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Ww2 and Its Influences in the Bosnian Genocide

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Ww2 and Its Influences in the Bosnian Genocide
Extended Essay in History

World War II and the Bosnian Genocide of 1992-1995

Research Question:
To what extent did the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia influence the Bosnian Genocide of 1992-1995?

Name: Topias Hokkanen
Candidate number: 03939051
Session: May 2012
School: Coppell High School
Supervisor: Michael Cook
Word count: 3,847

Abstract

This extended essay deals with the Bosnian Genocide from 1992-1995, where the Bosnian Serb army committed various acts of war crimes towards Bosnian Muslims. It carries out a historical investigation of the causes of the war crimes, trying to make clear how the Bosnian Serbs could kill neighbors just because of their religion or where they resided. In more detail, the investigation deals with the origin of the tension between both groups, how Nationalistic influences from World War II were prevalent during the genocide, and how World War II influenced the practices sought to carry out the genocide, examining the question: To what extent did the Axis Occupation of Yugoslavia influence the Bosnian genocide of 1992-1995? The limitations of this essay are restricted to the long-term causes of the genocide, because the immediate causes are not investigated. Furthermore, the essay does not go into every historical or social factor that caused the genocide. In pursuance to examine the research question, primary and secondary sources related to World War II and post World War II Bosnia are used. This investigation leads to the conclusion that the Bosnian Genocide to a profound degree was a result of the Axis influence in the region from World War II. The Bosnian Serbs and Bosnian Muslims did exist as separate identities religiously and ethnically before the Axis occupation, but with the brutal enforcement of Nationalistic dogmas through military and propaganda means, the dichotomization of both groups grew to another level. One can argue that the new way of depicting each group


Cited: Burg, Steven, and Paul S. Shoup. The War in Bosnia-Herzegovina: Either Conflict and International Intervention. Armonk, New York :M.E. Sharpe, 2000. Print. Cigar, Norman Fleming, Gerald. Hitler and the Final Solution. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1987. Print. Hitler, Adolf. Mein Kampf. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2009. Print. Hoare, Marko Attila. A History of Bosnia. London: Saqi Books, 2007. Print. Lifton, Robert Jay Lovrenovic, Ivan. Bosnia: A Cultural History. New York: NYU Press, 2001. Print. Malcolm, Noel Thackrah, John Richard. The Routledge companion to military conflict since 1945. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2008. Print. Wilkins, Lee. The Handbook of Mass Media Ethics. Ed. Clifford G. Christians. New York: Routledge, 2009. Print. Web: Osborn, Andrew. “Five Serbs guilty of Omarska camp atrocities.” guardian.co.uk. theguardian, 3 Nov. 2001. Web. 27 July 2011. “Why Bosnia’s Most Wanted Run Free.” bbc.co.uk
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