A nationalist group in Bosnia and Herzegovina, HERA, has issued a controversial call for the mass emigration of Bosnian Serbs and Croats, claiming that the country has become an international protectorate run by Western diplomats and local Bosniak political elites.
In a statement released on Saturday, HERA declared that the time had come for Serbs and Croats to abandon Bosnia and leave it entirely to the administration of Christian Schmidt, the German diplomat serving as High Representative, and the Bosniak political structures supported by the United States and the European Union.
“This country no longer belongs to all three constituent peoples,” the statement read. “It has been turned into a colonial simulacrum, where one nation, backed by the international community, is taking over every key institution, while the rest are reduced to political statistics.”
The statement, which has already sparked fierce criticism from local and international observers, explicitly blames the EU, the US, and individual Western politicians, such as Florida Senator Marco Rubio, accusing him of betraying “Christian Europe” by supporting interventions in Bosnia that favor the country’s Bosniak leadership.
A Call for Exodus
HERA’s declaration urges a peaceful, Gandhian-style mass migration of Serbs and Croats to the European Union, which it claims has enabled the current political climate in Bosnia.
“If the West has decided that Bosnia is no longer a home for all three peoples, let them feel the consequences of their policy,” the statement continued. “Let two million Christian migrants arrive at their borders, and let them deal with the reality they have created.”
The group’s rhetoric has drawn strong parallels to the increasing ethno-political tensions in Bosnia, where the role of the High Representative has come under scrutiny for its sweeping authority, including the power to impose laws and override decisions made by elected officials.
HERA also called for a symbolic reversal of historical narratives, stating that the West had abandoned the very people who had defended Europe from Ottoman expansion for centuries, leaving them to face what they called “a new civilizational catastrophe” orchestrated by Western diplomacy.
International Reactions and Rising Tensions
The statement has sparked sharp reactions from political analysts and human rights groups, who have condemned it as dangerous rhetoric aimed at deepening ethnic divisions in the already fragile country.
Bosniak politicians have dismissed the call for mass migration as a desperate attempt to justify separatist ambitions, while international officials, including EU diplomats, have described HERA’s message as “alarmist and irresponsible.”
Despite this, the declaration reflects growing dissatisfaction among Bosnia’s Serb and Croat communities, particularly in light of recent controversial legal decisions imposed by Schmidt, which critics say bypass democratic processes and favor centralization of power in Sarajevo.
The escalation comes amid increasing discussions about the long-term viability of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a multi-ethnic state, with rising calls from Serb and Croat political representatives for greater autonomy or even outright partition.
What Comes Next?
While HERA remains a fringe movement, its rhetoric is tapping into a wider sentiment of political disillusionment among Serbs and Croats in Bosnia. Whether their call for exodus gains traction remains to be seen, but the tensions surrounding Bosnia’s governance and international oversight are unlikely to subside anytime soon.
For now, Bosnia’s future remains as uncertain as ever—caught between international interventions, nationalist ambitions, and a deepening sense of political frustration.