Bosnia

The Dayton Accords brought the Bosnian war to an end in November 1995, establishing a detailed framework for the reconstitution of the Bosnian state and its consolidation through a process of democratization. This intended to lay the foundations for a stable, western-style liberal democracy, strengthening civil society, overcoming ethnic division, fostering political accountability and thus guaranteeing the highest levels of civic and human rights. This book analyzes the policies and the results of the democratization process in Bosnia. The author's original research reveals that the process of democratization has in fact done virtually nothing to develop democracy in this troubled country. Political autonomy and accountability are now further away than at any time since the outbreak of the Bosnian war. In a measured but damning critique, Chandler argues that the real dynamic behind international intervention in Bosnia has very little to do with any altruistic desire to aid the people of Bosnia, despite all the talk of human rights, but is overwhelmingly dictated by the imperatives of establishing new mechanisms of international cooperation and control in the post-Cold War period.