Sluggish reconcililation

The line of argument is similar, where one is in Serbia, Croatia or Bosnia: the conflicts that wracked the former Yugoslavia from 1991 until 1995 are more often considered wars of liberation than the scenes of crimes against humanity. An overwhelming majority in the former Yugoslavia are opposed to their ex-generals being extradited and put on trial at the United Nations tribunal in The Hague.

Instead, citizens of the Balkans have glorified the accused as heroes, who defended their national interests. The idea of atonement, or coming to terms with the past, is only gradually gaining traction and it has largely been driven by international pressure.

Even now, most regions consider themselves victims of the conflict, considering the others - usually members of a different ethnic group - as the war criminals.

Serbia: Long-awaited reconciliation begins now

Shortly after the Bosnian Serb ex-general Ratko Mladic was captured and charged for his role in the Srebenica massacre during the Bosnia War, Serbia's President Boris Tadic proclaimed that his country was entering a new chapter in its history.

But long-held views are not easily changed overnight.

"Now we have a concrete basis for a debate in which the whole of society can be involved," said Natasa Kandic of the Belgrade NGO "Fund for Human Rights."

"That has not been the case so far, even when very important verdicts have been reached and the whole of Serbia's former political elite has been condemned," she added.

Kandic asserts that Serbia has made little progress in its efforts to deal with the impact of war and human rights abuses. In some respects, it has even gone backwards, she says.

Mladic's arrest was met with a mixed reaction on the streets of Belgrade.

"It was high time. He should be put on trial among us here," said one Belgrade resident.

"I do not believe that it's good," said another. "While others protect their citizens, we serve ours up on a silver platter!"

According to a survey conducted in mid-May by a Serbian national council for cooperation with the UN tribunal, 51 percent of respondents believed that Mladic should not be extradited to The Hague. Forty percent even regarded him as a hero.

Croatia: defiance and disbelief

Croatia's society, as well, still has an ambivalent view of its past. In April 2011 the UN war crimes court imposed long jail terms on two former high-ranking generals. Ante Gotovina received 24 years in prison while Mladen Markac was given 18.

They were found guilty of overseeing the killing and expulsion of ethnic Serb civilians during the recapture of the Croatian border region of Krajina from Serbian rebels who had opposed Croatia's bid for independence. "Operation Storm," as the August 1995 mission was called, came towards the end of the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia.

Civil rights advocates like Vesna Terselic hope that the verdicts against the ex-generals will trigger further legal proceedings.

Yet Croatian war veterans have protested Gotovina's conviction.

One of these critics, Zeljko Sacic, asserts that Croatia was forced to recapture Krajina from rebel Serbs.

It was an "act of defense," he claims, "against occupying aggressors from Serbia, Montenegro and the ex-Yugoslav People's Army and a seditious segment of the Serb population."

"If we are to be described as war criminals, what would the people of Europe say? What would the Germans think about us? It's been portrayed as though Croatia's foundation was enabled by war crimes," Sacic said.

Croatian journalist Srdjan Dvornik said nationalism is still firmly rooted in Croatian society. He criticizes the prevailing assumption that Croatia's "own people" were not perpetrators.

"Today, it's known that 700 people were killed during Operation Storm. These facts cannot be ignored. Despite that, the operation is still seen as being vindicated," Dvornik said.

Bosnia: the others were more to blame

Bakir Izetbegovic, the Muslim representative within the three-person Bosnian presidency, admits that some of his compatriots committed crimes during the war, but insists that the blame lay mainly with ethnic Serbian combatants.

"The legitimate Bosnian armed forces committed fewer felonies in four years than the illegal Serbian groups committed in an hour. It makes a difference if you are stained by a single mark or a thousand marks," he said.

Despite the harrowing past, Izetbegovic urges all ethnic Bosnian communities to look to the future. But, so far, his calls for reconciliation have gone unheard and Bosnia remains deeply divided.

Pupils of various ethnicities are often separated and taught in different schools. Meanwhile, politicians who try to start a dialogue between the different ethnic groups risk making themselves unpopular.

Authors: Rayna Breuer, Mirjana Dikic / ipj
Editor: Kyle James