who saw in it a transitional step towards their own regime. The democratic parts of domestic and exile resistance contributed to its birth, too. Michal Barnovský in his text compares Polish and Czechoslovak road to one party regime. The specifics and differences between them had not been so significant for establishing a communist regime, but they played an important role in the following development. The attempts to change the Stalinist regimes in Poland and Hungary in 1956 had many-sided influence on the neighboring countries. Dagmar Čierna-Lantayová in her chapter describes the rise of opposition moods among students and intellectuals in Slovakia. But in contrast to Hungary, the socio-political tension was not eruptive enough for mass protests. This was one of the causes why the support for the events in Hungary had been so minimal. Half-hearted attempts of the press to express other than official opinion, were played down prevented by “watchful” censorship. In December 1956, the Czechoslovak communist party officially condemned “the attempt of counter-revolutionary coup d’état in Hungary”. The communist control over the Slovak society had even deepened. Events in Central Europe in 1956 were overshadowed by a global clash of the great powers. Karol Sorby’s chapter shows that the failure of the British and French “Suez adventure” made it easier for USA to take over the leading role in the region. According to the Eisenhower doctrine “power vacuum” in the Middle East had to be filled in by the United States in order to stop the communist – especially Soviet – infiltration of this part of the world. But in the eyes of Arabic nationalists the Suez crisis destroyed the myth of Soviet threat to the security of the region. They viewed the Soviet Middle East policy as more sensitive towards their interests. Sorby analyzes and compares politics of different Arabic states after the formation of Eisenhower doctrine and evaluates its global consequences. For some independent Slovak intellectuals it was difficult to let themselves tie down by the communist regime. Jozef Leikert in his chapter deals with the case of journalist and writer Ladislav Mňačko, whose emigration to Israel in the late 1960s was an act of opposition to the anti-Israeli politics of Czechoslovakia. Through the interviews of Jozef Leikert with Ladislav Mňačko, various authors of Kultúrny život (journal Cultural Life) and members of the Union of Slovak writers we may be involved not only in the atmosphere of this period, but we will meet oppositionists and conformists among the Slovak intelligentsia, too. So-called normalization in 1970 – 1989 almost returned Slovakia to the stuffy atmosphere of the 1950s. That is why we decided to close this book not with the independent and proud attitude of Ladislav Mňačko, but we return back to the phenomenon typical for the whole period of the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. In the years 1948 – 1989 it was very important for communists to control churches, because they considered them potential opposition in Slovakia. Jan Pešek examines in his text the institutional instruments of this control: legislation, activities of the Slovak Office for Church Affairs as a highest state authority for regulation and control of churches (which actually did not change during the whole 40 years of the communist regime), church policy of the communist Party and the (mal-)practices of the State security towards churches. Despite protests from domestic and foreign Church authorities – especially RomanCatholic – the regime did not modify either the spirit or the letter of the so-called Church Acts from 1949. The fundamental change came only with the “velvet revolution” in 1989: the communist regime collapsed and the apparatus for the control of churches has gone to the history.

Slovensko na ceste k demokracii

Author(s): Natália Krajčovičová / Language(s): Slovak

The formation of the Czechoslovak Republic was confirmed officially on October 28 and 30, 1918 by passing two constitutional acts – the Proclamation of the Czechoslovak National Council in Prague and the Declaration of the Slovak Nation in Turčiansky Svätý Martin. The implementation of Czechoslovak independent statehood, however, required another two years of consolidation in the territory of Slovakia, a period which ended by signing the Treaty of Trianon in June 1920. The period between these two milestones – October 1918 and June 1920 – was exceptionally demanding for Slovakia and its leading politicians. The author presents in her work “Slovakia on its Path to Democracy“ the complex problems that emerged immediately after the proclamation of the Czechoslovak Republic and that were closely connected with the process of integration of Slovakia into the new state. The crucial problem was especially the great gap caused by different levels of development of Slovakia and the Czech lands. It was exactly this feature that gave rise to new problems in the process of integration of the two territories. The Office of the Minister Plenipotentiary for the Administration of Slovakia was temporarily in charge of the consolidation of the new political situation. The Minister’s task was made more difficult by the efforts of Hungary to regain the territory of Slovakia or at least a part of it. This “war after the war” complicated the proper functioning of the administration and of the democratisation process in Slovakia, which was lawfully initiated and codified by the Revolutionary National Assembly. Many of its provisions could be implemented in the Czech lands only, as Slovakia had to be put under martial law in March 1919 because of new war events, with a military dictatorship being introduced in June 1919. Supplying the citizens with basic needs became more difficult, which led to an increase of post-war social tensions, disgruntled minorities, and even more complicating consequences on the domestic political scene. The author, besides describing the first steps that were made after the creation of the Czechoslovak Republic and the ideological and programmatic trends of Slovak policy, analyses some key issues that the Ministry Plenipotentiary had to face. These were closely linked to the changes in administration, staffing and funding, and the overall authoritative character of the post-war regime in Slovakia. Along with the national, economic, and social difficulties, they influenced the outcome of the general elections in 1920, which did not favour the Slovak middle-class parties, but made leftist parties victorious. In this context, the author focuses on certain prominent personalities of this era: especially Vavro Šrobár, Milan Hodža, and Juraj Slávik. They were representatives of the new Slovakia not only as government ministers, but also as leading politicians of the Agrarian Party, which played an important ideological, political, and economic role in Czechoslovakia from its beginning to its end. It is obvious that some problems that emerged immediately after the formation of Czechoslovakia (e.g. the struggle for Slovak autonomy and official recognition of Slovak national identity) and were not properly resolved, continued to reproduce themselves. They polarised the Slovak political scene to an unfortunately large degree, reappeared after twenty years in a more radical form, and proved fatal to the Republic as a whole and to Slovakia in 1938.

Spoločnosť - politika - historiografia. Pokrivené (?) zrkadlo dejín slovenskej spoločnosti v dvadsiatom storočí

Author(s): Ivan Kamenec / Language(s): Slovak

The aim of the presented collection of 29 chapters and essays is to sketch a comprehensive picture of Slovak society, reflecting the interactions between its political and cultural elites, as well as the coherence of historiography and historical consciousness in the 20th century. It might be stressed that these relations weren’t static, although in their frames, some resistant stereotypes arose which are still very popular in some parts of Slovak society. The stereotypes, auto-stereotypes and myths never failed to exist; just the contrary – they were going through a process of specific evolution, influenced by numerous fundamental, state-political and constitutional changes, that attended the life of Slovak society in the past century. These changes, or better, ruptures with global social impact had not only positive, but also – and this seems to be the majority of the cases – negative consequences for the situation of particular generations living in Slovakia. Simultaneously, their determined all spheres of cultural life of Slovak society, much like the Slovak historiography influencing both its internal development and its perception by the public. The presented work is divided into four thematic parts. First of them is dealing with both the direct and the indirect impact of political events and decisions taken by the administration on citizens, i.e. particular parts of society. This is the reason, why the tragic issue of the so-called social engineering and Holocaust is also taken into consideration. The author is supposing, that the discrimination and persecution of certain groups of population defined by their nationality, religious, racial or class identity afflicted not only individual victims, but, taking into account its global impact, it was a tragedy for the whole society. In particular it devastated the moral, cultural and religious values of the society and its constitutional consciousness. Culture also suffered by these socio-political processes. The culture and its prominent representatives enjoyed a specific position within the public life in Slovakia, since they were either substituting the absenting “national policy” or they were an active part of this policy – representing and defending universal ideals of humanity proclaimed by themselves or, in other cases, representing the political elites. This contradicted engagement and existing intellectual disunity were symptomatic especially during the existence of non-democratic, i.e. totalitarian political regimes, which afflicted the most part of the decades of Slovak history in the 20th century. As a logical consequence, it resulted not only in disappointment and frustration of Slovak cultural elites, but also in lost of confidence by the citizens in what they have represented. The situation of the Slovak historiography that, as a professional scientific discipline and in its institutional form was going through a process of intensive development just in the frames of communist regime was some kind similar. Just as the culture, the Slovak historiography was also strongly influenced and eventually deformed by the political reality. Slovak professional historiography was facing two main challenges: on the one hand it had to reflect scientific problems and questions and, on the other hand, there was a necessity of defending its own social status and position within the social hierarchy. This position only partly resulted from the scientific outputs of the Slovak historiography, since the role it had to play was strictly defined by the communist state. During that time, the Slovak historiography was going through a difficult development including hopes, unfulfilled illusions, disappointments, disgraceful moral and professional failures, but also happier stages such as significant achievements or civil resistance against the political regime and its leading figures. From today’s perspective, taking into account these phenomenons, the biggest detriment the Slovak historiography had to suffer seems to be the multiple interruption of natural continuity of its development and the visible lack of confidence on the side of citizens that it is permanently trying to regain. On the other hand it should be pointed out that in spite of unfavorable political and social conditions in the past the Slovak professional historiography achieved remarkable scientific results that allowed, after 1989, to be a part of European scientific community. Fourth thematic part of the presented book is dedicated to chosen historical personalities playing significant role in the modern history of Slovakia. Also reflected are chosen historians, which in their professional career and work were able to harmonize their scientific abilities with their civic attitudes, regardless of the risks.

Tradícia a dejiny. Vybrané otázky zo slovensko-maďarských a slovensko-ruských vzťahov (1934-1949)

Author(s): Dagmar Čierna-Lantayová / Language(s): Slovak

Výbery z diel niektorých autorov, publikované v poslednom období, stále častejšie ilustrujú fakt, že celá generácia historikov pomaly, ale isto starne a nebodaj i odchádza. A človek si napokon prekvapene uvedomí svoju príslušnosť k tejto skupine seniorov, za posledné roky vyzdvihovanej i zatracovanej. Na pranieri istej časti verejnosti sa mnohokrát ocitli najmä odborníci z novších domácich dejín, nakoľko medzi bežnými čitateľmi sa vždy nájdu jednotlivci, ktorí si čo to ešte pamätajú a po svojom aj hodnotia. V zložitej sústave historiografie možno hovoriť o určitej „výhode“, keď sa výskumník venuje predovšetkým otázkam všeobecných dejín a domáce udalosti konfrontuje s dianím v zahraničí. Hoci i tu možno nájsť úskalia, ak sledujeme témy v nedávnej minulosti zamlčované, či priamo zakázané. Pre tento zväzok vyberám niektoré z textov, publikovaných za posledných pätnásť rokov, teda v čase, keď sa konečne otvorila možnosť uzavretú tematiku spracovať: dovtedy boli do veľkej miery tabuizované archívne pramene k oficiálne utajovaným faktom a udalostiam. Sledovať problémy nahromadené do vzťahov Slovenska k Maďarsku a Rusku (v rámci ČSR alebo aj samostatne), za obdobie od roku 1934 do roku 1949, znamená sledovať mimoriadne zložité a zauzlené udalosti. A práve z tohto okruhu svojich záujmov som zvolila tematický záber ponúkaného výberu. Iba jedna kapitola sa vymyká z daného chronologického členenia a posúva sa do roku 1956. V niektorých príspevkoch, kratších i dlhších, publikovaných s rôznym odstupom, nebolo možné zachovať kontinuitu deja a neopakovať isté základné údaje. S tým sa napokon musí vo svojich publikáciách vyrovnať každý historik. Usporiadať texty prísne tematicky, alebo podľa skúmaného obdobia, sa ukázalo dosť zložité, nakoľko sa v sledovaných problémoch musím doslova posúvať tam i späť po rámcovej časovej línii. Napokon som celú knihu rozdelila na dva celky – Slovensko a Maďarsko, Slovensko a Sovietsky zväz – a v nich jednotlivé kapitoly označila rokom vydania a zaradila postupne. Témy, na ktoré sa v tomto výbere sústreďujem, prinášajú veľké množstvo najrozličnejších rozporných otázok, načrtávajú prístup vedúcich politikov ČSR, Slovenska, Maďarska a Ruska k formovaniu zahraničnej politiky, vrátane vzťahov, v mimoriadne zložitom období. V situácii, keď sa nacistická mašinéria vydávala na pochod cez málo stabilnú a rozhádanú Európu, je mimoriadne zaujímavé sledovať názory, motiváciu a konanie vládnucich kruhov jednotlivých krajín, ale i reakcie rôznych politických strán a zoskupení. Krátka medzihra, za trvania diplomatických vzťahov medzi ľudáckou Bratislavou a komunistickou Moskvou, v období pred začiatkom druhej svetovej vojny, dlhé roky zatajovaná, ilustruje nielen politický pokus pod dozorom Berlína, ale aj vnú- torné korene dobového slovenského rusofilstva. Z nášho hľadiska si zasluhujú pozornosť zahraničnopolitické úvahy reprezentantov rôzneho názorového zamerania, ich protirečenia, predstavy, nádeje a sklamania. Všetky otvorené otázky z obdobia vojny sa od roku 1945, v mierne modifikovanej podobe, znova dostávali na diplomatickú scénu a podnecovali rozpory zainteresovaných štátov. Pre malé krajiny strednej a juhovýchod nej Európy, ktoré sa napokon ocitli v područí Sovietskeho zväzu, ovládaného J. V. Stalinom, začala dlhá a strastiplná cesta k vzdialenej vidine slobody. Nie všetky problémy, na ktoré sa vo svojej práci zameriavam, našli v historickej obci na Slovensku ďalších záujemcov a pokračovateľov. Ale i tak, predstavovať opakovane niekoľko starších či novších štúdií stavia autora do zložitej situácie. Veď za posledné roky začali publikovať mladí historici, doma i v zahraničí, a k niektorým vybraným otázkam priniesli nové poznatky aj svieže pohľady. To je však prirodzený postup a nám, starším, ostáva iba nádej, že nastupujúci kolegovia nezatratia doterajšie výsledky. Historik môže dlho či zdĺhavo a viac-menej zaujímavo písať o svojej práci, vysvetľovať svoje myšlienky či pohnútky a podrobne rozoberať jednotlivé ponúkané texty. Ja nemám v úmysle objasňovať alebo ospravedlňovať svoju motiváciu, veď konečný obraz si aj tak vytvára každý kritický čitateľ. Problémy, ktorými sa zaoberám, sú neobyčajne zauzlené a ani v okruhu slovenských autorov sme sa nedopracovali k zhodnému pohľadu. V mojom prípade sa však porovnávanie názorov dotýka predovšetkým maďarských a ruských historikov, nakoľko svojím zameraním sa predsa len do veľkej miery vyčleňujem z tematiky čisto národných dejín. Predložený výber textov ponúka dosť prí- ležitostí na zamyslenie.

Vojnové škody a rekonštrukcia Slovenska 1944 - 1948. (Hospodárstvo, infraštruktúra, zdravotníctvo)

Author(s): Ľudovít Hallon,Miroslav Sabol,Anna Falisová / Language(s): Slovak

Military operations during the Slovak National Uprising (SNU) and the front-line battles on the Slovak territory between the years 1944-1945 are relatively well researched by Czech and Slovak historiography. However, the impact of these events on the Slovak economy, infrastructure and the social sphere were only of marginal interest here. The same can be said about the subject of eliminating the war related damages after 1945. Three authors, Ľudovít Hallon, Miroslav Sabol and Anna Falisová (researchers of the Department of History of Sciences and Technology, Institute of History, Slovak Academy of Sciences) decided to pay a closer attention to these less frequented themes in their monograph. It is at a same time a first attempt and a pilot project for a future research leading towards a more comprehensive analysis of the mentioned themes. The monograph consists of three autonomous parts; one from each author. In the first one, Ľ. Hallon documents how the outcomes of military operations influenced the Slovak economy, especially the industry, financial sphere and the infrastructure. The main focus is on the period from June 1944 (first bombing of the Slovak industrial facilities), till April 1945 (end of war on the Slovak territory). In some cases, this time interval is stretched till the first months after the WWII. The analysis is based on the archive research in Germany and Slovakia, especially on the documents about aerial attacks, war damages during the SNU and the front-line military operations. Special attention is dedicated to the far-reaching financial losses related to the German occupation and plundering after the outbreak of the SNU. Ľ. Hallon analyzed also the forms of German control of Slovak economy and overall status of war damages. In the second part, M. Sabol deals with the reconstruction of the damaged economy, infrastructure and partly also tertiary sphere in Slovakia between the years 1945- 1948. Author focuses on the importance, role and types of domestic and foreign aid presented to the Slovak inhabitants and economy. The already existing knowledge about this theme is here significantly enriched by the archive research, analyze of statistics and contemporary newspaper articles. This section is describing the elimination of war damages in agriculture, restoration of specific industrial branches, reconstruction of demolished infrastructure, especially the railways, but also roads, bridges and water transport. M. Sabol writes about transferring the industrial facilities from Czech lands to Slovakia. The subchapters about mine clearing and problem of German reparations for the Czechoslovakia are based on yet unknown sources. This is also the case of information about the status of Slovakia in the process of delivering the UNRRA aid as well as the description of the help coming from the Soviet Union. The third part, written by Anna Falisová, deals with impact of war on the health and social situation of the population. This chapter has a „pioneering character“ as it is based exclusively on archive documents and other primary sources. Regarding the health situation, this text is focused on spread of epidemics after the end of war and efforts to stop them. It analyzes the overall health status of the population and establishment of the new „miraculous“ medicine, penicillin. This part of the book deals also with the health situation of children, with the help of UNRRA and other foreign organizations for the health service. Special attention is devoted to health aspects of war repatriations, impact of war events on the psychic state of the population and the methods used to reduce these effects.

“WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND HE IS US” - AN ANALYSIS OF NATO STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS: THE INTERNATIONAL SECURITY ASSISTANCE FORCE (ISAF) IN AFGHANISTAN, 2003-2014.

Author(s): Brett Boudreau / Language(s): English

The 2003-2014 UN-mandated, NATO-led ISAF mission, which featured ground combat for the first time in the Alliance’s history, took a tremendous human and financial toll. By ISAF mission end, well over 1 million NATO troops and civilians had served in theatre along with hundreds of thousands of contractors. Reliable studies conservatively estimate the financial cost to be at least $1 trillion US dollars. Almost 3,500 troops under NATO command from 29 nations paid the ultimate price, and tens of thousands more suffered serious injury. Afghanistan has been a security-related point of discussion and a major part of Western military efforts for almost a fifth of NATO’s existence. By virtually any metric it is the longest, most complex, expensive, challenging and fractious operation in NATO’s history. As a result of the massive NATO and international effort – by any socioeconomic or human development index measure – Afghanistan in 2015 is a considerably better place as a result. That is hardly to say outcomes were optimal, or that NATO helped Afghan government forces decisively defeat the insurgency: they were not, and they did not. A commonly held view is that NATO also ‘lost’ the Afghanistan strategic communication campaign. This report is an effort to deduce what is NATO and ISAF’s score on that point, and if it did not ‘win’ outright then how did Strategic Communications (StratCom) perform? Within the political-military leadership and even within the communications community there are factions of passionate supporters for StratCom and just as many opponents. All seem to agree conceptually of the need for better coordination as long as they are the ‘coordinators’ and not the ‘coordinated’. Throughout ISAF’s duration these factions were often at odds and even as they clashed, the operating and information environment transformed. This should have led to a wholesale re-evaluation of optimal structure, process and capabilities: it did not. Still, as to be expected from the accumulated experience of continuous operations over 11-plus years of the NATO-led ISAF mission, some new capabilities were added that improved how NATO communicated with national domestic audiences including the Media Operations Centre and NATO TV. But the nub of the issues and the old debates – influence versus inform, the public affairs reporting relationship to the commander, measuring effect, how to better synchronise effort – are the same discussions as 5, 10 and even 15 years ago. The current impetus for reform has little to do with lessons learned during ISAF. It does however, have much to do with the Russia/Ukraine crisis. Given the contemporary security environment, the extent to which unsatisfactory campaign outcomes should be attributed to the communication effort is not an inconsequential subject. Today’s information environment bears little resemblance to what it was at the start of the ISAF mission in 2001, in large measure a result of widespread access to reliable Internet, the ubiquity of smart phones, and the global scope and penetration of social media. In the past decade we have transitioned from grasping the implications of the ‘strategic corporal’ to dealing with the operational consequences of the ‘strategic tweet’. Adversaries also became very capable at using new communication tools to their advantage. While it may be unlikely that the Alliance will fight another mission quite like ISAF, many observations can be drawn from ISAF about whether NATO communication-related policy, doctrine, structures and capabilities are fit for purpose in future campaigns. This report offers 12 recommendations where effort and resources might be applied to achieve more favourable outcomes. A North Atlantic Council-approved policy in August 2009 defines NATO StratCom as “the coordinated and appropriate use of NATO communications activities and capabilities ... in support of Alliance policies, operations and activities, and in order to advance NATO’s aims.” Still, the actions and practice during ISAF demonstrate that NATO aspires to achieve more for its strategic communications investment, and that it is increasingly about understanding the desired effect or behavioural change required to shape what to do, say, show and signal to inform, persuade or influence audiences in support of specific objectives. NATO HQs had two strategic communications campaigns to fight during the ISAF operation, the first being for the support of domestic audiences of the 51 troop contributing nations and international audiences. Given the policy hand it was dealt, the manner in which the operation was executed for the better part of a decade, the high operational tempo at NATO and zero nominal growth (thus, downsizing) forced on it by nations, the Alliance communication effort did considerably better than it is given credit for, in particular at NATO HQ in Brussels and Allied Command Operations, and for stretches of time at ISAF. This is a finding that may strike many as counter-intuitive. The second campaign was the operational battle for the contested population and against malign actors including the Taliban. If success is measured against information policy aims: “...create desired effects on the will, understanding and capability of adversaries and potential adversaries” (Information Operations); “to influence perceptions, attitudes and behaviour, affecting the achievement of political and military objectives” (Psychological Operations); and “to inform, persuade, or influence audiences in support of NATO aims and objectives” (StratCom), then the outcomes are decidedly more mixed, if not a failure. A detailed assessment of capability and performance in this report supports the argument that ISAF was a case of a fundamentally flawed political/ command structure that was by its structural nature incapable of devising and directing a unified political-military campaign. The international community brought a sense of hubris to that shattered country which had virtually no licit economy or capacity for effective governance. It set unreasonable objectives, looked for short-term metrics of success, and wholly underresourced the mission for almost 10 years. The strategy often changed, or was confused, or was conflicted. It took few Afghan views into account. No answer could be found to effectively deal with the vexing question of Pakistan where insurgent forces found sanctuary. NATO then proceeded to break or subsume most of the principles of war, foremost being ‘selection and maintenance of the aim’, ‘unity of effort’ and ‘unity of command’. But how fair is that considering Afghanistan was a major international endeavour, that the NATO mission has lasted this long and will continue for the foreseeable future albeit in different form, that support in the country for international forces remains high, and that troop contributing nations have not endured major political recriminations from their populations? Taking a long view, the ISAF communications effort cannot have been a failure. The magnitude of collective effort by NATO nations over that period of time is a considerable expression of Alliance will and stamina. From the political-military centre of gravity perspective of “maintaining the solidarity, cohesion and credibility of the Alliance”, this alone points to a strategic success broadly speaking. This report finds that improved StratCom did not, and does not, temper the effects of bad policy and poor operational execution. In the end, strategic communications outcomes weren’t nearly what they could have been but were considerably better than critics suggest. Where policy and operations were well connected and showed results, StratCom amplified that effect. Where policy and operations were weak, negative outcomes could be mitigated but not overcome. Improving strategic communication effects needs to start with better policy, greater understanding of audiences including motivations, conducting operations following established and successful military principles, and skilled practitioners. In that respect, the weakest link in the Alliance communication effort at strategic, operational and tactical levels was the profound lack of trained, expeditionary communication- and information-related military capability in almost all NATO member nations (excepting the U.S., and perhaps Germany). For NATO to be more effective, nations need to professionalise their approach to communications by abandoning the model of employing ‘willing general service officers eager to learn on the job’ to one that is firmly based on ‘qualified, trained and experienced practitioners in all disciplines at each rank level’. ISAF served as a forcing function for incremental albeit important improvements to NATO communication-related policy, capability and capacity aggregated over more than a decade of continuous operations. However, the transformation of the information environment happened much faster than NATO HQs and member nations were able to evolve their communications-related mindset, structures, capabilities and outputs. The real catalyst for the current effort to make substantive reforms has been Russia’s attack on Ukraine. In this regard the Wales Summit Hybrid Warfare initiatives identified a series of actions that if implemented would be a major upgrade to the Alliance’s ability to compete in the new information environment.

СРБИ У КАЛИФОРНИЈИ - Обредно-религијска пракса и етницитет верника српских православних парохија у Калифорнији

Author(s): Gordana Blagojević / Language(s): Serbian

Ова књига представља прилагођен и делимично измењен текст магистарског рада Обредно-релишјска пракса и етницитет верника српских православних парохија у Калифорнији, одбрањеног у децембру 2002. године на Одељењу за етнологију и антропологију Филозофског факултета Универзитета у Београду. Рад је настао као део пројекта Етнографског института САНУ број 2157: Традиционална култура Срба — системи представа, обреда и социјалних институција, који финансира Министарство за науку и технологију Републике Србије. Желела бих да се захвалим овом министарству чији сам стипендиста била током постдипломских студија, као и Министарству културе које је финансирало моје путне тропжове до Лос Анђелеса. Захваљујем се свим колегама у Етнографском институту САНУ чијим сам се искуством користила приликом израде рада. Најсрдачније се захваљујем мојим рецензентима академику Димитрију Стефановићу, др Душану Дрљачи, др Младени Прелић на корисним саветима и сугестијама, као и ментору проф. др Бранку Ћупурдији. Посебну благодарност дугујем епископу шумадијском господину Јовану, који је током мог боравка у Калифорнији у јесен 2000. године био владика западноамерички и који ми је дао дозволу за истраживање у његовој епархији. Желим да се захвалим и свештенству западноамеричке епархије које ми је помогло да прикупим материјал за израду овог рада, посебно јерејима Блашку Параклису из Оринџ Каун-тија, Петру Јовановићу из Сан Габријела, Марку Матићу из Сан Франциска и његовој супрузи Весни, као и свим испитаницима - људима добре воље који су учествовали у истраживању и допринели стварању ове књиге. Дугујем посебну захвалност др Андреју Симићу, професору антропологије на Универзитету Јужне Калифорније у Лос Анђелесу и проф. др Димитрију Ђорђевићу, са Универзитета у Санта Барбари (Калифорнија), члану САНУ. Највећу захвалност дугујем мојој сестри Татјани и њеном супругу Зорану Миловановић, који су сносили све трошкове мог боравка и истраживања у Америци - без њихове љубави и разумевања реализација овог подухвата била би немогућа. Истинску и усрдну подршку и у овом послу пружили су ми моји родитељи, којима неизмерно благодарим на помоћи и стрпљењу.

Срби у Чикагу - Проблем етничког идентитета

Author(s): Mirjana Pavlović / Language(s): Serbian

Since in our opinion ethnic identity is an important problem in the study of the complex issues of assimilation and ethnicity, we have tried to determine to what extent and why the Serbian emigrants in Chicago have preserved their ethnic identity and what have been the forms and factors of its manifestation in the multinational environment of Chicago. As little attention has been paid to this problem so far, we collected the most important data during the field research by combining participatory observation, interviewing and casual conversation, although we also used all the available literature, statistical sources (census, etc.) and the emigrants’ publications (newspapers, commemorative volumes, calendars, bulletins, etc.). The Serbian emigrations to Chicago have had all the characteristics of the emigrations of other Yugoslav nations to America. They began at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, and they have been taking place with changing intensity ever since. Therefore this paper covers three generations of Serbian emigrants. There have been three waves of emigration, differing in the region, time and cause of emigration and the socioeconomic characteristics of the emigrants. The first-wave emigrants had come to Chicago until World War Two for economic reasons, and they were mostly from Lika, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro; only at the end of this and in the subsequent waves was there a large number of emigrants from Serbia. Most of them under-educated or even illiterate and without knowledge of the English language, they usually found employment as factory workers or poorly paid laborers. The second wave consisted of emigrants who came after World War Two, mostly until 1960, as political emigres or displaced persons. The third wave, consisting of economic emigrants, began in 1960 and is not yet over. The socioeconomic status of the emigrants of the last two waves has been much more favorable because of a greater share of skilled workers. (The third wave has also been characterized by a much higher proportion of highly Skilled workers.) Since now they are coming to Chicago with professional experience, as soon as they learn the language, they begin to advance. On coming to Chicago, the first emigrants were faced with a new environment whose language, customs and habits were something altogether new to them. Besides, their adaptation to the new conditions of life was often accompanied by intolerance on the part of the members of groups which had emigrated earlier and by the unhospitability of American society. Therefore the old emigrants founded their colonies and institutions (parishes, relief societies, Serbian schools, choirs, e ts ...) in poor districts of the city. The emigrants of the subsequent waves, especially the third, usually settled in colonies whose breakup began at the time of their coming to Chicago, but they remained active in the old emigrant organizations or founded new ones, more suited to their needs. The emigrants’ families and organizations have formed an emigrant community, to an extent isolated from the rest of American society, in which our emigrants are still largely leading their private and public lives. Different times of emigration and differences in the socioeconomic status of the emigrants and generations have reflected on the status of their descendants in American society, and still more on the preservation of their ethnic identity, so that the members of the second generation can be divided into two types: the first type includes the descendants of the first-wave emigrants; and the second type, the post-World War Two emigrants. As a satisfactory definition of ethnic identity must include both its subjective and objective aspects and also have a symbolic character, in this paper we shall take ethnic identity to denote group identity which the members of a group form on the basis of a series of symbolic notions about their common characteristics, and/or which is formed by others who identify them as members of a group on the basis of these notions. Ethnic identity is formed and manifested through a series of ethnic symbols. Their basic function is to express the Serbian communal spirit. In addition to this marking role, they also have a differentiating role.. They separate our emigrants from the majority of the American population, which includes not only the white Anglo-Saxon Protestants but also all other ethnic groups in the city. We have grouped the ethnic symbols into two large symbolic systems: the verbal (language and personal and family names) and the nonverbal (religion, music, food and decorative objects). We have analyzed each of these symbols separately, with an intention of showing how it is used and how it changes and functions in the lives of the emigrants of different generations, waves and types. The first generation has, as expected, preserved its ethnic characteristics and is manifesting them more or less visibly both in the emigrant community and in American society at large. The second generation has lost some of the ethnic symbols, such as language, which has led some researchers to conclude that the second and, especially, the third generations have been largely assimilated. Ethnic identity, however, is based on a number of ethnic symbols, and loss of one of them does not entail loss of ethnic identify because its function can be taken over by other symbols. The later generations of Serbs in Chicago are cherishing symbols of their ethnic identity best suited to their needs and the conditions of their life (mostly nonverbal symbols). Apart from generational affiliation, the preservation of ethnic identity is affected by a series of other factors. On the one hand, there are emigrant-community factors (type of migration, type of colony, participation in ethnic organizations), which along with the contact with the homeland are contributing to the preservation of ethnic identity. On the other hand, American-society factors (naturalization, immigration policy, school system, social mobility) are contributing to the disappearance of ethnic identity. The opposite effects of the emigrant community and American society are giving rise, especially among the members of the second generation, to dual identity, which is symbolically manifested in the cherishing of both Serbian and American symbols, even simultaneously. The third generation, however, is characterized by an increased interest in the elements of the traditional culture of their ancestors. This is a generation most affected by the cultural pluralism and ethnic revival movement of the 1970s. Today the activities of various ethnic organizations in Chicago already cover the fourth and fifth generations of our emigrants, so that it is very likely that, although now being school-age children, they will preserve other ethnic characteristics besides the awareness of their ethnic origin. The emigration of Serbs to Chicago still continues, contributing to the constant revival of Serbian ethnic elements. Therefore we can assume that the Serbian ethnic group in Chicago will not completely disappear in the foreseeable future and that lit will preserve ethnic characteristics best suited to the needs of the emigrants and the conditions of the life in the multi-ethnic environment of Chicago.

Становништво Прокупља

Author(s): Vujadin Rudić / Language(s): Serbian

Geographical position of Prokuplje varied, depending on the importance of the region in a particular historic period. At the time of the Roman Empire Prokuplje was situated on the road connecting Lješ and Niš. A fortress (castellum) manned with soldiers securing peace and order, and protecting transportation of commodities and armies in the area was arected on the nearby hill Hisar. During the Turkish reign Prokuplje was again located on the important communication way between Dubrovnik and Istanbul, and this is the reason why between Dubrovnik and Istanbul, and this is the reason why some of the most significant Dubrovnik colonies were concentrated in Prokuplje and in Novi Pazar. Once the railways Doljevac-Prokuplje in 1925 and Prokuplje-Kuršumlija-Priština in 1948 were constructed its position continued to gain in importance. It should be added that a motor road connecting Niš and Pristina passes through Prokuplje and that Prokuplje and the adjacent towns are all connected ba a network of modem roads. Its favorable geographical position has had a definite impact on its demographic development. Archeological investigations in the region confirm that it was populated already in the prehistoric times. Its first inhabitants were members of the Illyrian tribe Dardanians followed by the Celtic tribe Scordisci. At the time of the Roman conquest severe battles were fought with the Celtic inhabitants and those who remained were resettled in Pannonia. Slavic settling in the area was completed by the seventh century. Serbs remained to live there in peace and in war with Byzantium all the way up to the Ottoman conquest in 1454. The region played an active and important part at the time of Stefan Nemanja as well, which may be deduced from the fact that his palace was located in Kuršumlija. The oppressed Serbian population, taking advantage of each and every opportunity, frequently rose up against Turkish slavery. Massive Serbian uprisings against the Turkish rulers took place at the time of Austrian-Turkish wars in 1690 and 1737. After these wars, fearing Turkish revenge, the Serbs, emigrated to the lands north of the Sava and the Danube, leaving behind their centuries-lond homeland. A powerful and successful uprising took place in 1876-1878 when the Toplica region was finally liberated and joined to the state of Serbia. After the liberation from the Turkish reign Prokuplje, finally free, became a strong immigrant point of attraction once again. Prokuplje and its environs were this time populated by immigrants from Montenegro, Herzegovina, Kossovo, Metohia, Kopaonik, environs of Užice, the Vojvodina, Crna Trava and other regions. The result of these migrations was the extremely heterogeneous population structure of Prokuplje, namely its members originated from many different regions. Demographic and socioeconomic development of Prokuplje was disrupted by the 1912-1918, and 1941-1945 wars. These wars had extremely negative effects on population and household growths in Prokuplje. After the Second World War an accelerated development of urban settlements continued in general and this was also true for Prokuplje. These processes invoked the rural-urban migrations because peasants could rather easily find employment in towns. This process was so pronounced in Prokuplje that 60% of its population are the rural immigrants. Prokuplje became the center of daily commuters: workers and pupils. The existence of so many commuters is conditioned by various factors: traffic development in Toplica, underdeveloped economy so that workers have to engage themselves in agricultural production as well, housing shortages in the town and so on. After the Second World War immigration of Serbian inhabitants from Kossovo and Metohia became more intensive. These migrations were provoked by the actions of Albanian separatists and nationalists, further by the bad policy of the Yugoslav League of Communists leadership, and by the failures of the state agencies and institutions. Population and household increase in Prokuplje after the liberation from the Turkish reign was the result of the influx of Serbian population from various directions, while after 1960 rural-urban migrations were the chief factor in population growth. Population increase due to birth rates is extremely modest, the average rate being 9% for the period of the last ten years. Population structure (gender, age, education, nationality, confession, economy) of Prokuplje is influenced by the complex socioeconomic factors effective in the past. Gender structure was disturbed by the intensive immigration of male migrants up to the Second World War and their emigration later on, by the economic structure of the town, by wars and other factors. Age structure is on the other hand effected by decrease of birth rates which is seen from the following aging index: in 1948 0.19.1953 0.18.1961 0.21. 1971 0.22, and in 1981 0.28. Literacy is on the low level (in 1948 15.22%, 1961 12.48%. 1971 11.07%, and in 1981 7.02%) for an urban settlement with more than 25000 inhabitants. Percentage of inhabitants with collage and university degrees is increasing (1948 1.41%. 1953 2.71%. 1971 4.91% and in 1981 7.35%). This increase is in accord with the economic, cultural, medical-care and communication development of Prokuplje, the center of Toplica. National structure in the periods after the liberation from the Turks was quite homogeneous. From 1948 (89.5%) until 1981 (86.47%) the percentage of Serbs decreased. The second largest group are the Gypsies amounting to 5.34% in 1981. More than 99% of the total population in Prokuplje are of the Serbian Orthodox creed. The economic structure of the population in Prokuplje changed in correlation with the development of economic life in the town and its environs. The general activity rate in the after-war period is quite stable: in 1953 31.1%, 196132.29%, 197134.95%, and in 1981 36.44%. Increase of the general rate of activity is the consequence of the aging of the population, decrease of natality rate and the number of pupils and students as supported persons. The number and percentage of self-supporting people is increasing because of the increasing number of retired persons who return to their home town after retirement. The absolute and relative number of people employed in primary sector is in decrease, while those in the secondary and tertiary ones is in increase. The rate and type of change that has occurred in the population economic structure in Prokuplje may be seen from the following data: the number of employees in economic activities increased in the period 1953-1961 for 84.74%, from 1961 to 1971 for 72%. and from 1971 to 1981 for 30.5%, and in other activities: from 1953 to 1961 for 19.5%, from 1961 to 1971 for 25.95%, and from 1971 to 1981 for 56.08%. In the following period both the population growth and the changes in population structure will be moderate for it is not expected that the town would experience abrupt changes in its development.

Етничка идентификација на послератном подручју: српска заједница југоисточног Косова

Author(s): Sanja Zlatanović / Language(s): Serbian

This study is based on long-term in-depth research in the south-east of Kosovo (part of a broader area known as the Kosovsko Pomoravlje or Morava river basin), in the areas of the Gornja (Upper) and Donja (Lower) Morava (in the town of Gnjilane – the regional centre, and in the surrounding villages of Šilovo, Gornji Livoč, Gornje Kusce, Parteš and Pasjane; in the township of Vitina and the surrounding villages of Vrbovac, Grnčar, Binač, Mogila and Klokot; and also in the villages of Letnica and Draganac because of their religious significance). I also conducted research among displaced people from this region in few towns in Serbia: Smederevo, Vranje and Vranjska Banja. The research was carried out between 2003 and 2006, but I remained in contact with some of the interlocutors and continued to keep track of community dynamics within the region for a number of years subsequently. The fieldwork was conceived as multi-sited (Marcus 1995), because it was about a migratory situation. The terrain was defined as a network of localities (Hannerz 2003a; Hannerz 2003b). The aim of the research was to study the relationship between ethnicity and other forms of identification (religious, regional, local, gender) of the Serbian community of south-east Kosovo in a profoundly changed post-war situation following the establishment of the international administration in Kosovo, in 1999. My intention was to make an empirical and analytical contribution to our understanding of the complexity of social interaction from different perspectives “from below”, in a specific frontier and post-conflict region such as Kosovo. In the last decades of the 20th century, the identities of Kosovo became homogenized and acquired fixed boundaries, ethnic identification becoming more relevant than other forms of belong ing. Ethnic identity, as shown in numerous studies, gains in importance in unclear situations, in periods of change and crisis, when conditions are in place for the experience of threatened boundaries (Eriksen 2002: 68, 99). Kosovo is a prime example of how political and other interest groups construct and mobilise, direct and exploit ethnic identities. Since 1999, Kosovo has been inhabited almost exclusively by Albanians. The Serbs are a minority, ghettoized into small enclaves and rural environments. Many other ethnic, religious and/or linguistic groups have been displaced or assimilated. War provokes great social disruption and change; a constituent element of this is migration. The experience of war and forced migration of one part of the community changes the ways of both self-identification and the identification of the other, thus re-defining intra-ethnic and inter-ethnic relations and boundaries. As much research indicates, armed conflict is preceded by processes of homogenization within communities, the strengthening of boundaries and the assimilation of various types of identification into the ethnic. In a post-war context, with radical changes in the ethnic and social landscape, processes of articulation and re-articulation of identity have opened up in the Serbian community, rendering problematic its differing aspects. This research aims to extend our understanding of such processes. The study is divided into seven chapters. The first two establish the theoretical, methodological and analytical framework of the research. The third chapter, “Kosovo – a frontier region” aims to place the researched community in context. Processes of identification in frontier areas are specific in several respects. The results of many studies show that in the frontier and peripheral areas, group boundaries are less well-defined and more fluid, and identities – not only ethnic, but religious and others – are undetermined, situational, ambivalent and multiple (in contrast to those in central areas) (Duijzings 2000: 13, 24; Wilson, Donnan 1998: 13). In these areas, changing identity and/or recourse to various forms of mimicry may be the only way to survive in certain political and social circumstances. Kosovo is a paradigm of these processes and solutions. This chapter also deals with the history of Kosovo, paying particular attention to the period of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the escalation of the conflict and the introduction of an international administration. Special attention is paid to the connection of the Serbian Orthodox Church with Kosovo. Next, the basic characteristics of the community are outlined: dense social network, the meaning and importance of internal boundaries, linguistic practice, etc. The fourth chapter, “Living in a post-war region” examines everyday life, family and gender relations, identity discourse on traditional female costume and wedding. This chapter deepens the analysis of the connection between ethnic and religious identification of the researched community (hybrid cultural practice, particularly in the sphere of religion, the role of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the post-conflict period, pronounced traditionalism, etc.). The Serbian Orthodox Church has great influence as the only Serbian institution that remained in Kosovo after the withdrawal of the Yugoslav and Serbian military and police in June 1999. For the Serbian community in Kosovo, the Church has much greater significance than simply as a religious institution; it is seen as the only institution that did not abandon the community in hard times. The members of the Serbian community of south-east Kosovo primarily thematize ethnicity with religious rituals and markings. Religious and ethnic identification become blended in such a way that the religious is in function of the ethnic. Finally, this chapter gives a detailed analysis of the paroxysm in the ethnisization of reality. The next chapter is devoted to intra-ethnic relations and boundaries. Even though “externally” and/or from the “top down”, the Serbian community of Kosovo is defined as homogenous, its members within their own community, identify sub-group distinctions which cause tension. In the post-war context of evident ethnic homogenization, solidification and boundary closure, intra-ethnic categorization and the accompanying tensions it remain current and, in relation between Kosovo Serbs and Serbs from Serbia, gain new dimensions. For this reason, it is necessary to take a flexible approach to ethnicity which neither assumes a priori intra-ethnic homogeneity nor inter-ethnic heterogeneity (Talai 1986: 252, 266). Inter-group perceptions between the old inhabitants and the colonists are also addressed in this chapter as well as their implications. Then the analysis of the external definition – categorization of the so-called ‘Serbian Gypsies’ ensures (the term ‘Serbian Gypsies’ [Srpski Cigani] is used tentatively, since it is an exonym) and the long road this group have traveled from inter-ethnic towards intraethnic other (Zlatanović 2017). In the light of the post-war migrations, attention is paid to discourse and practice in relations between the displaced people of Kosovo and the population in Serbia. The sixth chapter explores inter-ethnic relations and boundaries. First, attention is given to the discursive construction of the Kosovo Croats are defined in discourse, and the over-coming of religious boundaries. Next, the focus is on the most important, most complex and most ambivalent other – the Albanians (analysis of the basic characteristics of the discourse on the Albanians, the problem of naming, overcoming of boundaries – through cooperation, friendship, religion, and insight into the consistency of boundaries – mixed marriages were almost unheard of). The relations between members of the Serbian and Albanian communities are also considered beyond ethnicity, since there are many shared elements of identification that connect them. The final chapter offers some concluding remarks on the relation between ethnicity and other forms of collective identification of researched community.

Seljanka u Srbiji u prvoj polovini 20.veka

Author(s): Momčilo Isić / Language(s): Serbian

Prema popisu stanovništva od 31. decembra 1900. godine, u njoj je od poljoprivrede živelo 2.093.947 stanovnika, ili 83,97% ukupnog stanovniötva. Najviše seljaštva imao je beogradski okrug, čak 91,05%, što je svakako posledica konjukture poljoprivredne proizvodnje usled blizine Beograda, kao velikog i sigurnog tržišta. U niökom okrugu bilo je, međutim, najmanje seljaštva, “samo” 79,08%, jer je Niš, iako najveći grad u Srbiji posle Beograda, brže pretvarao okolno seljaštvo u građane nego što je izrastao u značajno tržište poljoprivrednih proizvoda. Zato što su, nepismene i neprosvećene, mnogo ređe od muškaraca napuštale selo, seljanke su činile 86,01% ženskog stanovništva u Srbiji, pri čemu najviše u beogradskom okrugu, čak 92,25%, a najmanje u vranjskom, tek 82,16%. I pored znatnog stradanja u ratovima muškarci na selu su bili brojniji od žena početkom 20. veka. Oni su činili 50,25%, a žene 49,75% ukupnog seljaštva. Žene su predstavljale tek nešto više od polovine seljaštva u okruzima: kragujevačkom, krajinskom, kruševačkom, smedervskom, rudničkom, timočkom i užičkom.

Reader in Qualitative Methods in Migration Research

Author(s): / Language(s): English

This edited collection published in Migration Letters were selected to reflect on methodological challenges faced by researchers and students when conducting qualitative studies on migration. Beginning with papers focusing on broader discussions of methodological issues and some options available to researchers, the latter half of the book explores the narrative methodology in depth with references to several cases. The chapters included in this book was originally published in regular issues and two special issues of Migration Letters journal from 2009 onwards. We have regrouped and ordered these studies to enhance the flow and transition in the book. The first six chapters look into more general issues and debates in migration research methodologies, while chapters seven to ten offer cases studies on alternative qualitative methodologies and then the final six chapters focus on narratives and challenges of the narrative methodology applied in migration studies.

Recent Migrations and Refugees in the MENA Region

Author(s): / Language(s): English

While numerous studies have investigated the multifaceted nature of the Syrian refugee crisis across the Middle East, Europe and beyond, further academic studies are necessary to unpack the complex and multilevel narratives of the Syrian refugee crisis, particularly the roles and effects of national and domestic politics, labour market and social integration, and future policy discourses related to the Syrian refugees in the refugee-hosting countries. With this edited book, we seek to fill this particular gap by contributing to the current empirical, theoretical, and policy discourses on migration and refugee studies using evidenced-based political, economic, and social insights that have policy consequences on the Syrian refugee crisis across geographic refugee-hosting communities in the Middle East.  Content INTRODUCTION Rania M. Rafik Khalil and Froilan T. Malit Jr. CHAPTER 1 - The Syrian Youth Refugees’ Social and Economic Engagement in Lebanon Suzanne Menhem CHAPTER 2 - Attitudes of Social Work Students towards Syrian Refugees in Turkey Burcu Özdemir Ocaklı, Ezgi Arslan Özdemir, Münevver Eryalçın, Tuba Yüceer Kardeş, Fulya Akgül Gök, Veli Duyan CHAPTER 3 - Opportunities for Building Teacher Capacity in the MENA Region for Syrian Refugee Education Louisa Visconti and Diane Gal CHAPTER 4 - Mobilities from the Exile: the Sahrawi student migrations Rita Reis CHAPTER 5 - Lebanon’s Political Discourse and the Role of the UNHCR in the “safe and secure return” of Syrian Refugees from Lebanon into the so-called “secure” zones in Syria Laura El Chemali CHAPTER 6 - Politics of Hosting Syrian refugees: Cases from Jordan and Lebanon Nur Köprülü CHAPTER 7 - Conflict Responsive Patterns of Labour Migration from Hatay, Turkey to the MENA Countries Selver Özözen Kahraman, Berrin Gültay, Ibrahim Sirkeci and Vedat Çalışkan.

Uluslararası İlişkilerde Güvenlik Kuramları ve Sorunlarına Temel Yaklaşımlar

Author(s): / Language(s): Turkish

Uluslararası İlişkilerdeki güvenlik kuramları konjonktürel değişimlerle birlikte sürekli gelişmekte ve zenginleşmektedir. Teorik yaklaşımlarla ilgili güncel tartışmalar, disiplinin daha iyi anlaşılabilmesi için önem arz ederken güvenlik yaklaşımlarının ve algılamalarının değişiminin de hesaba katılarak bu yaklaşımların ortaya konulması ve vaka analizleri üzerinden uygulaması önemlidir. Günümüzde “güvenlik” kavramı uluslararası ilişkiler disiplini içerisinde çevre veya toplumsal güvenlik ya da cinsiyet gibi farklı güvenlik boyutları ile analiz edilmeye başlanmıştır. Bu kitabın temel hedeflerinden bir tanesi farklı bakış açılarını yansıtan kuramsal çerçevelerle “güvenlik” kavramına bakabilmektir.. İçindekiler Önsöz Giriş – Sibel TURAN ve Nergiz ÖZKURAL KÖROĞLUKURAMSAL ÇERÇEVE: ULUSLARARASI İLİŞKİLERDE GÜVENLİK – Sibel TURAN, Nergiz ÖZKURAL KÖROĞLU, İlker Aral GÜNGÖR BİRİNCİ KISIM: NEOREALİZM VE GÜVENLİK NEOREALİZM BAĞLAMINDA TÜRK DIŞ POLİTİKASI (1945-1965) – Latif PINARNEOREALİST KURAM ÇERÇEVESİNDE ULUSLARARASI NÜKLEER GÜVENLİK – Hulusi Ekber KAYANEOREALİZM VE İRAN DIŞ POLİTİKASI – Demet ŞENBAŞ İKİNCİ KISIM: LİBERALİZM VE GÜVENLİK 21. YÜZYIL İSRAİL-TÜRKİYE İLİŞKİLERİNİN LİBERAL GÜVENLİK YORUMU – Armağan ÖRKİDOĞAL KAYNAK MİLLİYETÇİLİĞİ BAĞLAMINDA RUSYA-AVRUPA BİRLİĞİ İLİŞKİLERİNDE BİR DIŞ POLİTİKA ARACI OLARAK ENERJİ – Serdar YILMAZNEOREALİZM VE NEOLİBERALİZM KURAMLARININ GÜVENLİK YAKLAŞIMLARI VE ARAP DEVRİMLERİNDE SURİYE POLİTİKALARI – İsmail ERMAĞAN ve Aybars KARCI ÜÇÜNCÜ KISIM: OYUN TEORİSİ VE GÜVENLİK OYUN KURAMI ÇERÇEVESİNDE SURİYELİ MÜLTECİ KRİZİ – Emirhan KAYAPASİFİK YÜZYILINA GİRERKEN ABD-ÇİN İLİŞKİLERİ: ÇİN DENİZİ’NİN ISINAN SULARI VE BÖLGEDE GÜVENLİK SORUNU – Tural BAHADIR DÖRDÜNCÜ KISIM: KONSTRÜKTİVİZM VE GÜVENLİK SOSYAL İNŞACILIĞIN TEMEL VARSAYIMLARI İTİBARIYLA GÜVENLİK YAKLAŞIMI VE AVRUPA BİRLİĞİ’NİN BALKANLAR GENİŞLEMESİ – Kader ÖZLEMKONSTRÜKTİVİZM BAĞLAMINDA ABD’NİN KÜBA POLİTİKASI – İlker Aral GÜNGÖRAVRUPA’DA İSLAM’IN GÜVENLİKLEŞTİRİLMESİ – Sinem YÜKSEL ÇENDEK

Civil Society Impact on the EU Climate Change Policy

Author(s): Selma Şekercioğlu / Language(s): English

“In today’s world climate change has come to a point where national, regional and global actors are forced to re-make or re-design their policies in order to reduce the negative influences of this phenomenon. The European Union (EU) is no exception to these actors that are in need of making new arrangements on climate change. In this book I intended to evaluate the transition in the EU’s energy related climate policies; the changing roles of the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and the European institutions. In fact, lobbying taking place at the CSOs level is and must be directly linked with the role of the EU institutions whilst evaluating the new approaches of the EU on climate change matters. More specifically, Brussels based CSOs are particularly important whilst analysing their access to the decision-making mechanisms of the EU as well as the pressure mechanisms they impose on the EU-level policy changes. Readers will see that there is hard evidence that CSOs has some influence on the EU’s energy related climate change policy decisions. Particularly the interviews conducted in this work places this book apart from the rest of the literature. I hope all readers will find this work on the influence of the EU-wide civil society organizations on climate policies of the Union of their interest and appealing.”

Každodenní život v Československu 1945/48-1989

Author(s): Robert Kvaček,Martin Franc,Jan Rychlík,Petr Bednařík,Zuzana Beňušková,Alžběta Čornejová,Michal Ulvr,Miroslav Vaněk / Language(s): Czech

Z desetidílné kroniky Josefa Holečka Naši mám nejraději hned první svazek Jak u nás žijou a umírají z roku 1898. Je obsažným poetickým obrazem venkovského života v polovině 19. století naplněného ještě i napětím mezi feudálním a selským světem, dramatickými osudy protagonistů. Nic pro historiky, zdá se na první a asi i další pohled, ve skutečnosti jde o pramen mluvný a sdělný, jen ho náležitě číst a vést s ním rozhovor, v němž je dějepisec naslouchajícím a dozvídajícím se. Zdrojů poznání, jak u nás žili a odcházeli – i ti včerejší, a zvláště ti včerejší – je téměř neomezeně, vzhledem k lidské mnohosti i jedinečnosti, jen je umět vřazovat do heuristiky.

Neispričana povijest

Author(s): / Language(s): Croatian

Tranziciona pravda u post-jugoslovenskim zemljama - Izveštaj za 2006. godinu

Author(s): / Language(s): Croatian,Serbian

U oružanim sukobima u Hrvatskoj (1991.-95.), Bosni i Hercegovini (1992.-95.), i na Kosovu (1998.-99.), najmanje 130,000 ljudi je izgubilo život, milioni su bili prinuđeni da napuste svoje domove, a stotine hiljada kuća su razorene. Prelaz iz stanja oružanog sukoba i državne represije u period mira i izgradnje demokratskih institucija zahteva od ovih društava da se odrede prema masovnim kršenjima ljudskih prava iz bliske prošlosti. Skup mera koje vlasti i civilno društvo preduzimaju radi suočavanja sa ovim kršenjiima prava čini kompleks tranzicione pravde, čiji su osnovni elementi utvrđivanje činjenica, suđenja, reparacije, i institucionalne reforme (lustracija). Ovaj izveštaj se bavi suočavanjem s posledicama ratnih događanja i zločinima počinjenim u periodu od 1991. do 1999. godine. Izveštaj je nastao na inicijativu Fonda za humaritarno pravo (FHP), u saradnji s Istraživačko dokumentacionim centrom (IDC-BiH) i Documentom (Hrvatska). Odnosi se na Bosnu i Hercegovinu, Hrvatsku, Srbiju, Kosovo, i Crnu Goru – u daljem tekstu “post-jugoslovenske zemlje“. U toku 2006. godine, u skoro svim post-jugoslovenskim zemljama suđenja za ratne zločine su dobila na zamahu, ali u drugim oblastima tranzicione pravde jedva da je bilo značajnijih pomaka u odnosu na prethodni period. Nedostajali su konkretni koraci vlasti koji bi vodili ka uspostavljanju tela za utvrđivanje činjenica, na državnom ili regionalnom nivou. Vrlo malo je urađeno kako bi se lica koja pretenduju da obavljaju javnu funkciju podvrgla ispitivanju njihovih postupaka za vreme oružanih sukoba. Napokon, dolazak do reparacija –bilo na osnovu zakona ili sudskim putem – još uvek je teško ostvarivo za mnoge žrtve kršenja prava iz devedesetih godina. SUĐENJA ZA RATNE ZLOČINE: Suđenja za ratne zločine su od samog završetka rata predstavljala najvažniji oblik tranzicione pravde koji se primenjuje u post-jugoslovenskim zemljama. U ranom posleratnom periodu nosilac procesuiranja ratnih zločina u regionu bio je Međunarodni krivični tribunal za bivšu Jugoslaviju (MKTJ), prvenstveno zbog toga što nacionalna pravosuđa nisu zatakav zadatak bila spremna. Iako svojim osnivanjem i delovanjem nije uspeo da spreči neka od teških i masovnih kršenja ljudskih prava, kao što je zločin u Srebrenici u julu 1995. godine, tribunal je doprineo obuzdavanju nasilja u još nedovršenom procesu dezintegracije bivše Jugoslavije, procesuiranju odgovornih na najvišim vojnim i političkim funkcijama, te pripremi pravosuđa i javnosti u regionu zasuđenja za ratne zločine. Uspostavljanje specijalnih tužilaštava za ratne zločine, odnosno specijalizovanih veća ili sudova za ovu vrstu slučajeva, u periodu 2003.-05., dovelo je do poboljšanja istraga i suđenja za ratne zločine, u Hrvatskoj, Srbiji, i Bosni i Hercegovini (BiH). U 2006. godini je nastavljen pozitivan trend iz prethodnih godina, naročito potcrtan daljnjim napretkom u saradnji tužilaštava iz BiH,Hrvatske, i Srbije. Ipak, u sve tri zemlje bili su vidljivi značajni problemi u procesuiranju ratnih zločina,uključujući nedovoljnu podršku političkih struktura krivičnom gonjenju osumnjičenih za ratne zločine bez obzira na nacionalnost, kao i neadekvatne mere za podršku i zaštitu svedoka. U Hrvatskoj su pred županijskim sudovima tokom godine održana ukupno 23 suđenja, od čega 18 protiv pripadnika srpskih snaga, a pet protiv pripadnika vojno-policijskih snaga Republike Hrvatske. Doneseno je pet nepravosnažnih presuda, a tri presude su potvrđene od strane Vrhovnog suda RH. Sudovi u BiH su doneli 23 presude u prvom stepenu, i 17 pravnosnažnih (drugostepenih) presuda. Broj započetih i predstojećih suđenja pred Većem za ratne zločine pri Sudu BiH nadmašio je broj suđenja pred svim drugim sudovima. Procesuiranje za ratne zločine započelo je i u Republici Srpskoj, u kojoj je prethodno vladala nekažnjivost za počinioce ratnih zločina. U Srbiji su 2006. godine održana suđenja za ratne zločine u sedam predmeta. Na Kosovu je 2006. godine održano samo jedno suđenje za ratne zločine, protiv šestorice kosovskih Albanaca optuženih za zločine protiv drugih Albanaca. U avgustu je veće, sastavljeno isključivo od međunarodnih sudija, osudilo trojicu bivših oficira Oslobodilačke vojske Kosova (OVK)na sedmogodišnje kazne zatvora, a sud je nakon izricanja presude doneo odluku o puštanju osuđenih na slobodu do pravnosnažnosti. U Crnoj Gori 2006. godine nije održano nijedno suđenje za ratne zločine, kao ni u prethodne četiri godine. Velika praznina u kažnjavanju ratnih zločina proističe iz činjeni-ce da mnogi počinioci ratnih zločina u BiH sada žive i stekli su državljanstvo u Srbiji o Hrvatskoj, gde im je ustavom ili zakonom zagarantovano neizručivanje. Istovremeno, BiH nije voljna da prepusti suđenja ovih lica pravosuđu Hrvatske i Srbije. UTVRĐIVANJE ČINJENICA: U post-jugoslovenskim zemljama ne deluje nijedno zvanično telo koje bi na sistematski način, na nivou pojedine države ili država naslednica bivše Jugoslavije, utvrđivalo činjenice o kršenjima ljudskih prava i humanitarnog prava u proteklom periodu. U 2006. godini, parlamentarne stranke u BiH su po prvi put uzele učešće u konkretnim aktivnostima koje potencijalno vode ka osnivanju državne komisije za istinu, tako što je radna grupa sačinjena od stranačkih predstavnika napravila nacrt zakona o komisiji. Vlada BiH je u junu osnovala Komisiju za utvrđivanje činjenica o stradanjima Srba, Hrvata, Bošnjaka, Jevreja i ostalih u Sarajevu u periodu 1992-95. Iako je vlada utvrdila jednogodišnji rok za završetak rada ove komisije, u periodu između njenog osnivanja i kraja 2006. godine nije otpočeo rad na prikupljanju informacija. U drugim post-jugoslovenskim zemljama nije bilo ozbiljnijih rasprava unutar parlamenta ili vlada o osnivanju bilo kog tipa komisije za istinu. Umesto toga, na skupovima nevladinih organizacija učesnici su razmatrali moguće osnivanje regionalnog tela koje bi utvrđivalo činjenice o prošlosti i omogućilo žrtvama da neposredno iznose svoja iskustva. U 2006. godini, u raspravama koje su u parlamentima Srbije i Hrvatske vođene o događajima iz vremena rata, dominirala je jednostrana nacionalistička interpretacija ratnih događanja. Naročito je ovo bilo primetno u Srbiji, gde predstavnici umerenih stranaka nisu reagovali na brojne istupe nacionalističkih ekstremista. Krajem 2006. godine, u regionu je bilooko 17.000 nerešenih zahteva za pronalazak nestalih lica. Odnosi između predstavnika raznih komisija za nestala lica, na nivou post-jugoslovenskih zemalja još su opterećeni nepoverenjem. Još su češće i oštrije kritike koje udruženja porodica nestalih javno upućuju na račun državnih tela. Sve ovo doprinosilo je utisku o ispolitizovanosti jednog eminentno humanitarnog pitanja, i umanjivalo je efikasnost napora za traženje nestalih lica. Komisija za traženje nestalih Federacije BiH je 2006. godine ekshumirala oko 2.250 posmrtnih ostataka ne području Republike Srpske, a Kancelarija Republike Srpske zatraženje nestalih i zarobljenih lica je ekshumirala 126 tela. U Hrvatskoj je u toku 2006. godine ekshumirano 180 tela. Krajem godine još uvek se 2.050 državljana Republike Hrvatske vodilo kao nestalo, a uz to vlasti Srbije su tražile nešto više od 400 svojih državljana koji su nestali tokom sukoba u Hrvatskoj. Na Kosovu je krajem 2006. godine bilo 2,137 lica za kojima se i dalje traga, a nadležne agencije su u toku godine ekshumirale 59 tela. LUSTRACIJA: Bosna i Hercegovina ostaje jedina od post-jugoslovenskih zemalja u kojoj je, iako u ograničenom obimu, mogućnost da lice obavlja javnu funkciju uslovljena ispitivanjem njegovih postupaka za vreme oružanih sukoba. Između 1999. i 2002. godine, Misija Ujedinjenih nacija je ispitivala postupanje 24.000 aktivnih policajaca u prethodnom (ratnom) periodu; 4 odsto policajaca je kao rezultat procesa uklonjeno iz službe. Između 2002. i 2004. godine u BiHje sprovedena sudska reforma, u toku koje je Visoki sudski i tužilački savet odlučio da oko 200 sudija i tužilaca, od 1.000, ne treba da budu ponovo izabrano. Iako u Srbiji postoji zakon koji na sveobuhvatan način predviđa utvrđivanje činjenica o aktivnostima lica za vreme oružanih sukoba i u periodu komunizma, zakon nikada nije bio primenjen. U periodu 2004.-06., većinu poslanika u parlamentu činili su poslanici Srpske radikalne stranke, Demokratske stranke Srbije, i Socijalističke partije Srbije, koje su u vreme donošenja zakona o odgovornosti za kršenje ljudskih prava (2003.) bile protiv njegovog usvajanja. REPARACIJE: U toku 2006. godine, u post jugoslovenskim zemljama primenjivane su sledeće vrste reparacija: naknade (na osnovu zakona i na osnovu sudskih odluka), restitucija, utvrđivanje sudbine nestalih, i otkrivanje spomen-obeležja. Povrat i obnova imovine, te novčane reparacije suuglavnom najpre obezbeđeni za pripadnike većine, odnosno žrtve na pobedničkoj strani rata, dok u odnosu na pripadnike manjine proces još uvek traje, ili tek treba da počne (u Hrvatskoj je desetinama hiljada Srba sudskim putem oduzeto stanarsko pravo s obrazloženjom da su napustili stanove, a vlada nije pokazala spremnost da im obezbedi pravičnu restituciju ili kompenzaciju). Spomen-obeležja se takođe podižu u znak sećanja na žrtve većinskog naroda. U koncipiranju i primeni zakona o reparacijama, u svim post-jugoslovenskim zemljama upadljivo su privilegovana vojna lica, odnosno članovi njihovih porodica, u odnosu na civile. U svim delovima bivše Jugoslavije, izvestan broj civilnih žrtava rata i osoba čija su ljudska prava ozbiljno kršena u prethodnom periodu nastojao je da ostvari naknadu štete sudskim putem. U Srbiji su, u njihovo ime, nevladine organizacije za ljudska prava podnosile tužbe za naknadu štete, i u većini slučajeva sudovi su presudili u korist žrtava. U drugim zemljama,broj tužilaca je bio relativno mali, zbog nepostojanja delotvornih sistema besplatne pravne pomoći i zakonskih rešenja kojima bi se žrtve izuzele od plaćanja sudskih taksi i troškova postupka u slučaju gubitka spora. U svim post-jugoslovenskim zemljama karakter spomen-obeležja i način na koji se podižu jasno reflektuje političku i društvenu klimu u datoj sredini. U Srbiji, spomen-obeležja izražavaju potrebu većinskog dela društva da interpretira ulog u Srbije u ratovima 1990-ih, inače žestoko kritikovanu u međunarodnoj zajednici i u drugim delovima bivše Jugoslavije, kao jednoznačno pozitivnu. U Hrvatskoj i na Kosovu, gotovo potpuno odsutstvo spomen-obeležja o stradanjima manjinskog (srpskog) naroda izražava rasprostranjen stav da uloga pravedne žrtve isključivo pripada većinskom (hrvatskom, odnosno albanskom) narodu. U Bosni i Hercegovini postoji nešto veća spremnost da se,kroz simboličku formu spomenika, prihvate svedočanstva o stradanju “druge strane”, iako takvi primeri predstavljaju izuzetak pre nego pravilo. U Crnoj Gori, tenzija između vlasti koja je zagovarala samostalnost Crne Gore, s jedne strane, i onih sektora u društvu koji su naklonjeni Srbiji, s druge strane, prelama se i kroz praksu podizanja spomen-obeležja. Ono što je zajedničko spomen-obeležjima u svim delovima bivše Jugoslavije je prihvatanje, na simboličkom nivou, privilegovanog položaja vojnih žrtava u odnosu na civilne.