Territorial analysis - urgent-project.eu · Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina – Territorial Analysis...

TERRITORIAL ANALYSIS MOSTAR, BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA

LDA Mostar

2 Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina – Territorial Analysis – URGENT project

Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina – Territorial Analysis – URGENT project 3

BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

This territorial analysis is part of the URGENT Project co-financed by the Europe for Citizens Programme

of the European Union. URGENT is a two-year project led by ALDA – the European Association for Local

Democracy (France), and involving 12 other European partners. The aim of this territorial analysis is to

introduce the context and characteristics of the target area chosen by each project partner to implement

its pilot projects in the framework of the local path of the project.

Reuniting three local authorities, four associations of local authorities, four civil society organisations, an

academic institution and a foundation, the main objective of the URGENT project is to improve social

cohesion in local communities by promoting migrants’ integration through the development or urban

policies fostering intercultural dialogue and the use of common spaces. Implemented from September 2016

to August 2018, the URGENT project focuses on “local paths” implemented in one city per each partner

country (except in Italy, where activities take place in two cities). During these local paths the cities get

familiar with migration issues at local level in order to then elaborate pilot project ideas for intercultural

dialogue in deprived and conflicting areas and finally implement these pilot projects on the ground. In

between the three phases of the local paths, international events are organised in different countries for

partner cities to compare their situation, share problems and potential solutions.

There are four main objectives in the URGENT project:

Objective 1: To create spaces of discussion and mutual learning among citizens from different socio-

cultural backgrounds and from different countries of Europe.

Objective 2: To foster active citizenship and co-creation of policies and services n local societies,

particularly for citizens who are often excluded from the decision-making processes.

Objective 3: To enhance the capacity of local institutions to be “multipliers” in their own communities in

order to engage a wide range of stakeholders.

Objective 4: To provide a new impetus to the EU enlargement process, contributing to the establishment

of a long-lasting thematic network of cities that are strongly active and committed as key players in Europe.

Leading partner: ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy – France

Project partners:

SSIIM Unesco Chair, Iuav University of Venice - Italy

Local Democracy Agency Mostar – Bosnia and Herzegovina

Association of Albanian Municipalities – Albania

SPES – Associazione Promozione e Solidarietà – Italy

SOS Malta – Solidarity Overseas Service – Malta

Fundación Privada Indera – Spain

Municipality of Kumanovo – Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation Amphictyony – Greece

Kallipolis – Italy

Rede DLBC Lisboa – Portugal

City of Strasbourg – France

Municipality of Novo Mesto - Slovenia


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Background of the project ........................................................................................................................... 3

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 5

Context of the city ...................................................................................................................................... 14

Description of the target area .................................................................................................................... 16

Migrant population .................................................................................................................................... 16

Refugees & Asylum Seekers population .................................................................................................... 17

Natives ....................................................................................................................................................... 17

Interactions and mutual perception .......................................................................................................... 18

Social and Health services .......................................................................................................................... 18

Cultural, education and religious services ................................................................................................. 19

Commercial services .................................................................................................................................. 20

Housing ...................................................................................................................................................... 21

Accessibility to/from the target area ......................................................................................................... 21


INTRODUCTION

Political division

Today's Bosnia and Herzegovinian political system Today, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a manner of the United Nations since 1992, is one of the states that have

emerged from the dissolution of Yugoslavia. It is a sovereign and independent state made up of the Bosnia-

Herzegovina Federation and the Serbian Republic. Only the District of Brcko does not belong to either of

these two entities and is a small entity in the north of the country. The Bosnian Federation and the Serbian

Republic have their own political system with party leaders and governmental orders. Federation of Bosnia

and Herzegovina has the government, jurisdiction and responsibility which are not within the exclusive

jurisdiction in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Mostar' s politics In the post-war period (just after war) with the Dayton peace agreement Mostar was divided into six

municipalities and the District area till 2004. The six municipalities were divided into three with majority

Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims) and three with majority Croat population. The six municipalities were self-

governed entities and responsible for all issues which need to be regulated within the municipal

competence, thus resulting in the development of parallel management plans (often in conflict and in

significant wastes of resource). This complex administrative framework at Mostar generated many

difficulties in the post-conflict urban planning, especially in the field of environmental management.



It was just District area that was an element where urban unification supposed to start. There was a

proposal of a Master plan for this area, unfortunately it was never adopted because of the conflicts between

the municipalities (with focus on the division).


The city had for long years two mayors. In 2004 the Office of the High Representative (OHR) abolished

the six municipalities in favour of one municipality for Mostar and imposed a new political framework to

ensure a more democratic system of governance. It was based on complex power-sharing system between

Bosnians and Croats aiming to reunite the city. These power-sharing mechanisms were based on the pre-

war census of 1991 and included election regulations for:

• The city council,

• Indirect election of the mayor of Mostar,

• and the principle that public servants were to be appointed according to ethno- national proportions.

With this, most executive powers in Mostar were transferred to the strengthened city council, which

basically forced the ethnic parties to work together for the first time since before war (OHR, 2004).

However, the imposed power-sharing framework did not manage to mediate the conflict and did not help

transforming the two ethnocracies into one shared yet paralyzed political system due to an abundance of

vetoes and political stalemates (Rafitbegovic 2011). A clear example at this point is the 16 failed attempts

to elect a mayor after the 2008 elections, which forced the OHR once again to intervene.

Nowadays, predominately in the city, the HDZ represents the Croat community and the SDA represents

the Bosniac community (Scotto, 2004 p.106). Both parties have their origins in the early 1990s and had been

active during the war. They are legitimate political forces even though their war time histories have not yet

been reconciled. The parties connections to war veterans and war criminals as well as to the powerful elites

from war times are or was tight (Schmidt, 2004 p.3). Even though they have undergone a major shift away

from radical positions to more democratic positions, the orientation and the electorate are ethno-national.

So, at the present, the city has been unified in order to ensure more efficiency in the urban management

and to promote the integration of the ethnic groups. However, all parallelism has not been overcome yet.

The political tensions still overlap with ethnic divisions, and the dominant political parties are still mono-

ethnic and operate in an ethnified discourse that depicts the Bosniaks and Croats as 'enemies'.

Boulevard as the frontline The two km long Boulevard (nowadays named 'Bulevar Narodne Revolucije(Boulevard of National

Revolution)'on one side and “Hrvatskih branitelja (Croatian defenders) on the other side of the street) was

Mostar's major traffic artery since the turn of the 20th century and served as an informal threshold between

old and new sectors of the city. Though few architectural landmarks of any artistic significance could be

found along its length, thousands of Mostar's prewar residents - of all ethnicities - lived in the buildings

along this boulevard, drove its length through town, and routinely crossed it on their way to work, home

and entertainment (Calame & Charleswood).

As previously mentioned, the dividing line that split Mostar into eastern and western sections was clearly

demarcated: the Austro-Hungarian Boulevard, lined with unremarkable apartment complexes and

institutional buildings. After a very pre-industrialized Ottoman period, the Austro-Hungarians also revived

the economic fortunes of the town by initiating industrial production in Mostar. Industrial zones were

created to the north-west of the city, and a new railway line connected the inner city to these (Yarwood

1999; Pašić 2004). At that time the present-day Boulevard was the line of the railroad tracks leading to the

station. According to Plunz et al. (1998), “The tracks separated the city from the new garden extension to

the west that was the province of the Austrians” (p.14). 10,000 Austrian officials formed a new social group

in the city.


Boulevard was a “perfect” point of division during war in particular war between Croats and Muslims

(Bosnians) that started in 1993.


The political division resulted in a physical division of the city into two parts; a predominantly Muslim,

mainly one on the eastern side of the Neretva, composed of the three municipalities North, Old Town and

Southeast and the predominantly Croat part on the west side of the Boulevard encompassing the three

municipalities South, Southwest and West. Besides, a small so called Central Zone (District area) where the

fault line separating east and west is the main road that cuts through the city from north to south. There

are few buildings of any architectural significance but it is an essential piece of the fabric that dictates

everyday life in Mostar. ‘Despite the self-evident functional, metaphorical and political significance of the

Boulevard, it was consistently passed over as a project site by foreign donors more attracted to the tragic

aura of the historic core’ (Calame &Pasic, 2009).


Methodological division / division in interpretation of the city The way Mostar is being promoted today allows one kind of reading of the city, and unfortunately, creates

a fake image of what it really is: a 'unicultural' image. The selective past (reduced to the Ottoman period), heritage and identity issues and the fragmentation of the city are clear examples of this. The 'Old Bubble' represents Mostar to visitors, so they do not see how rich the history of the city is, with different periods, perspectives and ethnicities. And most of the locals cannot cope with this image, because they do not feel it reflects their reality (UN Urbanism).

The effect of the war has been a disastrous one, with a huge, expensive bureaucracy that has forced its citizens to maintain separate schools, separate utilities, and separate health care systems. Makas (2006) is talking about the local visions of Mostar's urban identity and the overlap with international community's images of the city. She examines who is advocating these often contradictory post-war visions of Mostar and the rationales behind them, as well as links these new civic identities to specific building projects and physical changes within the city. We will look on the four concepts they use -primarily on local visions of Mostar's post-war identity- to focus on future development.

Croat City The growing population of the Croats ensures supremacy. The Muslim part is described as a 'ghetto' by

maintaining a blockade, economically as well as military. Buildings like churches Jubilee Cross, high buildings, monuments are renovated to show this power. And as remarking this power they great a central zone, the Rondo Square, 'the square of the great Croats'(Hrtavtskih velikana).

Divided city During the war 90% of the centre was shelled and 1/3 of the buildings were destroyed. This has

consequences for various topics, especially the political, demographical and psychological division. Geographically the city was separated in two and the Boulevard was the borderline. The Western part of the city Western part of the Croats, Eastern part of the Bosnian. Though each 'side' was composed of three separate municipal units, they often acted in unison, and the three Croat Majority municipalities even signed a formal agreement of inter-cooperation. In practice this meant the continuation of a Croat west Mostar and a Muslim east Mostar, and a city as divided as Cold War Berlin, with as clearly demarcated 'sides'. The central zone was a place where it was forbidden to renovate buildings that belong to one particularly groups. Examples of these buildings are the Catholic Cathedral, the Old Synagogue of Mostar and the Croatian National Theatre.

Two Cities Different from the idea of 'divided', the city can be explained as two different cities. A divided city is

unnatural and presumably temporary, but viewing east and west Mostar as two separate cities in the immediate post-war period implied the situation’s irreversibility and an acceptance of the status quo, whether reluctantly or triumphantly. West Mostar was seen as Las Vegas. It had a better starting position for recovery and there were major resources available. East Mostar was like Hiroshima. It was much less damaged and better financial resources. Another main reason is the persistence of parallel institutions.

Model United City We talked earlier about the importance of the bridge. In 2003 started a reunification with both national

and international actors. The idea was to restore the bridge to stimulate the multiculturalism and reconciliation. It has not just been the international community who has advocated Mostar's continued identity as a multicultural city in the post-war period. Though the overtly separatist projects of Mostar's Croat community have dominated the city's skyline and local debates, the New Old Bridge is not the only site in Mostar argued to represent a shared or unified city. A few other locally supported projects have been couched in similarly reconciliatory and multicultural language, including a proposed new Jewish Synagogue and Cultural Centre and a monument to Chinese film star Bruce Lee.


Potentials: the Spanish Square – as main focal point – intersection point within District

The new town was laid out according to European principles, with wide streets and boulevards, and

single-family villas. With all the development activity taking place outside the historic core, and new

infrastructure and public facilities located in the new city centre on the western bank of the river, the

flourishing old town began to die a natural death in the nineteenth century (Suri). The Spanish Square is the

most central situated square in town. It is known and used by almost everyone. The title is a tribute to the

Spanish soldiers who died during their mission in Bosnia.

This square is central situated in the city. It is quite widely known and has therefore a certain 'public

familiarity'. The diameter of the area is around 30 meters. It is open in all almost directions and is not

covered by walls or trees on the edges. That gives the possibility to see what is happening around and on

the square, but also the other way around. On the square it is possible to see what is happening around.

Buildings around remark the importance and availability of the public space.


The square is open in all directions except the west part where the park is starting. A few old buildings

are creating the separation between the square and the central park. From all other directions the square

is a central point in experience and view. There was made an extensive design for this area. There is a

memorial in name of Spanish soldiers and a design for a park with a fountain. The traffic causes crowd and

noise. But because of the large area it is easy to talk with each other.

The open public space on the north is where the sections of the front-line link together and thus it is of

key importance to the rehabilitation of the city. Before the war the square was known as ‘Hit Square’,

named after a large department store. Outside of this store was a public space that was very popular in the

everyday lives of Mostarians. Religious and nationalist projects have dominated the reconstruction on this

spot that is still not finished. Despite this, the area remains an impartial place in the conflict and has become

weakened and unused as a consequence of its neutrality. In the term 'neutral space' Zuljevic (2011) is

referring to a place that is not associated with any particular group and is equally used (or in this case

unused) by the citizens of the east and west.


CONTEXT OF THE CITY

Total population of the city 105 797 inhabitants

Percentage of migrants on the total population and top 10 nationalities 63,14% (66799) out of the total population are settled population/migrants, and top 10 nationalities are:

1. 48,03% Croats

2. 43,57% Bosniacs

3. 5,16% Serbs

4. 0,35% Albanians

5. 0,22% Bosnian-Herzegovinians

6. 0,30% Roma

7. 0,20% Herzegovinians

8. 0,14% Muslims

9. 0,08% Yugoslavs

10. 0,10% Bosnians

11. 0,57% Others

12. 1,06% Not declared

Number of refugees & asylum seekers, and main nationalities The “Refugees” as a category for BH citizens don’t exist in the BiH Law as immediate war danger ceased.

There is “displaced persons” as the category defined by the low. In the city of Mostar there are 1537

registered displaced persons in 529 households. We don’t have data how many are displaced from or to

Target area - District.

Refugee status holders are the citizens of other countries residing in BiH. 33 refugees are accommodated

in the refugee centre of “Salakovac” near Mostar, out of the target area – District

Asylum seekers are registered at the BH Ministry of Security. They stay in BiH while waiting for asylum. If

they do not have a place to stay, they are accommodated in an asylum centre “Rakovica” in Bosnia for a

temporary stay. In this centre, a small number of asylum seekers reside up to maximum 10 people.

In the Field service centre for the foreigners in Mostar there was 1 person from Ukraine asking for asylum.

He is refused and left BiH. So, there is no any Asylum seekers in Mostar now.


The main transformation in the last decade related to populations that populated the city


DESCRIPTION OF THE TARGET AREA

Dimension (square meters) Around 90 ha

Total population 2 174 inhabitants

Percentage of migrants on the total population 53,91% (1172) out of the total population are settled population/migrants

Most relevant national groups of both migrants, and refugees and asylum seekers

Data for Target area - District could not be processed according to ethnic / national and religious affiliation

Because the Census 2013 database, which is owned by the Federal Bureau of Statistics and which contains

the data for these characteristics, does not contain data on the micro level (Local communities or census

circle areas) which would be needed to define those data for Target area – District.

MIGRANT POPULATION

Gender ratio 537 (45,79%) of male population out of total number of settled population/migrants (1172)

635 (54,21%) of female population out of total number of settled population/migrants (1172)

Ageing index (The ageing index is calculated as the number of persons 60 years old or over per hundred persons under age 15)

1607,14 (371 persons 60 or over; 23 persons under 14; out of 1087 total settled population/migrants)

Main religious groups Data for Target area - District could not be processed according to ethnic / national and religious affiliation



circle areas).


Households composition

576 Total Households

97 one-person household

144 two-persons household

119 three-persons household

124 four-persons household

61 five-persons household

17 six-persons household

10 seven-persons household

3 eight + persons household

6,37 average number of persons per household

Number of unaccompanied minors 30 unaccompanied minors live in orphanage placed out of Target area - District zone.

REFUGEES & ASYLUM SEEKERS POPULATION

Refer to the context of the city

NATIVES

Gender ratio 501 (50,03%) of male population out of total number of natives (1002)

501 (49,97%) of female population out of total number of natives (1002)

Ageing index 97,30 (220 persons of 60 or over; 226 persons under 14; out of 1002 total natives)

Main religious groups Data for Target area - District could not be processed according to ethnic / national and religious affiliation



circle areas).


Households composition

478 Total Households

71 one-person household

103 two-persons household

101 three-persons household

125 four-persons household

50 five-persons household

16 six-persons household

10 seven-persons household

3 eight + persons household

3,18 average number of persons

per household

INTERACTIONS AND MUTUAL PERCEPTION Refer to the introduction

SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES

Public social services (detail) No in target area –District.

Within 100m in the buffer of District there is a school and center for disabled people

Health centres No in target area –District

Within 100m in the buffer of District there is health center and ambulance

Hospitals No in target area –District

Associations, migrant associations, CBOs, NGOs, social enterprises and informal groups working in the social and health field • NGO Nansen Dialogue Center (NDC),

• NGO Center for civil initiatives (CCI),

• NGO Nas grad/Our town,

• United Nations Development program (UNDP) Office Mostar,

• NGO Centar for human rights

Public kitchen No in target area –District.

Within 100m in the buffer of District there is one


Public showers No in target area –District.

One at Spanish Square on district border

Outreach services/activities • Electro distribution company;

• City administration office-service center;

• Cantonal government institutions;

• Federal government institutions;

• Post office- Croat telecommunications- operator for the west side of the city;

• Federal Bureau of Statistics

• Hotel “Bristol”, Hotel “Ero”, hotel “Mostar” and several small motels, hostels and private

pensions

Other 100-200 meter out of the Target area – District kindergarten and family centre for children from socially

vulnerable families “S.O.S. Kinderdorf”

Services delivered All services listed above are available in regular working time and adequately satisfies needs of citizens

Key actors involved to collaborate with All organizations/services have the staff available to citizens. Key actors in each organization depends on

the need of citizen/s.

Service delivery and response to local needs Mainly yes, but more detailed analyses should be completed in order to get more precise information for

each service offered in Target area - District

CULTURAL, EDUCATION AND RELIGIOUS SERVICES

Parks, squares, public spaces One square, and few inner courtyards within collective housing areas (to be mapped additionally)

Transportation hubs Two Central city bus stations (one on east and another on the west side of the city) and one railway

stations at east side, are out of the Target area - District. There is only several bus stops in this area.

Cultural centres (library, other cultural spaces, neighbourhood centres) Small scene of Croat national theatre and Youth cultural center Abrašević.

Within 200min buffer of District Croatian Cultural center Kosača and Bosnian Culture Center and Centar

for architecture, dialogue and art ADA temporary placed at the building of the Music school. (ADA is

established with in the Local democracy agency (LDA) Mostar.


Churches and religious spaces Cathedral –non-finished abject

Within buffer zone of District Lakišića Mosque and Cernica Mosque

Schools One elementary and one high school placed in one building.

Within 200m buffer of District – two primary schools (both east and west from District) one Gymnasium,

one kindergarten, one centre/school for children with special needs

Interactions between different populations in the most relevant public spaces

Good, main City Square (Spanish Square Nearby, at the border of District) is space where people meet in

all periods of day as well as during all year

Main conflicts, and bridges Spanish Square Nearby, at the border of District

Perceived safety of the main public spaces Safe, except before and after football matches, in particular city derby where it could become a spot of

conflict between fan groups

Possible areas to perform some activities related to the project Spanish Square nearby at the border of District and area in from of Small Scene of Croat national theatre

within the Target area - District

COMMERCIAL SERVICES

Shopping malls No, but nearby at the border of District is the biggest shopping mall of the city and Herzegovina region

Mepas Mall

Is the target area an ethnic oriented area concerning commercial activities?

District is not mainly ethnic oriented area concerning the commercial activities. This is more

administrative and service area.


HOUSING

This is dominantly a residential area, in particular on the eastern side of the area that is more oriented

toward the Neretva river. In local legislation and standardisation of housing, there are two major types:

individual housing and collective housing.

Today’s situation is that in the District area about 70% of housing is collective while 30% is individual. Out

of these numbers we can say that only 60% of housing is in use while the remaining 40% are still in ruins,

awaiting reconstruction, even 25 years after the war. That is why in the city of Mostar, in particular in this

area of the city, there are still native people who are refugees in their own city.

ACCESSIBILITY TO/FROM THE TARGET AREA

Physical barriers isolating the area (i.e. railways track, big streets etc.) Main traffic road described in the introduction.

List of public transport serving the area Public bus transport Autoprevoz Mostar, private taxi companies

Frequency of main public transportation lines Every 15 min

Is the target area a peripheral area or a central one? Central area

Connections between the target area and other neighbourhoods Quite well

This publication has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union.

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the URGENT consortium and can

under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.

This territorial analysis is the result of the European Project URGENT, led by a consortium of

13 partner organisations established in 10 countries, with the support of the Europe for Citizens

Programme of the European Union, from September 2016 to August 2018. The project aims at

improving social cohesion in local communities by promoting migrants’ integration through the

development of urban policies fostering intercultural dialogue and the use of common spaces.

For more information, please contact URGENT partners:

ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy – France, Project coordinator

SSIIM Unesco Chair, Iuav University of Venice - Italy

Local Democracy Agency Mostar – Bosnia and Herzegovina

Association of Albanian Municipalities – Albania

SPES – Associazione Promozione e Solidarietà – Italy

SOS Malta – Solidarity Overseas Service – Malta

Fundación Privada Indera – Spain

Municipality of Kumanovo – Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation Amphictyony – Greece

Kallipolis – Italy

Rede DLBC Lisboa – Portugal

City of Strasbourg – France

Municipality of Novo Mesto - Slovenia

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