2014 unrest in Bosnia and Herzegovina

2014 unrest in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Part of the Impact of the Arab Spring
Protests in Zenica, 10 February 2014
DateRiots and unrest:
4–10 February 2014 (1 week)
Demonstrations:
February–April 2014 (ca. 2–3 months)
Location
Bosnia and Herzegovina (mostly in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina)[1]
Caused by
Goals
  • Resignation of the government
  • Political reforms
  • Improvement of living standards
Methods
StatusEnded
Parties
Lead figures
Casualties
Death(s)0[needs update]
InjuriesAs of 8 February:[needs update]
200 (Tuzla)[9]
121 (Sarajevo)[10]
50 (Zenica)[11]
Arrested38[12][better source needed]

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,[14][15] among others, for social reasons and with the aim of overthrowing the government.[16][17] The riots were the most violent scenes the country had seen since the end of the Bosnian War in 1995.[15][18] 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.[1]

Some news sources, such as BBC and The New York Times, used the name Bosnian Spring when describing the riots,[19][20][21] 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".[22]

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."[23][24]

  1. ^ a b "Who is behind Bosnia's riots?". Al Jazeera. 10 February 2014.
  2. ^ "Protesti u Tuzli demonstranti gađaju zgradu vlade TK jajima kamenjem i bakljama" [Protests in Tuzla: demonstrators shooting at Tuzla Canton government buildings eggs with stones and torches], Citaj (in Croatian), BA, archived from the original on 21 February 2014
  3. ^ "Vranješ Pokretači protesta za povratak ustava iz 1992" [Vranješ initiators of protest for the return of the constitution of 1992], Nezavisne, 7 February 2014
  4. ^ a b c "Anarchists in the Bosnian Uprising". CrimethInc. 18 February 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  5. ^ Gavroche, Julius (31 March 2014). "All power to the plenums: Bosnia and Herzegovina's insurrection". Autonomies. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  6. ^ "Born in Flames, Died in Plenums: The Bosnian Experiment with Direct Democracy, 2014". CrimethInc. 13 May 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  7. ^ Katalenac, Juraj (16 February 2014). "What's up with Bosnia?". Insurgent Notes. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference balkan1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference BI1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "KCUS: 121 osoba zatražila liječničku pomoć" [KCUS: 121 people requested medical attention] (in Bosnian). BA: Klix. 8 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  11. ^ "Foto: 50 ak povrijeđenih u Zenici" [Photo: 50 odd injured in Zenica] (in Bosnian). Zenica blog. 7 February 2014. Archived from the original on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  12. ^ MuP HNž a privedeno 38 huligana pet zadržano u pritvoru [Minister of the Interior HNZ detained 38 hooligans, five detention], Hercegovina info, 2 August 2014
  13. ^ "Bosnia: Local governments resign after violent protests". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  14. ^ "Oko 50 ljudi okupilo se na protestima u Prijedoru" [About 50 people gathered to protest in Prijedor] (in Bosnian). BA: Avaz. 8 February 2014. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Mirni protesti u Bijeljini" [Peaceful protests in Bijeljina] (in Croatian). BA: Haber. 9 February 2014. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2014.
  16. ^ "Thousands turn out for second day of Bosnian anti-government protests". EuroNews. 7 February 2014. Archived from the original on 7 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference dw1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ "Solidarity with the workers and youth of Bosnia and Hercegovina! US and EU hands off Bosnia!". Rakovsky Center. 10 February 2014. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  19. ^ "Protests Over Government and Economy Roil Bosnia". The New York Times. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  20. ^ "Bosnian protests: A Balkan Spring?". BBC. 8 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  21. ^ "BBC: Nazire li se balkansko proljeće?" [Looming whether Balkan Spring?] (in Croatian). Avaz. 8 February 2014. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 8 February 2014.
  22. ^ Bildt, Carl (8 February 2014). "Bosnien måste ta reformer på allvar" [Bosnia must take reform seriously]. Alla dessa dagar (in Swedish). Stockholm. Retrieved 10 February 2014. På sina håll har det talats om en "bosnisk vår".
  23. ^ Jukic, Elvira (18 April 2014). "Why Bosnia's Protest Movement Ran out of Steam". Balkan Insight. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  24. ^ "Why Bosnia's protest movement ran out of steam, 18 April 2014". Archived from the original on 21 April 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2014.