Zoom Link: https://univienna.zoom.us/j/64147884198?pwd=i3H6mmou1zg5hdSddyM3WqGCuKKbdP.1#success
Meeting-ID: 641 4788 4198 | Kenncode: 896354
Leonard Kukić talks about his paper "Cycles of Violence: The Persistence of Ethnic Conflict in Yugoslavia", coauthored with Christoph Koenig (University of Rome Tor Vergata) and Filip Novokmet(University of Zagreb)
We study the historical persistence of violence in Yugoslavia during the 1990s, focussing on the case of Serbs in Croatia. After intense ethnic conflict in Croatia duringWWII, both ethnicities lived together in the new Socialist state of Yugoslavia for more than 40 years. When Croatia sought independence in 1990, politicians mobilisedtheSerb population using the cultural memory of WWII and ethnic violence reignited.Using a range of different data sources, we document a robust correlation betweenpersecution of Serbs during WWII and indicators of extreme nationalism and violencein the 1990s. Our results indicate that even after prolonged peace, collective memorypersists and can still reignite ethnic conflicts and facilitate violent secessions.
