Life in the region today

When the Bosnian war ended in 1995, the territory held by Bosnian Serb forces became a new 'entity' called Republika Srpska - an ethnic mini-state in a divided Bosnia. For almost ten years, victims of Omarska and elsewhere have been returning and re-establishing their lives. Key to this process is commemorating the events of 1992

Omarska, Kozarac and the Prijedor region are today part of an "entity" called Republika Srpska, which, under the disfunctional Dayton Accords, is defined as a Serb-run area. Many local Serbian war criminals have been indicted by the war crimes tribunal, but the most senior war time figures remain at large. On a local level, some lesser characters in the events of 1992 remain in positions of authority and influence and some of the war-timer political structures remain in place.

Nevertheless, since the late 1990's returning refugees have bravely begun to recreate Bosniak and Croat life in areas such as Prijedor, Kozarac and Banja Luka, despite living under a political structure created by ethnic cleansing and legalised by the international community at Dayton. Life for returnees is complicated by the existence of Republika Srpska and overshadowed by the memory of Omarska and the summer of 1992. This article from 2000 is typical of the denial that exists among local Serbs about those events and attempts by the victims to raise awareness of the issue.

Although the reality is that RS is highly divided and reconciliation has yet to begin in any meaningful way, there have been tentative steps towards this outcome, such as Anel Alisic's work project with forging links between young people - described here in a Toronto newspaper. The process of admitting and clarifying what happened in 1992 is recognised as a necessary precursor to reconciliation, re-integration and peaceful relations in general. Omarska has great symbolic importance in this respect.

For local Serbs, Republika Srpska's dire economic situation and lack of opportunity in an artificially isolated entity makes life hard and the Mittal investment represents a welcome success, which could be important to both RS and Bosnia as a whole. A proper memorial to the Omarska camp would create a solid foundation for reconciliation and hopefully an improvement in the general situation of all communities in the area.

Useful Links

Na Bosanskom

Background

The Memorial Project

The Debate

Life in the Region today