Today is the Independence Day of Bosnia and Herzegovina! 31 years ago B&H held a referendum to become an independent state.
Today is the Independence Day of Bosnia and Herzegovina! 31 years ago B&H held a referendum to become an independent state.
2 comments
The referendum was a condition by the European Community (precursor to EU) to recognize Bosnia & Herzegovina’s independence. It was held from February 28 to March 1, 1992. The turnout was 63.4% of voters, with 99.7% of votes in favor. Serbs largely boycotted it. The question was:
>Are you for a sovereign and independent Bosnia and Herzegovina, a state of equal citizens, the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Muslims, Serbs, Croats and members of other peoples living in it?
Unfortunately, the war that followed, and the peace agreement that ended it in 1995, created a political system of unequal citizens, contrary to what the people voted for.
The Independence Day can now be observed only in one of the two ‘entities’ of B&H – the one inhabited mainly by Bosniaks and Croats. The other entity, largely inhabited by Serbs does not recognize this day, citing the fact that a murder happened on this day. The victim, a Serb, is regarded as the first casualty of the war according to the Serbian narrative.
Happy 31 years of Independence, Bosnia and Herzegovina!