Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Encyclopedia
The political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina were created by the Dayton Agreement
, which recognized a second tier of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina
comprising two entities—a joint Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
(FBiH) (mostly Bosniak
and Croat
) and the Republika Srpska
(RS) (mostly Bosnian Serb
entity) -- each presiding over roughly one half of the state's territory. Today, all three ethnic groups have an equal constitutional status on the whole territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Federation and the RS
governments are charged with overseeing internal functions. Each has its own government, flag and coat of arms, president, parliament, police & customs departments, and postal system. The police sectors are overseen by the state-level ministry of internal affairs. Today, Bosnia and Herzegovina has one Armed forces, but until 2005, both entities had their own armies.
Inter-entity borders
are not determined on natural geographical features of the region. Its borders were postulated as part of the political agreement that was based on ethnic division and are used to determine the extents of political jurisdictions within entities. On the ground there is no active border between RS and FBiH and one would generally not know the difference when crossing from one entity into another.
The city of Brčko
in northeastern Bosnia is a seat of the Brčko district
, a self-governing administrative unit under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina; it is part of both the Federation and Republika Srpska. The district remains under international supervision.
The Federation is further divided into cantons, which are then subdivided into municipalities. Republika Srpska
is divided directly into municipalities.
's framework is outdated, many groups have come forth with ways to redevelop the divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. The Agreement was initially designed to effectively end the war in the nation, but the divisions have made the bureaucracy
of the country unwieldy.
Generally speaking, the nation's Bosniak
population wishes for the state to be centralized, eliminating the Federation, as well as the Republika Srpska
. Officials in the Republika Srpska
vehemently resist this idea. Many Serbs
assume that if Kosovo
achieves independence, Republika Srpska
will separate from Bosnia and Herzegovina
, eventually joining Serbia
. However, the Office of the High Representative
has come out and specifically denied the prospect of any such exchange. The Bosnian Croats view the current situation as discriminatory, and seek either the abolition of entities and foundation of a decentralized governmental structure or a third entity.
Dayton Agreement
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton-Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio in November 1995, and formally signed in Paris on...
, which recognized a second tier of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
comprising two entities—a joint Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the two political entities that compose the sovereign country of Bosnia and Herzegovina . The two entities are delineated by the Inter-Entity Boundary Line...
(FBiH) (mostly Bosniak
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
and Croat
Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina form one of the three constitutive nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina.There is no precise data regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina's population since the last war. Ethnic cleansing within Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s saw the vast majority of Croats move and take...
) and the Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
(RS) (mostly Bosnian Serb
Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina are people of Serb ethnicity inhabiting the Balkan regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or, since the establishment of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a state in the 1990s, the Serbs who have its citizenship. The Serbs are one of the three constitutive nations of this...
entity) -- each presiding over roughly one half of the state's territory. Today, all three ethnic groups have an equal constitutional status on the whole territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Overview
The Federation and the RS
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
governments are charged with overseeing internal functions. Each has its own government, flag and coat of arms, president, parliament, police & customs departments, and postal system. The police sectors are overseen by the state-level ministry of internal affairs. Today, Bosnia and Herzegovina has one Armed forces, but until 2005, both entities had their own armies.
Inter-entity borders
Inter-Entity Boundary Line
The Inter-Entity Boundary Line divides Bosnia and Herzegovina into two entities, the Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
are not determined on natural geographical features of the region. Its borders were postulated as part of the political agreement that was based on ethnic division and are used to determine the extents of political jurisdictions within entities. On the ground there is no active border between RS and FBiH and one would generally not know the difference when crossing from one entity into another.
The city of Brčko
Brcko (city)
Brčko is a city in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina, administrative seat of the Brčko District. It lies on the country's border along the Sava river across from Gunja, Croatia...
in northeastern Bosnia is a seat of the Brčko district
Brcko District
Brčko District in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina is a neutral, self-governing administrative unit, under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
, a self-governing administrative unit under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina; it is part of both the Federation and Republika Srpska. The district remains under international supervision.
The Federation is further divided into cantons, which are then subdivided into municipalities. Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
is divided directly into municipalities.
Amendments to the divisions
On the grounds that the Dayton AgreementDayton Agreement
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton-Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio in November 1995, and formally signed in Paris on...
's framework is outdated, many groups have come forth with ways to redevelop the divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
. The Agreement was initially designed to effectively end the war in the nation, but the divisions have made the bureaucracy
Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy is an organization of non-elected officials of a governmental or organization who implement the rules, laws, and functions of their institution, and are occasionally characterized by officialism and red tape.-Weberian bureaucracy:...
of the country unwieldy.
Generally speaking, the nation's Bosniak
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
population wishes for the state to be centralized, eliminating the Federation, as well as the Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
. Officials in the Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
vehemently resist this idea. Many Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
assume that if Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
achieves independence, Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
will separate from Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, eventually joining Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. However, the Office of the High Representative
High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina
The High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was created in 1995 immediately after the Dayton Peace Agreement to oversee the civilian implementation of this agreement. The High Representative and the OHR represent the...
has come out and specifically denied the prospect of any such exchange. The Bosnian Croats view the current situation as discriminatory, and seek either the abolition of entities and foundation of a decentralized governmental structure or a third entity.
External links
- A precarious peace, The EconomistThe EconomistThe Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...
, 22 January 1998 - The EU´s pseudosuccess in Bosnia, Centre for Eastern StudiesCentre for Eastern StudiesCentre for Eastern Studies is a Warsaw-based think tank that undertakes independent research on the political, economic and social situation in Central and Eastern Europe, Balkans, Caucasus and Central Asia....
2011 - Bosnia and Herzegovina: Ongoing erosion of the State, Centre for Eastern StudiesCentre for Eastern StudiesCentre for Eastern Studies is a Warsaw-based think tank that undertakes independent research on the political, economic and social situation in Central and Eastern Europe, Balkans, Caucasus and Central Asia....
2011