“Etničko čišćenje” i vojno “išćenje terena” – pojmovno određenje i implikacije podudarnosti u nekim primjerima djelovanja Hercegovačkog korpusa tokom ljeta 1992 / “Ethnic Cleansing” and Military “Terrain Cleansing” – Terminological Determinants and Implications of Congruence in Some Examples of Actions of the Herzegovina Corps During the Summer of 1992

Abstract

The term “ethnic cleansing” was introduced into the broad public, professional and legal use during the 1990’s and implied the politics and practices of ethnic homogenization of a certain area by employing force or intimidation to remove members of unwanted ethnic communities and groups from that area. Even though it was mostly implemented through the perpetration of crimes, various forms of war crimes and crimes against humanity above all, in itself it is not legally defined as punishable. Nevertheless, the term occupies an important place in the indictments and court verdicts, mostly in those created through the work of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, which did not consider “ethnic cleansing” as a mere product of war conflicts, but also as their goal. In a military sense, “terrain cleansing” implies the military use of detachments on a particular territory with the aim of destroying certain groups that represent or could represent danger for one’s own forces. The key issue is the identification of these groups that represent danger. In extreme situations, it is possible that whole groups of the population, identified according to the ethnic, religious or any other criteria, are marked as dangerous, defined as hostile and become the target of attack. In this case it can be said that the conduct of these military actions of “terrain cleansing” corresponds in the sense determination and incrimination to that which is termed “ethnic cleansing”. We have attempted to recognize the implications of this congruency between the terms “ethnic cleansing” and the military activities of “terrain cleansing” in the activities of the forces of the Herzegovina Corps of the Army of Serb Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during June and July 1992. This period was marked by intensive military activities mostly in the valley of the Neretva River, then in the region of Podveležje and in the general operative direction Mostar – Nevesinje. Such a context, regardless of the extent and intensity of the fighting, could not in any way diminish or delay the obligation to respect the norms and laws of war. We have, therefore, extracted the portion of the activities on “terrain cleansing” from the overall activities of the forces of the Herzegovina Corps and have observed them exclusively in relation to the suffering of the civilian population.