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BSU professor testifies in war crimes trial
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History Department Chair Nicholas Miller testified in a United Nations war crimes trial in Bosnia earlier this semester.
Considered an expert in the field of Yugoslav history, Miller was chosen to testify in the case against six men who had governed a region of Southern Bosnia called Herzegovina.
Miller said he was chosen to testify in this case because he has a reputation for being fair and balanced.
The defendants included the Prime Minister and his Secretary of Defense.
The trial covered events that occurred in Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995.
The defendants were indicted for mass murder, organized systematic rape as a tool of war, population expulsion and other street level crimes.
In this case, the area had ceded from Bosnia and was operating independently.
The government officials received money and arms from Croatia, using it to violently suppress the non-represented Muslim population in the area.
“They basically destroyed the area in the name of Croatian nationalism,” Miller said. “They are now on trial at the Haig in Yugoslavia for those crimes finally, and they deserve whatever they get.”
Yugoslavia is a region with a population that has the same ethnic heritage but different nationalist and religious ideas.
These differences were an issue for the country when it was in existence. This led to many wars and the subsequent break up of the country in the 1990s.
The kinds of crimes presented in the trial were common in the Balkans during the 1990s because it was a highly volatile area that has a very violent history.
“This [case] is typical of any corner of Bosnia during the war,” Miller said. “You could pick any spot and you’ll find that the local authorities took advantage of the war to become richer.”
The prosecution asks people who have no connection to either side of the case to testify in trials such as this.
The prosecution asked Miller specific questions regarding the case.
He was required to look at the situation in Bosnia in 1992 and judge what types of violence would have been expected in Bosnia.
He wrote a 40-page report on the case, giving his testimony of the type of violence that occurred as entirely predictable.
Miller was also cross-examined by the defense lawyers, an encounter which he describes as “unpleasant.”
“It wasn’t exactly fun, but it was interesting,” Miller said.
Miller completed his undergraduate degree at UC-Santa Barbara and his Ph.D in history at Indiana University, specializing in the Balkans. His dissertation focused specifically on Yugoslavia. After completing this he came to Boise State and has been teaching here for the past 15 years.
Miller became interested in Yugoslav history because his grandfather was from Slovenia and he emigrated to the U.S. right after WWI.
“The truth is he never talked about it,” Miller said. “I didn’t grow up as a Slovene.” Miller said this made him curious about the region’s history.
He published two books relating to this area. His first, published in 1997, is titled “Between Nation and State.”
His second book, “The Nonconformists: Culture, Politics and Nationalism in a Serbian Intellectual Circle, 1944-1991″ will be released in a few weeks.
Miller teaches a variety of history classes at Boise State, including history 102, the second part of Western Civilizations, history of nationalism and history of the balkans since the 15th Century.
Miller also speaks Serbo-Croatian, which is the language spoken in most of Yugoslavia including Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia.
Miller’s wife, Lynn Lubamersky also teaches in the history department at Boise State. They have a six-year old son.
On the current state of Yugoslavia, Miller says that he doesn’t see the area becoming one nation again.
“I think that in 20 or 30 years it will look like Yugoslavia did but it will be an absolute confederation, sort of a European Union but in the Balkans,” Miller said.
TABITHA KEILY
Senior Writer
