The Impact of Democracy on Gender-Based Violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Post-Bosnian Conflict
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/ks.v7i4.51344Keywords:
rule of law, gender-based violence, quasi-experiment, Bosnia and Herzegovina, legal reform, substantive democracyAbstract
The transition from authoritarianism to democracy is often assumed to lead to improved human rights protection, including a reduction in gender-based violence (GBV). Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a post-conflict country that adopted a democratic system through the Dayton Agreement in 1995, continues to struggle with establishing inclusive and sustainable peace. This study aims to examine whether the advancement of democracy in Bosnia has contributed to the decline of GBV from 1995 to 2024. Using a quantitative correlational approach and secondary data, the research analyzes the relationship between democratic development—measured through six rule of law indicators—and trends in GBV. The findings indicate that there is no causal relationship between the increase in democracy and the decrease in GBV. In fact, GBV in Bosnia has increased over the past three decades, despite a relatively stable democracy index. This suggests that procedural democracy does not automatically translate into protection for women, especially in the absence of substantial institutional and social reform. The study highlights the need to assess democratic quality more holistically, particularly in post-conflict settings, to ensure justice and protection for vulnerable groups. These findings also contribute to the broader discussion on the limitations of Democratic Peace Theory in addressing issues of domestic and gender-based violence.
References
Abulof, U. (2015). The domestic democratic peace in the Middle East. International Journal of Conflict and Violence, 9(1), 72–89. https://ijcv.org/index.php/ijcv/article/view/2721
Advocates for Human Rights. (2019, January 28). Bosnia and Herzegovina’s compliance with CEDAW: Suggested list of issues relating to domestic violence [Report]. https://www.theadvocatesforhumanrights.org/Res/bosnia_and_herzegovina_cedaw_jan_2019_final_3%202.pdf
Agencija za ravnopravnost spolova Bosne i Hercegovine. (2022). Law on Gender Equality in B-H. https://arsbih.gov.ba/english/law-on-gender-equality-in-b-h/
Buchbinder, E., & Eisikovits, Z. (2003). Battered women’s entrapment in shame: A phenomenological study. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 73(4), 355–366. https://doi.org/10.1037/0002-9432.73.4.355
Carvalho, B. D., & Schia, N. N. (2011). Sexual and gender-based violence in Liberia and the case for a comprehensive approach to the rule of law. Journal of International Relations and Development, 14(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1057/jird.2010.14
Chan, S. (1997). In search of democratic peace: Problems and promise. Mershon International Studies Review, 41(1), 59–91. https://doi.org/10.2307/222802
Charta Politika Indonesia. (2021, February 16). Menyoal gender dalam politik. Charta Politika. https://www.chartapolitika.com/menyoal-gender-dalam-politik/
Cook, T. D., & Campbell, D. T. (1979). Quasi-experimentation: Design and analysis issues for field settings. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
Dayton Peace Accord. (1995). Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. https://www.osce.org/bih/126173
Doyle, M. W. (1983a). Kant, liberal legacies, and foreign affairs. Philosophy & Public Affairs, 12(3), 205–235. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2265298
Doyle, M. W. (1983b). Liberalism and world politics. The American Political Science Review, 80(4), 1151–1169. https://doi.org/10.2307/1960861
Finkelhor, D., & Yllo, K. (1985). License to rape: Sexual abuse of wives. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Groppi, T. (2020). Gender-based violence as a challenge to constitutional democracy. igualdadES, 3, 457–471. https://doi.org/10.6035/igualdades.2020.3.25
Heise, L., Ellsberg, M., & Gottmoeller, M. (2002). A global overview of gender-based violence. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, 78(1 Suppl.), S5–S14. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0020-7292(02)00038-3
Henry, N. (2016). Theorizing wartime rape: Deconstructing gender, sexuality, and violence. Gender & Society, 30(1), 44–56. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243215608780
Holmes, S. (2003). Lineages of the rule of law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
International Center for Transitional Justice. (2009). Transitional justice in the former Yugoslavia. https://www.ictj.org/publication/transitional-justice-former-yugoslavia
Kant, I. (1795). Perpetual peace: A philosophical essay. New York: Macmillan.
Koss, M. P., Goodman, L. A., Browne, A., Fitzgerald, L. F., Keita, G. P., & Russo, N. F. (1994). No safe haven: Male violence against women at home, at work, and in the community. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10146-000
Kuran, I. (2023). Gender-based violence in Bosnia: A review study. Avrasya Uluslararasi Arastirma Dergisi, 11(35), 1064–1077. https://doi.org/10.33692/avrasyad.1280359
Linden, A. (2015). Conducting interrupted time-series analysis for single- and multiple-group comparisons. The Stata Journal, 15(2), 480–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/1536867X1501500208
Maravall, J. M., & Przeworski, A. (2003). Democracy and the rule of law. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
O’Donnell, G. (2004). Why the rule of law matters. Journal of Democracy, 15(4), 32–46. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2004.0076
OSCE. (2023). Urgent call to action: Eradicating gender-based violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. https://www.osce.org/mission-to-bosnia-and-herzegovina/550003
Pehlivan, H. (2021, July 15). Genocidal rape and the invisible children of Bosnia. TRT World Perspectives. https://www.trtworld.com/perspectives/genocidal-rape-and-the-invisible-children-of-bosnia-48312
PWM Jawa Tengah. (2024, September 12). Demokrasi prosedural: Antara formalitas dan partisipasi nyata. PWM Jawa Tengah. https://pwmjateng.com/demokrasi-prosedural-antara-formalitas-dan-partisipasi-nyata/
Russo, N. F., & Pirlott, A. G. (2006). Gender-based violence: Concept, methods, and findings. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1087(1), 178–205. https://doi.org/10.1196/annals.1385.024
Shadish, W. R., Cook, T. D., & Campbell, D. T. (2002). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for generalized causal inference. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
Sulistyowati, Y. (2020). Kesetaraan gender dalam lingkup pendidikan dan tata sosial. Indonesian Journal of Gender Studies, 1(2), 101–111. https://jurnal.iainponorogo.ac.id/index.php/ijougs/article/view/2317
UN Women. (2023). Women count – Bosnia and Herzegovina. United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. https://data.unwomen.org/country/bosnia-and-herzegovina
UN Women. (2006). Rape as a tactic of war. United Nations Development Fund for Women. https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Media/Publications/UNIFEM/EVAWkit_06_Factsheet_ConflictAndPostConflict_en.pdf
UNICEF. (2016). Gender-based violence in emergencies. United Nations Children’s Fund. https://www.unicef.org/protection/gender-based-violence-in-emergencies
V-Dem Institute. (2024). Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) dataset v14. University of Gothenburg. https://www.v-dem.net/data/the-v-dem-dataset
Wildianti, D., & Ramadhana, P. (2024). Kekerasan terhadap perempuan dalam pemilu dan dampaknya terhadap keterwakilan politik perempuan [Violence against women in elections and its impact on women’s political representation]. Jurnal Masyarakat Indonesia, 50(1), 95-108. https://doi.org/10.55981/jmi.2024.8695
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Mika Meytasia Ito, Adhi Fahdayna
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).