A Free City in the Balkans: Reconstructing a Divided Society in Bosnia

(Hardback)

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Following the brutal wars which raged in the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, Bosnia and Herzegovina was awkwardly partitioned into two governing entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska. But there was one part of the country which could not be fitted into either category: the Brcko District, a strategically critical land-bridge between the two parts of the Bosnian Serb territory. This region was the subject of a highly unusual experiment: placed under a regime of internationally supervised government, Brcko became a 'free city', evoking the memory of Trieste or Danzig over fifty years ago. What has this experiment in state-building revealed about the history of this troubled corner of the Balkans - and its future What lessons can be applied to conflict resolution in other parts of the world And was the experiment successful or have the citizens of Brcko suffered further at the hands of the international community "A Free City in the Balkans" investigates the rise and fall of Brcko and post-war Bosnia and investigates what lessons can be learned for international peacekeeping missions elsewhere.

Reviews

'The topic is extremely important - and will become more so as various endgames rea reached in the Balkans ... Matthew Parish's analysis is rigorous, clear-eyed and extremely persuasive ... the book is a terrificc as well as important read.' - Eric A. Posner, Kirkland and Ellis Professor, University of Chicago School of Law

Author Bio

Matthew Parish is a highly experienced international commercial lawyer who has qualified and practised law in both England and the United States. He worked as the Head of the Legal Department within the Office of the High Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the regional office charged with overseeing implementation of the peace agreement in Brcko. He holds degrees from the University of Cambridge and the University of Chicago Law School. He lives in Geneva. For ore details on his legal practice and writing, see www.matthewparish.com.