Dealing with the past in the context of ethnonationalism

What is the role of ethnonationalism in hindering sustainable peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia, and how can it be addressed? This paper, published by the Berghof Research Centre for Constructive Conflict Management, argues that ethnonationalism complicates the peacebuilding process by preventing reconciliation and allowing individuals to blame entire ethnic groups. Three steps are needed to pursue the twin, interrelated goals of both dealing with the past constructively and furthering peacebuilding in the region: (1) public acknowledgment; (2) deconstructing the myth of ethnic war; and (3) reconstructing identities and de-victimisation. Ethnonationalism is the belief that a group of people who are tied to a piece of land function as a group organism. Ethnonationalists rationalise ethnic-inspired conflict as a necessity for safety – believing that only an ethnically ‘clean’ state can guarantee safety. This ideology is a barrier to peacebuilding efforts in that it creates a self-perpetuating identity cycle that prevents de-victimisation processes. Additionally, self-interested individuals have been resorting to ethnonationalism to further their political or economic motives.