Surfing for a peaceful future : das Internet als Medium für Demokratisierung und Verständigung zwischen den (ehemaligen) Konfliktparteien in Bosnien-Herzegowina

Abstract

'Politics and the Internet provide a stage for practical efforts and trials as well as for scientific research. This thesis examines the ways in which information- and communication technologies (ICT) in general, and the 'World Wide Web', in particular, can be used as a medium for peacebuilding, democratization and reconciliation between (formerly) hostile parties in a war-torn country such as Bosnia-Herzegovina. Criteria describing the adequate use of the Internet in this area are derived from peace and conflict research and from information science. In the empirical part of the paper, data on telecommunication infrastructure and use of the Internet in Bosnia-Herzegovina are discussed with a focus on the demand for 'universal access'. Subsequently, the criteria developed here are applied to ICT-projects and Internet-homepages of national and international institutions and organizations engaged in democratization and reconciliation. These include government, political parties, public administration, media, educational and cultural institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGO) and the large influential international organizations OHR, OSCE and UNHCR. Finally, some 'democratization projects' are depicted as examples of 'good practice'.