Bosnia and Herzegovina: Post-Colonial and Post-Conflict Heritage of a European State

6 Dec 2022/PSSI

The international interdisciplinary conference Bosnia and Herzegovina: Post-Colonial and Post-Conflict Heritage of a European State took place in Prague (Vila Lanna) on November 10, 2022. It was organized by the Institute of History of the Czech Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences and Prague Security Studies Institute.

The gathering was financially supported by Strategy AV21 (Strategie AV21), research program of the Czech Academy of Sciences. One of the key aims of the conference was to provide an opportunity for an exchange of the latest research results and new ideas among top scholars from different countries, representing different disciplines (especially history, political science, anthropology, media and religious studies). The participants approached, analyzed and contextualized key problems of Bosnian and Herzegovinian society in a broader historical perspective from the second half of the 19th century until present. The event also highlighted important anniversaries. In 2022, three decades have passed since the beginning of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1995), one of the most devastating conflicts on European soil since the end of the Second World War. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the proclamation of Bosnia and Herzegovina as an independent and sovereign European state.

There were altogether 10 academic presentations (30 minutes each) by 12 researchers from several European countries (France, Croatia, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Czech Republic). The speakers included distinguished foreign scholars, historian Xavier Bougarel (CNRS, Paris), anthropologist Ger Duijzings (University of Regensburg), historian Ivo Goldstein (University of Zagreb), anthropologist Mario Katić (University of Zadar) and political analyst Srećko Latal (Sarajevo) as well as researchers affiliated with Czech academic institutions – Radan Haluzík (Charles University, Prague), Zora Hesová (Institute of Philosophy, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague), Petr Stehlík (Masaryk University, Brno), František Šístek (Institute of History, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague), Anja Grabovac, Tamara Grabovac and Markéta Slavková (Prague Security Studies Institute). The event was closed with a general discussion and final speech by HE Martina Mlinarević, ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Czech Republic. The audience was mostly composed of young people, students, journalists, government officials, and junior researchers from Czech as well as foreign universities and academic institutions.

Conference Bosnia and Herzegovina: Post-Colonial and Post-Conflict Heritage of a European State was the largest scholarly gathering devoted to Bosnia and Herzegovina organized in Prague in 2022 – the year of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

You can find the full version of the Report here.

You can find the Conference Program here.