Stolac

He works particularly in his hometown of Stolac, which is one of the most deeply divided towns in Bosnia.

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Before the war, some 8,000 people worked in Stolac, a town with a strong industrial base in steelmaking, agriculture and wine production.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

“Stolac is a place where you have massive segregation, discrimination and apartheid,” Nerim Dizdar, head of the Stolac Youth Forum, told IWPR.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

In 2004 the United Nation Development Programme, UNDP, drew up a strategy to address the issue of parallel schooling and healthcare in Stolac, but this too was rejected by the municipality.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

Segregation in Stolac is enforced politically rather than by animosity between Bosniaks and Croats on the ground, Maric says.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

The war forced the firm to close, so when Medar returned to Stolac in 2001, he set up his own steel business.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

Nerim Dizdar argues that people in Stolac mostly want to mix together freely, despite the bloodshed of the past – if only the politicians would let them.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

But in 1993, the Bosniak population of Stolac was driven out by Bosnian Croat extremists trying to carve out a mono-ethnic state dubbed Herceg Bosna

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

Before the war, the proportions in Stolac stood at 43 per cent Bosniak, 33 per cent Croat and 20 per cent Serb.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008

Mirko Maric, formerly an office-holder in the Croat party HDZ, told IWPR how the local government closed the Stolac library, which was run by his wife, after he spoke out against segregation at a public meeting attended by the High Representative for Bosnia, Miroslav Lajcak.

Stolac: A Town Deeply Divided IWPR 2008