2014 unrest in Bosnia and Herzegovina


The 2014 unrest in Bosnia and Herzegovina was a series of demonstrations and riots that began in the northern town of Tuzla on 4 February 2014 but quickly spread to multiple cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including Sarajevo, Zenica, Mostar, Jajce, and Brčko, among others, for social reasons and with the aim of overthrowing the government. The riots were the most violent scenes the country had seen since the end of the Bosnian War in 1995. The rioting largely took place in the entity of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the same level of unrest or activism did not occur in Republika Srpska.
Some news sources, such as BBC and The New York Times, used the name Bosnian Spring when describing the riots, a terminology taken from other events such the Arab Spring and the Prague Spring. The Swedish politician Carl Bildt also said that "in some places there has been talk about a Bosnian Spring".
Most of the riots calmed down by 8 February, although protesting continued throughout the days that followed.
By April 2014, the protests had faded away due to decreasing participation. A Balkan Insight article said they "ran out of steam."

Background

After World War II, Tuzla developed into a major industrial and cultural centre during the communist period in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. During the first decade of the 21st century, four former state-owned companies, including furniture and washing powder factories, were sold to private owners who were contracted to invest in and make them profitable. Instead, the new owners opted for asset stripping, stopped paying workers and filed for bankruptcy. The closures left hundreds of workers without jobs in a country that already has a high unemployment rate of between 27%–47%. Although official data show that 27.5 percent of its working population is unemployed, at least another 20 percent of people are estimated to be engaged in the so-called grey economy. An average monthly salary in Bosnia and Herzegovina is 300 euros, with one in five citizens living below the poverty line.

Protests

The protests mark the largest outbreak of public anger over high unemployment and two decades of political inertia in the Balkan country of 3.8 million people since the end of the 1992–95 war.

Tuzla

;4–5 February
Protests began on 4 February 2014, peacefully, in the city of Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina, but turned violent the following day when hundreds of demonstrators, mostly former employees of several big companies, such as Dita, Polihem, Guming and Konjuh, clashed with police near the Tuzla local government building demanding compensation and calling on Tuzla officials to intervene instantly. Demonstrators blame local officials for allowing several state firms to collapse between 2000 and 2008 after being privatized, leaving many unemployed.
The protests later spread to various cities across Bosnia and Herzegovina, including Bihać, Mostar, Zenica, Kakanj and the capital Sarajevo.
Due to the recent closures of factories and firms in Tuzla, at least 600 protesters tried to storm the building of the Tuzla local government, accusing authorities of turning a blind eye to the collapse of a number of state firms after their privatization. Some of the protesters threw eggs, flares and stones at the windows of the building and set tires on fire, blocking traffic in the city center. Police eventually forced demonstrators back and cordoned off the building. One of the hundreds of protesters in the city said: "This is the start of the Bosnian Spring," alluding to the ongoing Arab Spring which began in 2010.
The protesters gathered in front of the cantonal government building, requesting compensation and repayments of healthcare and pension payments after the privatized companies for which they worked failed. Local media reports said that some protesters scuffled with police after breaking into the cantonal government building, while others set garbage containers and tires on fire. It was reported that, by the end of the day, a total of twenty-two people, including 17 police officers, had been injured, while 24 were arrested for their involvement in the protests.
As a result of the police brutality the day before, protesters were outraged. The next day, the number of protesters grew enormously; around 6,000 individuals gathered in front of the cantonal government building. The number of injured individuals also rose enormously. According to local newspapers, around 100 policemen were injured, with most of the injuries due to being hit by stones. 11 cars were destroyed and 27 protesters were arrested. Around 20 civilians sustained minor injuries.
;6 February
On Thursday, 6 February, the protests spread into multiple cities in the country, at first by people who wanted to show solidarity with the citizens of Tuzla. In the capital city, Sarajevo, protesters clashed with police who had blocked traffic in the city center. Four officers were hospitalized. Over 200 people blocked traffic in Mostar and about 150 Zenica citizens protested in front of their local government building. One of the protestors in Zenica was quoted: "Today we fought for Tuzla, tomorrow we fight for all of us." Protests also broke out in Bihać and Tešanj, among others.
27 people who had been arrested the day before were released. That day also marked the first time since the start of the uprising that police used tear gas on the crowds. More than two dozen people were hospitalized with tear-gas-related injuries.
Schools throughout Tuzla were closed and residents of buildings yelled insults and threw buckets of water at the officers who passed-by in full riot gear. Elderly neighbors banged on their windows and balconies.
;7 February
On 7 February, mass crowds began to gather at the same place and in over 20 major cities across the country. People gathered in their city centers to support the protests in Tuzla. According to the official statements, more than 130 people, including 104 police officers, were injured on the third day of anti-government demonstrations in Tuzla alone. After a long day of waiting, 10,000 outraged protesters broke through the last line of police defense around the cantonal government building. Around 100 younger protesters stormed into the building, throwing furniture and papers out of the windows and burning the building afterwards.
Even quick intervention by local fire crews could not prevent the fire from spreading to other floors. The protesters gave them a "calm hour," after which the protests continued in front of the cantonal court. Protesters asked workers of the cantonal court to address them about their plans in freeing the remaining protesters arrested that day and the day before, which included the leader and organizer of the demonstrations. Shortly thereafter, a rain of stones started hitting the cantonal court. The group of 10,000 people started moving towards the municipal building, where all workers were evacuated before the angry mob arrived. The attack on the municipal building included a few short fights between the protesters and the special police units. It included the use of tear gas, which outraged the protesters even more. After the police fell back, protesters started throwing bricks and stones at the building, breaking windows that way. Shortly after burning the municipal building, it was announced that the police forces had switched sides and joined the protesters.
During the unrest on Friday, 7 February, the mayor of Brčko was taken hostage by the crowd for a short while and then released.
In the afternoon, a unit of special police of the Tuzla canton, under commanding officer Dževad Korman, lowered their shields and took off their helmets, which caused a wave of enthusiasm from the crowd, the members of which then approached and shook hands with the special forces members. Both the regular and the judicial police followed suit in front of the court and the prosecution buildings.
;8 February
By 8 February, the riots had stopped and all the people had resumed peaceful protests and began clearing the streets of garbage and debris.

Zenica

On 7 February, protestors in Zenica forced their way through a police cordon and set fire to a local government building and surrounding cars. The entire government of Zenica-Doboj Canton announced that they would resign during their next meeting.
On 9 February, late in the night, the government of the Zenica-Doboj Canton analyzed the situation.
On 10 February, protesters gathered again in front of the Cantonal building demanding immediate changes in social politics. Protest representatives held a meeting with the government officials to present their demands. During the protests, the main city boulevard was blocked for traffic.

Sarajevo

;7 February
Tear gas and smoke blanketed downtown Sarajevo, where police opened fire with rubber bullets on several thousand protesters who set fire to the headquarters of the capital's cantonal government. Water cannon was also used to disperse protesters who were trying to enter the presidency building.
Dense smoke was caused by the burning of several police cars near the Building of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was also heavily damaged when the demonstrators set fire to sections of the State Archives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is located there. Demonstrators also torched and stoned the building of the Centar Municipality, Sarajevo, as well as the seat of the regional government of the Sarajevo Canton.
;8–9 February
Peaceful protests with at least 200 people continued at 16:00 on 8 February, protesters demanding release of some young people from prisons that were involved in violent riots days earlier. The protesters called for peaceful protests to continue and demand the change of current government.
Spokesperson for the municipal court of Sarajevo, Alem Hamzić, stated that 33 protesters have been released—adding, "Criminal proceedings will be launched against some ten demonstrators with court likely imposing prohibitive measures. Prohibitive measures include: ban on meeting and communicating, confiscation of passports and identity documents, and they will need to report twice weekly to the relevant police department." Peaceful demonstrations continued throughout the day of 9 February.
;10 February
Some time after 10 o'clock in the evening, an explosion in Skenderija shocked the Sarajevo metropolitan area; reports are that there are no casualties.

Bihać

Protests began in Bihać as early as 6 February. On 8 February, over 3,000 disgruntled citizens rallied at the Town Square to express dissatisfaction with the government of the Una-Sana Canton, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina's ten post-war cantons, demanding the resignation of the canton's Prime Minister Hamdija Lipovača and the Minister of the Police.
In front of the local government building, protesters from all over the country were met by police. Protesters shouted "Thieves!" and "We want resignation!" and asked the police to side with them. Police officers confiscated a number of Molotov cocktails. Shops in the city center closed down as a precautionary measure. Hundreds of protesters gathered around Prime Minister Lipovača's home, fighting against the police and demanding resignation. The clash with police injured several people and the crowd later dispersed.
On 10 February 2014, after days of protests that involved at least 3,000 people, the Prime Minister of the Una-Sana Canton Hamdija Lipovača officially resigned.

UDAR in May

On the 5th of May the anti-government organization under the name of "UDAR", which was already involved in the unrest, announced new protests on the 9th of May in Sarajevo. The protesters have planned to march from all cities and towns in Bosnia, primarily Tuzla, Zenica and Mostar, as well as other towns. However, any events announced earlier never occurred.

Neighboring countries

Protests were held on 12 February in Belgrade, Serbia, and on 13 February in Zagreb, Croatia, in support of the ongoing political struggle in Bosnia. Two women were reported to have been detained by the police in Zagreb. There were reports of anti-government protests coming from neighbouring Montenegro and also Kosovo.

Resignations

;Monetary
The estimated cost in all the cities across the country has been estimated by the Klix portal to be around 50 million KM.
;Cultural
Large amounts of historical documents were destroyed when sections of the Archives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, housed in the presidential building, were set on fire. Among the lost archival material were documents and gifts from the Ottoman period, original documents from the 1878–1918 Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as documentations of the interwar period, the 1941–1945 rule of the Independent State of Croatia, papers from the following years, and about 15,000 files from the 1996–2003 Human Rights Chamber for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In the repositories that were burnt, about 60 percent of the material was lost, according to estimates by Šaban Zahirović, the head of the Archives. Zahirović also mentioned issues with water damage from the firefighting, but said that it could be dealt with. Further, he wanted to clarify that there are four different buildings that store material for the Archives, but "those who claimed that 99.9% of the material was saved were uninformed and wrong." Numerous organizations and foreign archives have offered to help with the restoration, and the Turkish agency TIKA has taken an initiative to assist with the preservation of the remaining documents.
Seven of the rioters in Sarajevo were suspected of having started the fire; two were arrested. On 4 April 2014, both were released, on conditions that they don't leave their places of residence and abstain from having any contact with each other. Both were also mandated to report to the police once every week.

Consequences

;Economic
Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems is believed to have stopped investment into Tuzla Thermal Power Plant, due to city riots and political situation thereafter.

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