The Bosnian war consisted of three factions of people: Muslim Bosniaks, Orthodox Serbs and Catholic Croats. It was a civil war and a genocide, the primary target of which were the Muslim Bosniaks. It began in 1992 in Yugoslavia, beginning with Yugoslavia expressing a want to break into separate countries with 99.43% of the people wanting independence. Politics, religion, language, territorial disputes, and other economic factors, were some of the major components of the war. It became an armed conflict with street warfare. Bombs exploded in the streets; soldiers were not the only ones dying. Women and children laid dead in their own blood. Ethnic cleansing of Muslims, systematic mass rape, shooting in the streets, and other atrocities contributed to a death toll of over 100,000. Two million people were displaced from their homes, either by fleeing to new countries or refugee camps in western Bosnia.
For those who were persecuted, abdication was essential. Bosnian Muslims were the primary target of the war and the Genocide. To elude capture, and possible death, many had to flee Bosnia. (New World Encyclopedia, 22 May 2008) People escaped in any way they could: boats, buses, even on foot. By any means they could manage, they got out, and went into the unknown.Once out of the war zone, what were refugees to do? Many flocked to family members living in different countries such as Germany and America. Some could only travel within the country because of Visa issues. No matter where they went, their lives were completely different, and they had a whole new slew of problems to face.
Three years after it began, the war officially ended with the signing of the Dayton Agreement, stating Bosnia-Herzegovina was a single state split 51% Muslim-Croat and 49% Serbian (Burg, Steven L, 1999 ). The official ending wasn’t necessarily a happy one. Those who stayed behind were often on the wrong side of the country. Those who wanted to return couldn’t, whether it because their homes were taken by others, or the lack of opportunities. Most were stuck with refugee status. After the war ended some countries, like Germany, tried to send the refugees back home, but most were unable to return. They had to move to yet another new country.
For those who were persecuted, abdication was essential. Bosnian Muslims were the primary target of the war and the Genocide. To elude capture, and possible death, many had to flee Bosnia. (New World Encyclopedia, 22 May 2008) People escaped in any way they could: boats, buses, even on foot. By any means they could manage, they got out, and went into the unknown.Once out of the war zone, what were refugees to do? Many flocked to family members living in different countries such as Germany and America. Some could only travel within the country because of Visa issues. No matter where they went, their lives were completely different, and they had a whole new slew of problems to face.
Three years after it began, the war officially ended with the signing of the Dayton Agreement, stating Bosnia-Herzegovina was a single state split 51% Muslim-Croat and 49% Serbian (Burg, Steven L, 1999 ). The official ending wasn’t necessarily a happy one. Those who stayed behind were often on the wrong side of the country. Those who wanted to return couldn’t, whether it because their homes were taken by others, or the lack of opportunities. Most were stuck with refugee status. After the war ended some countries, like Germany, tried to send the refugees back home, but most were unable to return. They had to move to yet another new country.