Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine

See also: Bosnia

|- valign=" top" | Capital || Sarajevo |- valign=" top" | President
Prime Minister | Niko Lozančić
Ahmet Hadžipašić |}

The Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine (or more rarely Federation of Bosnia-Herzégovine ) are one of the two entities which compose the Bosnia-Herzégovine with the Serb République of Bosnia.

Name

One should not confuse Bosnia-Herzégovine ( Bosna I Hercegovina / БоснаиХерцеговина ) and the Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine ( Federacija Bosne I Hercegovine / ФедерацијаБоснеиХерцеговине ) even if the latter is charged to represent the totality of the country to the eyes of the international community.

The Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine was called in the beginning “croato-Moslem woman Federation” or “croato-Bosnian Federation” because being populated mainly Croatian of Bosnia and Bosnian.

History

The November 18th 1991, the nationalist leaders of the Croatian party democratic Union of Bosnia-Herzégovine or HDZ-BiH issue the creation of the “Croatian Community of Herceg-Bosna” which will become the “République of Herceg-Bosna” in the Croat zones populated mainly of Bosnia (area of Mostar and south-west of Bosnia-Herzégovine).

In preparation for the Independence of Bosnia-Herzégovine which will occur on March 1st 1992, the Serbes of Bosnia-Herzégovine make secession and declare the January 9th 1992 the creation of the “Republic of Serb of Bosnia and Herzégovine” which will become the August 12th 1992 the “Serb République of Bosnia”.

The April 6th 1992, the war of independence of Bosnia-Herzégovine starts between Serb forces of Bosnia and the army of Bosnia-Herzégovine. The September 27th 1993, of the dissenting Bosnians of the municipality of Velika Kladuša in the North-West of the country declare the creation of the République of Western Bosnia and are opposed to the Croats and to the Bosnians while being combined with the Serb ones. This civil war between the four entities will last until the December 14th 1995.

At the beginning of 1994, of the negotiations between Bosnian of Bosnia-Herzégovine and leader leaders Croatian of the Republic of Herceg-Bosna arrive at a compromise and sign the March 18th the 1994 agreements of Washington which give rise to the “croato-Moslem woman Federation” by meeting territorial, political, cultural, economic, etc of the Republic of Herceg-Bosna and of the territory controls by the army of Bosnia-Herzégovine.

The Bosnians and Croats put their joint force then to try to push back the Serbes forces of the Serb Republic of Bosnia which gains ground since the beginning of the war.

Mid-July 1995, the Bosnian Enclave of Srebrenica falls to the hands from the Serb ones which make a massacre making approximately 8.000 died and take as an hostage the blue helmets of the Forpronu (approximately 600 soldiers). This act will decide the forces of NATO to intervene militarily in this war.

The August 5th 1995, the fall of the Serb République of Krajina in Croatia weakens the Serbes forces and makes it possible the Croatian army to cross the border bosno-Croatian, to dissolve the Republic of Western Bosnia and to support the army of the croato-Moslem woman Federation which, supported by the air raids, make move back the Serb forces in particular in the west of the country.

The December 14th 1995 are signed the Accords of Dayton which put an end to the war while recognizing and by fixing the borders of the croato-Moslem woman Federation (51% of Bosnia-Herzégovine) and of the Serb Republic of Bosnia (49% of Bosnia-Herzégovine), not without regulating all the territorial dispute.

One two will see the creation of the federal district of Brčko the March 5th 1999 by the reconstitution of the territory of the municipality of Brčko. This district, if it makes it possible the croato-Moslem woman Federation to reach the first port of the country and to forward more easily towards Croatia, cuts also the territory of the Serb Republic of Bosnia into two and is thus source of tension between the two entities.

In 2001, the Constitutional court of Bosnia-Herzégovine sets up the Serb ones with the row of constituent nation of the croato-Moslem woman Federation (just as for the Croats and the Bosnians of the Serb Republic of Bosnia). In order to better take into account this decision, the croato-Moslem woman Federation is renamed “Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine”.

March 1st 2006, the Constitutional court of Bosnia-Herzégovine, in the name of the ethnic equality, declared illegal the Drapeau, the armorial bearings and the Hymne of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine. September 1st, 2006 at the latest, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine will have to change these symbols so that they reflect ethnic diversity best. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine will be able to adopt the symbols of Bosnia-Herzégovine if she wishes it. The January 27th 2007, the Constitutional court pointed out the unconstitutional character of the flags, armorial bearings and anthems of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine without no other symbol being adopted by this entity. Nevertheless, it will seem that these unconstitutional symbols are still of use although certain sources affirm that they were apparently deposited of all the official buildings.

Geography

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine occupies the south-west and the center of the Bosnia-Herzégovine and covers 51% of its surface. No part of the territory has border with the Serbia.

The major part of its territory is occupied by the the dinaric Alps and is not very favourable with agriculture except some valleys (Neretva, Bosna, Una, Vrbas,…).

Although the Adriatic Sea is never far from the majority of the territory, the federation does not add up which 23 km of coasts to the port of Neum.

Policy

The Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine has a capital, a president, a government, an army, a police force, a flag, etc It represents on its behalf the totality of Bosnia-Herzégovine (thus the Serb République of Bosnia) in the international agencies and near the other states.

The presidency is made of a college of three elected officials, a Croat, a Bosnian and Serb, who occupy successively the positions of president (a station) and of vice-president (two stations). The executive council is formed of the sixteen ministers whose ethnos group is defined according to the system of the quotas: eight Bosnians, five Croats and three Serb.

The Parliament is composed of two rooms:

  • the Room of the representatives made up of 98 elected officials
  • the made up Room of the people representatives delegated by the cantonal Parliaments

Paradoxically, there exist institutions which function on the level " ethnic ". Thus, there exists a Bosnian post office and a Croatian post office, a Bosnian telecommunications service and a Croatian telecommunication service, etc, but this system tends to disappear with the profit from a single system as it is the case for the police force. The police force will be besides common to the Federation of Bosnia-and-Herzégovine and the Serb Republic of Bosnia and will be managed by a ministry for the safety of Bosnia-Herzégovine starting from 2010.

The armies of the two entities were unified fine 2005 and the two ministries for the army and defense were abandoned with the profit of a ministry of state on January 1st 2006.

Sarajevo is also the official capital of the Serb Republic of Bosnia. But being inaccessible for its government because being on the territory of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine, Banja Luka is the capital de facto of this entity.

Administrative areas

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine is subdivided in 79 municipalities grouped into ten cantons:
  1. Canton of Una-Sanatorium ( Unsko-Sanski Kanton ): Bosnian canton
  2. Canton of Posavina ( Posavski Kanton ): Croatian canton
  3. Canton of Tuzla ( Tuzlanski Kanton ): Bosnian canton
  4. Canton of Zenica-Doboj ( Zeničko-Dobojski Kanton ): Bosnian canton
  5. Bosnian Canton of Podrinje ( Bosanskopodrinjski Kanton ): Bosnian canton
  6. Canton of central Bosnia ( Srednjebosanski Kanton / Županija Središnja Bosna ): canton ethniquement mixed
  7. Canton of Neretva-Herzegovine ( Hercegovačko-neretvanski Kanton / Hercegovačko-neretvanska Županija ): canton ethniquement mixed
  8. Canton of Herzégovine of the west ( Zapadnohercegovačka Županija ): Croatian canton
  9. Canton of Sarajevo ( Kanton Sarajevo ): Bosnian canton
  10. Canton of Bosnia of the west ( Zapadnobosanska / Hercegbosanska Županija ): Croatian canton

In order to as much as possible include in the Federation the inhabited areas by the Bosnians and the Croats, the border with the Serb Republic of Bosnia carries out many turnings (Gorašde, Jajce,…) and two Enclave S at the northern border with the Croatia creates.

Although the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine recovered the port of Neum (only access to the Adriatic Sea of Bosnia-Herzégovine), it was private larger port of the country, Brčko, located on the Save, an affluent of the the Danube. Concerned not to penalize any of the two entities of Bosnia-Herzégovine, the river port of Brčko escapes since 1999 from the partition and the commune is managed at the federal level.

Population

The population of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine rose with 3.025.464 inhabitants in 2006 but it strongly had decreased and varied in ethnic composition in the years 1990 because of the war in Bosnia (deaths, exodus, expulsions,…). The federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine thus saw the Serb ones fleeing towards the Serb Republic of Bosnia or Serbia, the Bosnians and Croatian to flow of Serb Republic of Bosnia and of the Croats to leave in Exil to Croatia. Since the end of the war, one attends a return of Réfugié S in their hearths, especially of the Serb ones.

The ethnicities most represented are the Croatian Bosnian (72,9%), (21,8%) and the Serbes (4,4%). There also exists of other minorities (1%).

By a decision of the Constitutional court of 2001, the Serb ones were declared ethnicity constituting of the Federation of Bosnia and herzégovine, just as the Bosnians and the Croats within the Serb Republic of Bosnia.

The ten most populated cities Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine are (figures of 2006):

See too

Related articles

External bonds

  • Site of the government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzégovine
  • Agreement of Washington of the 1 {{er}} March 1994

References

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