Citizenship in the times of conflict : an example from the Yugoslav experience

This chapter explores how the notion of citizenship changes at times of conflict. It argues that the legal, political, and emotional aspects of citizenship still exist in times of conflict, yet in a different (de-individualised, or collectivized) form. Individual rights become overshadowed by collective claims. Political participation as an expression of political will becomes substituted by participation in wartime activities. Identity rather than representing a passive emotional link between the single individual and the state, becomes community-driven. In order to illustrate its argument, the paper uses examples from the conflict in the former Yugoslavia