We are hungry in three languages : potentials for change in the 2014 uprisings in Bosnia-Herzegovina

Abstract

Bosnia-Herzegovina has seen major uprisings and protests early this year. Parallel to a violent challenge to the power, a network of citizen assemblies, plena, has developed across the country, giving cause to the assumption that a new social movement is emerging, finally giving rise to a long absent civil society. The thesis discusses the complex political circumstances that background the collective action and questions up to which extent they limit or determine the movement’s potential. A review of social movement literature provides the theoretical basis for an assessment and location of the movement. Against this background, an assessment of the political impact is intended. The research question, whether this new movement can have an impact on the overall stalemate in BiH politics and on the human rights situation, particularly at the interface of economic, social and cultural and civil and political rights, will be approached theoretically and empirically. Ethnographic observation and qualitative interviews allow an insight into organization and characteristics of the movement and its prospects. Emphasising the personal experiences of a chosen sample of movement participators that served as key informants, a number of factors for success and possible future actions are assessed.