Serbian Nationalism and Reforms in Yugoslavia 1980–1990

This paper examines the mutual relationship between reform efforts in Yugoslavia from 1980 to 1990 and the ideology of Serbian nationalism, which progressed in a kind of “march through institutions” during those years. Yugoslavia was a “country of constant reforms,” which was especially evident during its last decade. In the conditions of turbulent changes in the world, Yugoslavia also faced numerous attempts or at least proposals to reform the system or its parts. Serbian nationalism used the crisis to impose its solutions on the citizens, but it also had to reckon with the reform proposals. Nationalism was able to use some of the reforms such as proposals for strengthening the central government and for more efficient functioning of federal bodies. Other proposals, primarily on the democratization of relations in the country, were natural enemies of the ideology of nationalism. In both cases, promoters of the new ideology had to reckon with reforms, with actors who advocated or opposed them, and with structures that acted accordingly. Together, this made the social environment even more dynamic and contributed to an intense ideological struggle, the result of which ultimately affected the fate of the country.