Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
Cultural Identity Politics in the (Post-)Transitional Societies
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<strong>Identity</strong> construction <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Balkan region - Austrian <strong>in</strong>terests and <strong>in</strong>volvement <strong>in</strong> a historical perspective<br />
Serbia. In order to underm<strong>in</strong>e Serbian national aspirations, <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>me of <strong>the</strong> Antemurale<br />
Christianitas, <strong>the</strong> defence of Christianity, was replaced by Serb nationalism as a danger<br />
for Bosnian unity, which symbolized Habsburg multicultural unity.<br />
So Bosnian Serbs and Serbs from <strong>the</strong> Serbian state had many reasons to oppose Habsburg<br />
rule <strong>in</strong> Bosnia. Serbian nationalist organizations strove for liberation and unification with<br />
Serbia. The visit to Sarajevo of Franz Ferd<strong>in</strong>and, heir apparent to <strong>the</strong> throne, on 28 June,<br />
Vidovdan, <strong>the</strong> day which had become <strong>the</strong> symbol for <strong>the</strong> Serbs’ fight for <strong>in</strong>dependence,<br />
was seen as a huge provocation. The provocation was understood, it was answered and<br />
<strong>the</strong> imperial reaction was war. That this war would turn <strong>in</strong>to a world war might not have<br />
been calculated at <strong>the</strong> beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g; however, <strong>the</strong> European system of alliances implied that<br />
Austria-Hungary would be backed by Germany and that Russia and <strong>the</strong> Western sea<br />
powers would oppose Austro-German ambitions, <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Balkans and elsewhere.<br />
Serbs were seen to have caused <strong>the</strong> war, and <strong>the</strong>y became a symbol for <strong>the</strong> enemy <strong>in</strong><br />
Austria-Hungary. The famous writer Karl Kraus devoted many scenes of his anti-war<br />
epic “Die letzten Tage der Menschheit” to Austrian hatred culm<strong>in</strong>at<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> collective<br />
condemnation of <strong>the</strong> Serbs. This attitude also <strong>in</strong>fluenced <strong>the</strong> position vis-à-vis Serbian<br />
citizens with<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Habsburg Monarchy. Instead of loyal citizens <strong>the</strong>y were perceived as<br />
fifth column, sympathiz<strong>in</strong>g with <strong>the</strong> enemy. Similar to Ukra<strong>in</strong>ians <strong>in</strong> Galicia and Italians<br />
<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn prov<strong>in</strong>ces, Habsburg Serbs fell victim to emergency laws which easily<br />
allowed <strong>the</strong>ir <strong>in</strong>ternment. Whoever was suspected of national aspirations was arrested<br />
<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong>ternment camps, <strong>the</strong> most prom<strong>in</strong>ent one <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> south of Austria located <strong>in</strong> Graz-<br />
Thalerhof (Hautmann, 1986). Dur<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> First World War Serbs were split <strong>in</strong>to three<br />
groups, <strong>the</strong> first fight<strong>in</strong>g for <strong>the</strong> K<strong>in</strong>gdom of Serbia, <strong>the</strong> second fight<strong>in</strong>g for Austria-<br />
Hungary and a third one imprisoned as an <strong>in</strong>ternal enemy. It would be worth look<strong>in</strong>g<br />
at <strong>the</strong> Serbian attitude to war-support<strong>in</strong>g activities, as well as to anti-war movements,<br />
which became stronger at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> war. When royal Serbs fell <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong> hands of<br />
<strong>the</strong> Austro-Hungarian army, <strong>the</strong>y were imprisoned as external enemies. Austrian and<br />
German <strong>in</strong>vaders of Serbia and o<strong>the</strong>r Balkan states were extremely cruel vis-à-vis <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
military adversaries, who faced execution ra<strong>the</strong>r than imprisonment, and also vis-à-vis<br />
<strong>the</strong> civil population. Conversely, Croats symbolized loyalty and were not accused of<br />
underm<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> empire. Thus <strong>the</strong> war, meant to support <strong>the</strong> cohesion and stability of<br />
<strong>the</strong> Austro-Hungarian Empire, <strong>in</strong> fact heightened ethnic differences, hence underm<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g<br />
<strong>the</strong> multi-cultural construction of Austro-Hungarian identity.<br />
1918<br />
Defeat, capitulation, and <strong>the</strong> fall<strong>in</strong>g apart of <strong>the</strong> Habsburg Empire put border draw<strong>in</strong>g<br />
at <strong>the</strong> top of <strong>the</strong> agenda at peace conferences and negotiations. German-Austria’s<br />
ambitions strongly differed from <strong>the</strong> results settled <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Peace Treaty of Sa<strong>in</strong>t-Germa<strong>in</strong><br />
<strong>in</strong> September 1919, which <strong>the</strong> new Republic of Austria had to accept. The more <strong>the</strong> idea<br />
of form<strong>in</strong>g a south-Slavic state, composed of <strong>the</strong> three state-build<strong>in</strong>g nations of Serbs,<br />
19