This paper explores the politicization of memory and commemoration surrounding the breakup of Yugoslavia through an examination of the 1991-1995 Croatian War of Independence ("Homeland War" in Croatia) and the 1992-1993 Croat-Bosniak War. These two conflicts represent the zenith of Croatian nationalism, which, in conjunction with Serbian nationalism, was integral in the destruction of Tito's pan-South Slav ideology of brotherhood and unity. With the end of the wars resulting in Croatian independence, Croatian nationalism was legitimized and became the unifying belief system for the nascent nation.
The project begins with an overview of Croatian nationalism during communist Yugoslavia, tracing its interaction with Tito's nation- and identity-building project of Yugoslavism, its rise to prominence during the "Croatian Spring" of the mid-1970s, and finally its domination in national discourse in the early 1990s. Croatian nationalism was not alone during these periods, as it clashed with Serbian nationalism along the traditional federalist-centralist divides that had governed Yugoslav politics since the state's inception. After the death of Tito in 1980 and the onset of acute political and economic crises at the end of the decade, Croatian and Serbian nationalism became irreconcilable, leading to the collapse of the Yugoslav project in five years of brutal conflict characterized by ethnic cleansing and urban warfare.
The focus of the paper is these wars of the early 1990s – specifically the "Homeland War" and the Croat-Bosniak War – and how they are remembered today. I examine memorials, museums, and holidays as venues for the dissemination and perpetuation of the nationalist narrative of the conflicts. Using field research conducted in numerous locations across Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (including Dubrovnik, Knin, Zagreb, Vukovar, and Mostar, as well as several smaller communities), the project shows how Croat memorial culture exhibits, and therefore maintains, the national image of Croatia as both "victim and victor," while strategically omitting certain historical elements of the conflicts, notably Croat participation in war crimes. These dynamics are epitomized in Vukovar, Knin, and Mostar. Memorial culture in the first two cities centers on Croatian victimhood and victory, respectively, as these sites were the locations of the largest war crimes committed against Croats and the site of Croatia's victory over the Croatian Serbs. Vukovar and Knin have therefore been transformed into the two main lieux de mémoire for the "Homeland War." Mostar, meanwhile, was a central battleground in the Croat-Bosniak War, and Croat memorial culture in the city aims to emphasize Croat presence in what has become a divided community.
The use of Croatian symbols such as the checkerboard coat of arms and the Catholic cross in memorial culture across Croatia and parts of Bosnia evoke Croat-ness, reinforcing national identity and emphasizing ethno-national difference. Enshrining the sentiment in stone underscores and fortifies the belief that the Croatian nation is both a victim and a victor in the breakup of Yugoslavia. This nationalist narrative leaves little or no room for alternative interpretations and, thus, hinders inter-ethnic reconciliation.
