Bosnia-Herzegovina hit by wave of violent protests | World news | The Guardian
▻http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/07/bosnia-herzegovina-wave-violent-protests
In Tuzla, the trigger this week was the sudden collapse of four formerly state-run companies that employ thousands in the city. The companies were privatised but the new owners sold the assets, sacked the staff and filed for bankruptcy.
“You have really hungry people who decided to do something,” said Dunja Tadic, a Bosnian woman from Tuzla. “People here are not living lives, they are simply surviving. Maybe 15% of the population lives well, mostly those who are stealing and their relatives. They destroyed the so-called middle class. All in all I don’t see how it can be any better here.”
In Sarajevo the mood was little better.
“Everyone is here because everyone has a problem with this government,” said a twentysomething male protester who did not want to be identified. “Young people don’t have jobs. Older people don’t have pensions. Everyone is fed up.”
In Zenica, another central Bosnia city, protesters set fire to part of the local government building.
The prime minister, Nermin Niksic, has said he was keen to differentiate between workers affected by economic reversals and “hooligans who used this situation to create chaos”, adding that police and prosecutors should take action against anyone damaging public property.