Title: Bosnia%20and%20Herzegovina%20Between%20Transition%20and%20Consolidation%20of%20a%20Liberal%20Democracy:%20First%20Part:%20Stakes%20of%20the%20Transition%20and%20Democratization%20Processes.%20%20Christophe%20Solioz%20The%20Watson%20Institute%20for%20International%20Studies
1 Bosnia and Herzegovina Between Transition and
Consolidation of a Liberal DemocracyFirst Part
Stakes of the Transition and Democratization
Processes.Christophe SoliozThe Watson
Institute for International Studies
Providence, 14 March 2003
2Overview
- Part One
- The complexity and specificity of a multifacated
transition process - Dimensions of democratic consolidation
- International and domestic dimensions of
democratization and transition processes - Rethinking the obstacles towards a successful
ownership process - Bibliography
31. Complexity and specificity of a multifacated
transition process
- A convenient starting-point is provided by Rustow
(1970) who observed that democracy and transition
are a matter of procedure. Indeed, the change
from one regime to democracy is not an unvarying
process but a context-specific one both local
and international contexts matter. - Transition presumes a developmental view of
democracy (Diamond 1999, 16) and is a
multifaceted and multistep process. It therefore
requires a dynamic and multilevel model. - Transition in Central and Eastern Europe may be
best described in a first approach as a
simultaneous transition process - From communism to democracy
- From a command economy to a market economy.
-
41. Complexity and specificity of a multifacated
transition process
- Although transition to democracy is both a
political and economic process, the two sides do
not necessarily move in step. Progress is
asymmetrical for a number of reasons, including
the fact that the (re)establishment of a market
economy can be more rapidly achieved than the
dismantling of communist structures of political
control. - Vladimir Gligorov (2000) expressed this as a
double transition in SE Europe i.e. as a
combination of development and transition - In Bosnian and Herzegovina, the confusion of
these two dimensions contributed significantly to
badly chosen external strategies and explains
current heavy economic dependence on foreign aid.
51. Complexity and specificity of a multifacated
transition process
- Moreover, many strategies had little regard for
the specific Bosnian political and economic
transition process, as well as in other
post-Yugoslav republics. For example, these
strategies forgot that in Yugoslavia - communist rule was not externally imposed but
self-driven - The Soviet-style planned economy progressed after
1952 to a self-administered socialist market
system, characterized by the introduction of
self-administered rights which facilitated the
transformation from centralized government
planning. - Zarko Papic (2001) finalized the transition
concept, saying that Bosnia and Herzegovina
currently finds itself confronted with a triple
transition - From war to peace
- From a socialist economy to a market economy
- From a dependent country to a self-governing
state.
61. Complexity and specificity of a multifacated
transition process
- The last dimension emphasizes the importance of
the international dimension of democratization
and transition, and, considering the specific
Bosnian case, the transition from a
soft-protectorate and aid-dependent country to a
sovereign and sustainable State. - Thus, the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina
depends largely on - Country specific strategies
- A focused strategy for foreign partnership and
the hand-over of power - Constructive interaction between foreign actors
and domestic actors, i.e. a mutual adjustment
process - The extent of responsibility taken by Bosnia and
Herzegovinas citizens for the transition
process - Successful regional and European integration.
-
72. Dimensions of democratic consolidation
- Democratization must be understood as a complex
and long-term dynamic process with a relatively
open-ended outcome. More specifically, democratic
consolidation which focuses on the durability of
rules that are the results of the transition
processes (Munck 2001) is a process of
interlocking parts - Structural consolidation (constitution, political
institutions, judiciary) - Representative consolidation (through parties and
interest groups) - Attitudinal consolidation (specific and
widespread support of citizens, culture, etc). - These three levels influence each other through
multiple interrelationships. Most fundamental,
though, in the consolidation of democracies are
political institutions, especially constitutions
and the rule of law.
82. Dimensions of democratic consolidation
- Focusing on the creation of governments and / or
constitutions, we may point out four main
different factors which differ in importance and
can be combined in different ways (Merkel 1996) - Historical-constitutional experiences
- Process-oriented explanation
- Action theory
- Import approach.
- As in other East-European countries, the
actor-centered approach explains in the Balkans
most fundamental political changes. This approach
focuses on the relevance of the present
interests of the most powerful actors andf their
chances to gain or increase power.
92. Dimensions of democratic consolidation
- Because of the existing diversity in Central
Europe, the historical-constitutional and
process-oriented approach have limited validity.
Nevertheless, they matter for the Balkans,
especially for the various post-Yugoslav
republics. - Because of the massive intervention of the
International Community, the import
strategies and more generally the international
dimension of democratization take on a primary
role, in the former Yugoslavia in general, and in
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo in particular. -
10 3. International and domestic dimensions of
democratization
- External influences are almost always present in
different ways, as - Diffusion effect (contagion, emulation,
desmonstration effect) - Direct assistance (active measures to promote
democracy) - External pressures (conditional aid and loans,
fulfilling the acquis communautaires ) - Sanctions (economic sanctions, pressures,
political measures) - Intrusion and imposition (foreign military and
civil intervention, protectorate). - Before we go ahead, we have to mention that if
different decisions had been taken by the
International Community by the time of the
breakup of Yugoslavia, pattern, timing and course
of transition and democratization might well have
been different!
11 3. International and domestic dimensions of
democratization
- Forced implementation of new rules, without time
set aside for local adaptation and adjustment, is
counterproductive. Indeed, the most confident
analyses on transition and democratization assess
that - Domestic factors play a predominant role in the
transition (ODonnell Schmitter 1986, 19) - Democracy must be strengthened and improved
from within (Diamond 1999, 64). - External influences therefore have little impact
unless the local population adopt the transition
and democratization process as their own.
123. International and domestic dimensions of
democratization
- Paradoxically, external influence may even
obstruct democratic consolidation and limit the
sovereignty and responsibility of the designated
state, in this case Bosnia and Herzegovina we
may therefore describe Bosnia and Herzegeovina as
an internationally dependent democracy. - Additionally, a comprehensive approach must
incorporate not only the international side of
democratization but also the intentions and
actions of relevant domestic groupings, as well
as the interaction between internal and
international processes (Whitehead 2001, 15). - To avoid the failure of imposed strategies and
models, it is essential - To take into account Bosnias specific economic
and political characteristics, rooted in its
past - To pass responsibility for enacting transition
today in the hands of the High Representative
to Bosnian social and political actors, not
foreign ones.
134. Rethinking the obstacles towards a successful
ownership process in Bosnia
- Bosnia and Herzegovina is not yet a consolidated
liberal democracy. Worse, it lies somewhere
half-way between a democracy and an authoritarian
regime, in a grey zone characterized by somewhat
disquieting socio-economic performances and sham
pluralism, only poorly masking the domination of
an elite that is partly corrupt, partly
incompetent. So, why ? - It is inaccurate to describe the process under
way as change at slow pace, or to attribute it
only to local obstructionism, corruption, or what
Papic (2001) has referred to as the dependency
syndrome. - One must also look at the size of the financial
engagement of the International Community, which
between 1995 and 2000 was some USD 46 to 53
billions. In view of these figures, the
cost-effectiveness of the foreign intervention
leaves much to be desired, in that this massive
financial assistance has failed to give any
significant autonomy to the country.
144. Rethinking the obstacles towards a successful
ownership process
- We have to reconsider the effectiveness of the
intervention of the International Community also
in the light of the burgeoning literature on
democratization and transition which focused on
democratization and transition as a domestic
affair par excellence. - Here we have to ask
- Why did this expertise so poorly influence the
operations in the field? - Why ended capacity building in the opposite of
what it intended? - I have described elsewhere the structural defects
of the International Communitys intervention
(Solioz 2003). Beyond this, study of the
interaction between internal and international
processes will more accurately identify obstacles
to a successful ownership process in Bosnia and
Herzegovina. In a forthcoming paper I focus
mainly on state-level analysis. In the following
second part I will consider the civil society
and community spheres.
15Bibliography
- Badie, Betrand, The Imported State the
Westernization of the Political Order, Stanford,
Stanford University Press, 2000, 272 pp. - Carothers, Thomas, Aiding Democracy Abroad the
Learning Curve, Washington, DC, Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace, 1999. - Diamond, Larry, Developing Democracy Toward
Consolidation, Baltimore, Johns Hopkins
University Press, 1999. - Vladimir Gligorov, Task Force on Economic
Strategy for South Eastern Europe, New York,
East-West Institute, June, 2000. - Huntington, Samuel, The Third Wave
Democratization in the Late Century, London,
University of Oklahoma, 1991. - Merkel, Wolfgang, Instituions and Democratic
Consolidation in East Central Europe, Madrid,
Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Ciencas Sociales,
Working Paper, December, no. 86, 1996. - Munck, Gerardo L., The Regime Question Theory
Building in Democracy Studies, World Politics,
vol. 54, October 2001, pp. 119-44. - O'Donnell, Guillermo Schmitter, Philippe C.,
Transitions from Authoritarian Rule. Tentative
Conclusions about Uncertain Democraties,
Baltimore, The John Hopkins University Press,
1986 (1998).
16Bibliography
- Offe, Claus, Varieties of Transition. The East
European and East German Experience, Cambridge,
Polity Press, 1996. - Ottaway, Marina S. Thomas Carothers, Thomas
(eds), Funding Virtue Civil Society Aid and
Democracy Promotion, Washington, DC, Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace, 2000. - Papic, Zarko, The General Situation in B-H and
International Support Policies, International
Support Policies to South-East European
Countries Lessons (not) Learned in Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Sarajevo, Müller, 2001, pp. 17-37. - Pridham, Geoffrey Agh, Attila, Prospects for
Democratic Consolidation in East-Central Europe,
Manchester, Manchester University Press, 2001. - Rustow, Dankwart A., Transition to Democracy
Toward a Dynamic Model, Comparative Politics,
vol. 2, no. 2, 1970, pp. 337-63. - Solioz, Christophe, Bosnia and Herzegovina the
Art of the Possible, Ownership Process in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, ed. by Christophe Solioz
Svebor Dizdarevic, Baden-Baden, Nomos Verlag,
2003, pp. 7-23. - Whitehead, Laurence (ed.), The International
Dimensions of Democratizations. Europe and the
Americas. Expanded Edition, Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 2001. - These and other updated refences on
http//www.christophesolioz.ch/links/democratizati
on.html -