Bosnia’s ‘Raspberry-Respirator Affair’ Might be a Fruitful Opportunity

Even if this private firm was unrealistically low-balling the price of the equipment, it is clear that Hodzic's company was grossly over-charging.

This kind of profiteering is hardly novel in Bosnia. I have elsewhere described much of the region's political economy as fundamentally rooted in kleptocracy.

Nevertheless, even by these standards, the case is shocking, if only because of the context. As of this writing, 69 people have died in Bosnia because of the novel coronavirus and another 1,731 have been diagnosed with the disease.

These numbers are a far cry from the horrific figures in Italy, Spain, and the US - but they will almost certainly increase in the weeks to come. As it is, they are alarming for a small, economically weak and politically fragmented country like Bosnia.

Nor can Bosnia be considered in isolation. It is precisely the global aspect of this pandemic that is so shocking and epoch-defining. To have someone like Hodzic, and most likely his associates in the CPD, try to cheat and profit while tens of thousands of people are dying all over the world is truly nauseating.

A cynic might respond that there was plenty of profiteering during the 1992-5 Bosnian war, too. And that was indeed the case; in fact, that is precisely the point - that this repulsive behaviour should remind all Bosnians of, arguably, the country's darkest chapter.

As we prepare to mark a quarter of a century since the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords this year, this should be an occasion to insist on the rule of law and the basic value of human life.

Granted, Bosnia's politics remain wild and volatile; threats of secession are routine, and genocide denial and revisionism are likewise near daily occurrences. One cannot simply put these...