New Article by Romana Burianová and Adriana Ilavská on the (Non-)Existence of Horizontal Inequalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Romana Burianová, a PhD candidate at our Department, and Adriana Ilavská examined horizontal inequalities among entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) in their article “Illusory Disparities: Unravelling the Paradox of the Absence of Horizontal Inequalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” published in Nationalities Papers by Cambridge University Press. The intensifying secessionist rhetoric by the political leadership of Republika Srpska—one of the two main entities in BiH—often refers to alleged horizontal inequalities and a disadvantaged position of Serbs living in Republika Srpska. Motivated by these claims, the authors investigated whether objective differences truly exist. Their analysis of political, economic, and social indicators shows that the two entities are largely comparable, with Republika Srpska even performing better in some areas. These findings reveal a disconnect between perceptions of inequality and measurable disparities, suggesting that grievances may be driven more by political narratives based on manufactured injustice than by objective conditions.
Read the article here .
