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© Editions Eclectica 2006-2009
Terror and Humiliation
How do we deal with feelings of humiliation when they become overwhelming? How can we prevent humiliated people taking revenge on defenceless victims? Joint authors Gilbert Holleufer and Philippe Cotter provide new insights into these pressing issues, in a world thrown off balance by the demise of the great ideological blocs and by the 9/11 attacks.
The first part of the book examines the role that feelings of humiliation play in armed conflicts (Afghanistan, Israel / Palestine, Bosnia). It is based on the Harvard Reports following the People On War survey commissioned by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in 1999.
"When violence flared up in Bosnia, people resented it as a betrayal of decades of good neighbourly relations. Within communities, this betrayal of social trust was deeply humiliating for all parties involved, each accusing the other of having started hostilities and then being forced to retaliate as a matter of survival."
Terror and Humiliation, p.14
© Editions ECLECTICA, 2010
8 A minefield surrounds what used to be a retirement center for senior citizens before the war
(Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
9 Laundry and satellite dishes hang outside a shell pocked apartment building (Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
10 American SFOR base “Mac Governâ€.
© ICRC / Boris Heger, 1999
11 SFOR soldiers attend Catholic mass on Sunday with local residents (Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
12 Local cameraman filming for the “People On War†campaign.
© ICRC / Boris Heger, 1999
People On War
Bosnia
Selection of photographs taken during the People On War survey commissioned by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This large-scale consultation, involving 14.000 interviewees and 100 focus discussion groups, was carried out in twelve conflict zones to mark the 50th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions in 1999.
Photos selected by Philippe COTTER and Estelle GITTA
1 An overview of Nevesinje (southern Bosnia).
© ICRC / Fred Clarke, 1999
2 A child builds a snowman (Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
3 A child builds a snowman (Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
4 Daily life goes on as a children sled along the edge of a minefield (Sarajevo).
© ICRC / M. Kapetanovic, 1999
5 A German SFOR vehicle makes its way through the streets of Nevesinje (southern Bosnia, see above).
© ICRC / Fred Clarke, 1999
6 A young girl carries a load of snow past an American SFOR vehicle to finish her snowman (Tuzla).
© ICRC / Fred Clarke, 1999
7 American SFOR soldiers interact with children outside a school (Tuzla).
© ICRC / Fred Clarke, 1999
"In Bosnia, ex-combatants' testimonies bear witness to an unaccountable Fall into insanity, perceived both as being engineered by the leaders of the land and as a drifting towards a purely emotional regime, based on fear and hatred. The whole process is described many times over as a ‘conversion to evil'."
Terror and Humiliation, p.22
© Editions ECLECTICA, 2010