Republika Srpska
Encyclopedia
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities
of Bosnia and Herzegovina
, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. The Constitution of Republika Srpska
defines it as a territorially unified, indivisible and inalienable constitutional and legal entity that independently performs its constitutional, legislative, executive and judicial functions. The National Assembly
and the Government of Republika Srpska
are based in Banja Luka
, although Sarajevo
remains the official capital.
derived by adding the suffix to , the root of the noun , meaning Serb. The sequence rather than is a result of voicing assimilation
. Adjectives derived in this way from ethnonym
s are often used in Serbian
as names of countries: e.g., – (Scot – Scotland), – (Croat – Croatia).
Although the name is sometimes gloss
ed as Serb Republic or Bosnian Serb Republic, and the government of uses the semi-Anglicized term in English translations of official documents, western news sources such as the BBC, The New York Times, and The Guardian generally refer to the entity as the Republika Srpska.
was one of Yugoslavia
's six federal units, defined in its constitution as a state of equal citizens, Muslim
s, Serbs
, Croats
and others. The 1991 population census counted 43% Muslims, renamed Bosniaks
in 1993, 31% Serbs, and 17% Croats, the remainder being Yugoslavs
and others. The first democratic multi-party elections in the republic were held on 18 November 1990. Most seats in its parliament were won by political parties that represented the three peoples: the Party of Democratic Action
, the Serb Democratic Party, and the Croatian Democratic Union
. The three parties reached a power sharing agreement covering all government bodies and public institutions.
In a session on 14 and 15 October 1991 the Parliament approved the "Memorandum on Sovereignty" as had already been done by Slovenia
and Croatia
. The Memorandum was adopted despite opposition from 73 Serb deputies, belonging to the Serb Democratic Party (most of the Serb parliamentary representatives) as well as the Serbian Renewal Movement
and the Union of Reform Forces
, who regarded the move as illegal. On 24 October 1991, the Serb deputies formed the Assembly of the Serb People in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Skupština srpskog naroda u Bosni i Hercegovini) to be the highest representative and legislative body of the Serb population, ending the tripartite coalition.
The Union of Reform Forces
soon ceased to exist but its members remained in the assembly as the Independent Members of Parliament Caucus
. The assembly undertook to address the achievement of equality between the Serbs and other peoples and the protection of the Serbs' interests jeopardized by decisions of the Bosnian parliament. On 9 January 1992, the assembly proclaimed the Republic of the Serb People of Bosnia and Herzegovina , declaring it part of Yugoslavia.
On 28 February 1992 the assembly adopted the Constitution of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
(the name adopted instead of the previous ). Its territory would include districts, municipalities, and regions where Serbs were the majority and also those where they had become a minority because of persecution during World War II. The republic was part of Yugoslavia and could enter into union with political bodies representing other peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Bosnian parliament, without its Serb deputies, held a referendum
on the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina on 29 February and 1 March 1992, but most Serbs boycotted it since the assembly had previously (9–10 November 1991) held a plebiscite in the Serb regions, 96% having opted for membership of the Yugoslav federation. The referendum had a 64% turnout and 92.7% or 99% (according to different sources) voted for independence. On 6 March the Bosnian parliament promulgated the results of the referendum, proclaiming the republic's independence from Yugoslavia. Serbian legal experts have denied the legality of both the referendum and the proclamation of independence. The republic's independence was recognized by the European Community on 6 April 1992 and by the USA on 7 April. On the same day the Serbs' assembly in session in Banja Luka
declared a severance of governmental ties with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The name Republika Srpska was adopted on 12 August 1992.
The political controversy escalated into the Bosnian War
, which would last until the autumn of 1995. According to numerous verdicts of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
(ICTY) Bosnian Serb forces performed ethnic cleansing
in their intended territories in order to create an ethnically pure state of Republika Srpska. Republika Srpska's leadership including Biljana Plavšić
, Momčilo Krajišnik
, and Radoslav Brđanin were indicted and judged guilty for war crimes and ethnic cleansing. The former president of Republika Srpska, Radovan Karadžić
, is currently under trial. The top military general, Ratko Mladić
, was arrested on the 26 May 2011 in connection with the siege of Sarajevo
and the Srebrenica massacre
. The war was ended by the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
, reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
near Dayton
, Ohio on 21 November and formally signed in Paris on 14 December 1995. Annex 4 of the Agreement is the current Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina
, recognising Republka Srpska as one of its two main political-territorial divisions
and defining the governmental functions and powers of the both entities. The boundary lines
between the entities were delineated in Annex 2 of the Agreement. From 1992 to 2008 the Constitution of Republika Srpska was amended 121 times. Article 1 states that Republika Srpska is a territorially unified, indivisible and inalienable constitutional and legal entity that shall independently perform its constitutional, legislative, executive and judicial functions.
resulted in major changes in the country, some of which were quantified in a 1998 report by UNESCO
. In the non-Serbian region 50% of houses were damaged and 6% destroyed while the number was lower in the Serbian region, 25% damaged and 5% destroyed. About half the country's population of 4 million was displaced. In 1996 there were some 435,346 Serbian refugees from the Federation in Republika Srpska while another 197,925 had gone to Serbia. In 1991, 27% of the non-agricultural labor force had been unemployed in Bosnia and this number had increased due to the war. In 2009 the unemployment rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an estimated 29% according to the CIA
's The World Factbook
. In 1996 unemployment in Republika Srpska was at 90%.
Republika Srpska's population of Serbs had increased by 547,741 and ethnic cleansing
considerably reduced the numbers of other groups. The increasing of Serbs in the Republic is due to the influx of ethnic Serbs that were ethnically cleansed from other parts of Bosnia. The number of Croats was reduced by 135,386 (majority of prewar population), and the number of Bosniaks
by some 434,144. Some 136,000 of approximately 496,000 Bosniak refugees and expulsees, forced to flee the territory of what is now Republika Srpska, have returned home. As of 2008, 35% of Bosniaks and 8.5% of Croats have returned to Republika Srpska, while 24% of Serbs who left their homes in territories controlled by Bosniaks or Croats, have returned to their pre-war addresses.
In the early 2000s discrimination against non-Serbs was alleged by NGOs and the Helsinki Commission
. The International Crisis Group
reported in 2002 that in some parts of Republika Srpska a returnee is ten times more likely to be the victim of violent crime than is a local Serb. The Helsinki Commission, in a 2001 statement on "Tolerance and Non-Discrimination," also pointed at violence against non-Serbs, stating that in the city of Banja Luka
and Trebinje
mobs attacked people who sought to lay foundations for new mosques on the ruins of those destroyed. There were indications of police collaboration. Non-Serbs have continued difficulty in returning to their original homes and the assembly’s record of cooperation in apprehending individuals indicted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide is poor.
Organizations such as the Society for Threatened Peoples
, reporting to the United Nations Human Rights Council
in 2008, claim that non-Serbian refugees returning to Republika Srpska are discriminated against and live under appalling conditions, particularly in the Drina Valley (Srebrenica
, Bratunac
, Višegrad
and Foča
). Many are unemployed and children must attend schools where all subjects are taught in Serbian. Similar things are taking place in the Federation of Bosnia where the problem of segregation is very visible in Herzegovinan and some Bosnian cities where the population is predominantly Croatian. Separate schools for Croatians and non-Croatians are formed. Croatian nationality students are taught using Croatian curriculum whereas Serbian and Bosniak pupils are taught according to the curriculum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
According to the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina, European Union Police Mission, UNHCR, and other international organizations, the security in both Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is at present satisfactory, although some minor threats, real or perceived, can still influence the decision of individuals whether they will return to their pre-war addresses or not.
(IEBL) between Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities essentially follows the front lines at the end of the Bosnian War
with adjustments (most importantly in the western part of the country and around Sarajevo) defined by the Dayton Agreement
. The total length of the IEBL is approximately km. The IEBL is an administrative demarcation uncontrolled by military or police and there is free movement across it.
(KM). A so-called "regulatory guillotine" means that it takes only a few days to register a business there whereas in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
it takes several months. Gross domestic product
(PPP
) was estimated in 2010 was about US$7,895 per capita, but the growth in the particular area was measured the highest in Bosnia, with 6,5%.
n company Yuzhuralzoloto also signed a strategic partnership with the Lead and Zinc
Mine Sase Srebrenica. Recent foreign investments include privatisation of Telekom Srpske
, sold to the Serbia
n Telekom Srbija
for (€646 million, and the sale of the petroleum and oil industry, based in Bosanski Brod
, Modriča
and Banja Luka
, to Zarubezhneft
of Russia, whose investment is expected to total US$970 million in the coming years. On 16 May 2007, the Czech
power utility
ČEZ
signed a €1.4 billion contract with the Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske
, to renovate the Gacko
I power plant and build a second, Gacko II.
) have grown significantly and the level of import coverage has improved – from KM 1,130,518,000 (€565 million) and 38.3% in 2005, to KM 1,539,229,000 (€770 million) and 55.8% in 2006. In the first two months of 2007, exports grew 19% year on year and imports by 39%. In 2010, exports amounted to €1.11 billion and imports €2.07 billion.
has been introduced in 2006. Income tax is 46% in the RS, compared to nearly 70% in the Federation, and the corporate tax
rate is 10%, compared to 30% in the Federation. These tax advantages have led to some companies moving their business to RS from the other entity.
Under its constitution, Republika Srpska has a president, parliament (the 83-member National Assembly of Republika Srpska), executive (with a prime minister and several ministries), its own police, supreme court and lower courts, customs service (under the state-level customs service), and postal service. It also has its own coat of arms, flag (a variant of the Serbian flag without the coat of arms displayed), and national anthem. However, the national anthem, like Spain, San Marino and Abu Dhabi has no words to it. The Constitutional Law on Coat of Arms and Anthem of the Republika Srpska was ruled not in conformance with the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina as it states that those symbols "represent statehood of the Republika Srpska" and are used "in accordance with moral norms of Serb people". According to the Constitutional Court's decision, the Law was to be corrected by September 2006. The national assembly of Republika Srpska formed a board which is going to make a proposal for the anthem and coat of arms of Republika Srpska. Its former flagship airline, Air Srpska
, ceased operations in 2003. The new airline, Sky Srpska
, has been established in 2007, and has a codeshare agreement with Slovenia
n airline Adria Airways
since 2010.
Although the constitution names Sarajevo
as the capital of Republika Srpska, the northwestern city of Banja Luka
is the headquarters of most of the institutions of government – including the parliament – and is therefore the de facto capital.
After the war, Republika Srpska retained its army, but in August 2005, the parliament consented to transfer control of Army of Republika Srpska
to a state-level ministry and abolish the Republic's defense ministry and army by 1 January 2006. These reforms were required by NATO as a precondition of Bosnia and Herzegovina's admission to the Partnership for Peace
. As of 14 December 2006, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a part of the Partnership for Peace
programme.
aimed at promoting economic and institutional cooperation between Serbia and the Republika Srpska (RS). The accord was signed by Serbia's President Boris Tadić
and Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica
, former RS President Dragan Čavić
, and Prime Minister Milorad Dodik
.
Tadić and Koštunica, accompanied by several ministers and some 300 businessmen, arrived in Banja Luka
, the de facto capital of the Republika Srpska, on two special planes from Belgrade
, in what was seen as the biggest-ever boost to strengthening ties in all spheres of life between the Republika Srpska and Serbia
. The Serbian Komercijalna banka
and the Dunav osiguranje insurance company opened branches in Banja Luka and the Serbian news agency Tanjug
also inaugurated its international press center in Banja Luka, in a day packed with business engagements.
The document sets out steps taken by Serbia and Republika Srpska officials to increase economic and political ties. It is similar to a previous one signed in 2001 between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Republika Srpska, which had envisaged close cooperation in economy, defense, education and dual citizenship for the residents, said a Serbian government statement. The agreement gives Republika Srpska, the same status with Serbia as the state of Bosnia-Herzegovina as a whole. "This agreement will stabilize the relations between countries in the region and it will promote economic, political and cultural relations between Serbia and Republika Srpska," Čavić told reporters after the signing ceremony. Koštunica added "We have long waited for this day," and insisting that the agreement would not be "a dead letter on paper," but would "live and be useful to the citizens of Serbia and Republika Srpska."
Under the Dayton Agreement
, which ended the Bosnian war
in 1995, two entities – Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
, and the Republika Srpska - formed a single state, but with many decentralised powers.
. While EU representatives were not present at the time, all top Republika Srpska officials attended the opening ceremony, saying it would advance their economic, political and cultural relations with the European Union
. This notion has been strongly condemned by Bosniak leaders saying that this is further proof of Republika Srpska distancing itself from Bosnia and Herzegovina
. President Rajko Kuzmanovic
, on the other hand, told reporters that this move does not jeopardize Republika Srpska's place within Bosnia and Herzegovina
. He added that Republika Srpska just used its constitutional right "to open up a representation office in the center of developments with European relevance." Republika Srpska already has four other representation offices – in Belgrade
, Moscow, Ottawa
, and Stuttgart
– and there are plans to open two more in 2009, in Washington DC and Zagreb
. Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
stated that the proposed Zagreb office could not be seen as the embassy of a sovereign state.
, Victory over Fascism Day, and Day of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
(21 November). The religious holidays include Christmas and Easter according to both the Julian
and the Gregorian calendar
s, for respectively the Orthodox
and the Catholic citizens, and Eid al-Adha and Eid ul-Fitr
for the Muslims. The holidays not accompanied by leave of absence include School Day (the Feast of Saint Sava
, 27 January), Day of the Army of the Republika Srpska (12 May), Interior Ministry Day (4 April), and Day of the First Serbian Uprising
(14 February).
The most important of the republic holidays is Republic Day, commemorating the establishment of Republika Srpska on 9 January 1992. It coincides with St. Stephen's Day
according to the Julian calendar. The Orthodox Serbs also refer to the holiday as the Slava
of Republika Srpska. They regard Saint Stephen The Protomartyr And Archdeacon
as the patron saint
of Republika Srpska. The holiday has therefore a religious dimension, being celebrated with special services in Orthodox churches.
Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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 and the Republika Srpska -- each presiding over roughly one half of...
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 other being the 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...
. The Constitution of Republika Srpska
Constitution of Republika Srpska
The Constitution of Republika Srpska is the chief legal act of Republika Srpska, an entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina. The constitution was delivered by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska on 28 February 1992, but had to be revised after the Dayton Agreement was signed....
defines it as a territorially unified, indivisible and inalienable constitutional and legal entity that independently performs its constitutional, legislative, executive and judicial functions. The National Assembly
National Assembly of the Republika Srpska
The National Assembly of the Republika Srpska is the legislative body of the Republika Srpska, one of two entities comprising the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
and the Government of Republika Srpska
Government of Republika Srpska
The Government of Republika Srpska is the main element of the executive branch of government in Republika Srpska, one of the two entities that make up Bosnia and Herzegovina.-Current cabinet:...
are based in Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
, although Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
remains the official capital.
Name
In the name , the first word means republic. The second word is a nominalized adjectiveNominalization
In linguistics, nominalization or nominalisation is the use of a verb, an adjective, or an adverb as the head of a noun phrase, with or without morphological transformation...
derived by adding the suffix to , the root of the noun , meaning Serb. The sequence rather than is a result of voicing assimilation
Assimilation (linguistics)
Assimilation is a common phonological process by which the sound of the ending of one word blends into the sound of the beginning of the following word. This occurs when the parts of the mouth and vocal cords start to form the beginning sounds of the next word before the last sound has been...
. Adjectives derived in this way from ethnonym
Ethnonym
An ethnonym is the name applied to a given ethnic group. Ethnonyms can be divided into two categories: exonyms and autonyms or endonyms .As an example, the ethnonym for...
s are often used in Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
as names of countries: e.g., – (Scot – Scotland), – (Croat – Croatia).
Although the name is sometimes gloss
Gloss
A gloss is a brief notation of the meaning of a word or wording in a text. It may be in the language of the text, or in the reader's language if that is different....
ed as Serb Republic or Bosnian Serb Republic, and the government of uses the semi-Anglicized term in English translations of official documents, western news sources such as the BBC, The New York Times, and The Guardian generally refer to the entity as the Republika Srpska.
History
The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and HerzegovinaSocialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina , known until 1963 under the name of People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was a socialist state that was a constituent country of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
was one of Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
's six federal units, defined in its constitution as a state of equal citizens, Muslim
Muslims by nationality
Muslims by nationality was a term used in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia as an official designation of nationality of Slavic Muslims. They were one of the constitutive groups of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
s, 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...
, Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
and others. The 1991 population census counted 43% Muslims, renamed Bosniaks
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...
in 1993, 31% Serbs, and 17% Croats, the remainder being Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
and others. The first democratic multi-party elections in the republic were held on 18 November 1990. Most seats in its parliament were won by political parties that represented the three peoples: the Party of Democratic Action
Party of Democratic Action
The Party of Democratic Action is a Bosniak national political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina.-History:The Party of Democratic Action was founded in May 1990 by Alija Izetbegović, representing the Bosnian Muslim population...
, the Serb Democratic Party, and the Croatian Democratic Union
Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina is a political party of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is an observer member of the European People's Party ....
. The three parties reached a power sharing agreement covering all government bodies and public institutions.
In a session on 14 and 15 October 1991 the Parliament approved the "Memorandum on Sovereignty" as had already been done by Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
and Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. The Memorandum was adopted despite opposition from 73 Serb deputies, belonging to the Serb Democratic Party (most of the Serb parliamentary representatives) as well as the Serbian Renewal Movement
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement is a political party in Serbia.It was founded in 1990.In 1997 a dissident group abandoned the party and formed New Serbia....
and the Union of Reform Forces
Union of Reform Forces
The Union of Reform Forces is a former political party in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, led by Ante Marković.The party was short-lived and fairly unsuccessful, but it later served as a basis for liberal parties in Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia The Union of Reform Forces...
, who regarded the move as illegal. On 24 October 1991, the Serb deputies formed the Assembly of the Serb People in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Skupština srpskog naroda u Bosni i Hercegovini) to be the highest representative and legislative body of the Serb population, ending the tripartite coalition.
The Union of Reform Forces
Union of Reform Forces
The Union of Reform Forces is a former political party in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, led by Ante Marković.The party was short-lived and fairly unsuccessful, but it later served as a basis for liberal parties in Serbia and in the Republic of Macedonia The Union of Reform Forces...
soon ceased to exist but its members remained in the assembly as the Independent Members of Parliament Caucus
Independent Members of Parliament Caucus
Independent Members of Parliament Caucus was a group of members of the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska from 1992–1996, led by Milorad Dodik, which later evolved into the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats....
. The assembly undertook to address the achievement of equality between the Serbs and other peoples and the protection of the Serbs' interests jeopardized by decisions of the Bosnian parliament. On 9 January 1992, the assembly proclaimed the Republic of the Serb People of Bosnia and Herzegovina , declaring it part of Yugoslavia.
On 28 February 1992 the assembly adopted the Constitution of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Constitution of Republika Srpska
The Constitution of Republika Srpska is the chief legal act of Republika Srpska, an entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina. The constitution was delivered by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska on 28 February 1992, but had to be revised after the Dayton Agreement was signed....
(the name adopted instead of the previous ). Its territory would include districts, municipalities, and regions where Serbs were the majority and also those where they had become a minority because of persecution during World War II. The republic was part of Yugoslavia and could enter into union with political bodies representing other peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Bosnian parliament, without its Serb deputies, held a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
on the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina on 29 February and 1 March 1992, but most Serbs boycotted it since the assembly had previously (9–10 November 1991) held a plebiscite in the Serb regions, 96% having opted for membership of the Yugoslav federation. The referendum had a 64% turnout and 92.7% or 99% (according to different sources) voted for independence. On 6 March the Bosnian parliament promulgated the results of the referendum, proclaiming the republic's independence from Yugoslavia. Serbian legal experts have denied the legality of both the referendum and the proclamation of independence. The republic's independence was recognized by the European Community on 6 April 1992 and by the USA on 7 April. On the same day the Serbs' assembly in session in Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
declared a severance of governmental ties with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The name Republika Srpska was adopted on 12 August 1992.
The political controversy escalated into the Bosnian War
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
, which would last until the autumn of 1995. According to numerous verdicts of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
(ICTY) Bosnian Serb forces performed ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
in their intended territories in order to create an ethnically pure state of Republika Srpska. Republika Srpska's leadership including Biljana Plavšić
Biljana Plavšic
Biljana Plavšić is a former president of Republika Srpska and war criminal. She is the highest ranking Bosnian Serb politician to be sentenced. She was indicted in 2001 by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for war crimes committed during the Bosnian war...
, Momčilo Krajišnik
Momcilo Krajišnik
Momčilo Krajišnik is a Bosnian Serb former politician convicted of murder and other crimes against humanity during the Bosnian war .He co-founded the Bosnian Serb nationalist Serbian Democratic Party with Radovan...
, and Radoslav Brđanin were indicted and judged guilty for war crimes and ethnic cleansing. The former president of Republika Srpska, Radovan Karadžić
Radovan Karadžic
Radovan Karadžić is a former Bosnian Serb politician. He is detained in the United Nations Detention Unit of Scheveningen, accused of war crimes committed against Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats during the Siege of Sarajevo, as well as ordering the Srebrenica massacre.Educated as a...
, is currently under trial. The top military general, Ratko Mladić
Ratko Mladić
Ratko Mladić is an accused war criminal and a former Bosnian Serb military leader. On May 31, 2011, Mladić was extradited to The Hague, where he was processed at the detention center that holds suspects for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia...
, was arrested on the 26 May 2011 in connection with the siege of Sarajevo
Siege of Sarajevo
The Siege of Sarajevo is the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare. Serb forces of the Republika Srpska and the Yugoslav People's Army besieged Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996 during the Bosnian War.After Bosnia...
and the Srebrenica massacre
Srebrenica massacre
The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, refers to the July 1995 killing, during the Bosnian War, of more than 8,000 Bosniaks , mainly men and boys, in and around the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by units of the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of...
. The war was ended by the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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...
, reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Greene and Montgomery counties in the state of Ohio. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is located approximately...
near Dayton
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
, Ohio on 21 November and formally signed in Paris on 14 December 1995. Annex 4 of the Agreement is the current Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the highest legal document of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The current Constitution is the Annex 4 of The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, signed in Paris on 14 December 1995...
, recognising Republka Srpska as one of its two main political-territorial divisions
Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
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 and the Republika Srpska -- each presiding over roughly one half of...
and defining the governmental functions and powers of the both entities. The boundary lines
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...
between the entities were delineated in Annex 2 of the Agreement. From 1992 to 2008 the Constitution of Republika Srpska was amended 121 times. Article 1 states that Republika Srpska is a territorially unified, indivisible and inalienable constitutional and legal entity that shall independently perform its constitutional, legislative, executive and judicial functions.
Impact of war
The war in Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
resulted in major changes in the country, some of which were quantified in a 1998 report by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
. In the non-Serbian region 50% of houses were damaged and 6% destroyed while the number was lower in the Serbian region, 25% damaged and 5% destroyed. About half the country's population of 4 million was displaced. In 1996 there were some 435,346 Serbian refugees from the Federation in Republika Srpska while another 197,925 had gone to Serbia. In 1991, 27% of the non-agricultural labor force had been unemployed in Bosnia and this number had increased due to the war. In 2009 the unemployment rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an estimated 29% according to the CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
's The World Factbook
The World Factbook
The World Factbook is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official paper copy version is available from the National Technical Information Service and the Government Printing Office...
. In 1996 unemployment in Republika Srpska was at 90%.
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
considerably reduced the numbers of other groups. The increasing of Serbs in the Republic is due to the influx of ethnic Serbs that were ethnically cleansed from other parts of Bosnia. The number of Croats was reduced by 135,386 (majority of prewar population), and the number of Bosniaks
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...
by some 434,144. Some 136,000 of approximately 496,000 Bosniak refugees and expulsees, forced to flee the territory of what is now Republika Srpska, have returned home. As of 2008, 35% of Bosniaks and 8.5% of Croats have returned to Republika Srpska, while 24% of Serbs who left their homes in territories controlled by Bosniaks or Croats, have returned to their pre-war addresses.
In the early 2000s discrimination against non-Serbs was alleged by NGOs and the Helsinki Commission
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe
The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe , also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, is an independent U.S. Government agency created by Congress in 1976 to monitor and encourage compliance with the Helsinki Final Act and other OSCE commitments. It was established in 1976 pursuant to...
. The International Crisis Group
International Crisis Group
The International Crisis Group is an international, non-profit, non-governmental organization whose mission is to prevent and resolve deadly conflicts around the world through field-based analyses and high-level advocacy.-History:...
reported in 2002 that in some parts of Republika Srpska a returnee is ten times more likely to be the victim of violent crime than is a local Serb. The Helsinki Commission, in a 2001 statement on "Tolerance and Non-Discrimination," also pointed at violence against non-Serbs, stating that in the city of Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
and Trebinje
Trebinje
Trebinje is the southernmost municipality and town in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is administratively part of the Republika Srpska entity and is located in southeastern Herzegovina, some from the Adriatic Sea....
mobs attacked people who sought to lay foundations for new mosques on the ruins of those destroyed. There were indications of police collaboration. Non-Serbs have continued difficulty in returning to their original homes and the assembly’s record of cooperation in apprehending individuals indicted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide is poor.
Organizations such as the Society for Threatened Peoples
Society for Threatened Peoples
Society for Threatened Peoples is an international NGO and human rights organization based in Göttingen, Germany. It seeks to create awareness of and protect minority peoples around the world who are threatened by oppressive governments. The group states on its website that it "campaigns against...
, reporting to the United Nations Human Rights Council
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations System. The UNHRC is the successor to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights , and is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly...
in 2008, claim that non-Serbian refugees returning to Republika Srpska are discriminated against and live under appalling conditions, particularly in the Drina Valley (Srebrenica
Srebrenica
Srebrenica is a town and municipality in the east of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska. Srebrenica is a small mountain town, its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War, the town was the site of the July 1995 massacre,...
, Bratunac
Bratunac
Bratunac is a town and municipality located in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. The easternmost point of Bosnia and Herzegovina is located in the municipality of Bratunac which lies in the Republika Srpska.-1971:26.513 total...
, Višegrad
Višegrad
Višegrad is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is part of the Republika Srpska entity. It is on the river Drina, located on the road from Goražde and Ustiprača towards Užice, Serbia.-History:...
and Foča
Foca
Foča is a town and municipality in southeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Drina river, in the Foča Region of the Republika Srpska entity.-Early history:...
). Many are unemployed and children must attend schools where all subjects are taught in Serbian. Similar things are taking place in the Federation of Bosnia where the problem of segregation is very visible in Herzegovinan and some Bosnian cities where the population is predominantly Croatian. Separate schools for Croatians and non-Croatians are formed. Croatian nationality students are taught using Croatian curriculum whereas Serbian and Bosniak pupils are taught according to the curriculum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
According to the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of Bosnia and Herzegovina, European Union Police Mission, UNHCR, and other international organizations, the security in both Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is at present satisfactory, although some minor threats, real or perceived, can still influence the decision of individuals whether they will return to their pre-war addresses or not.
Boundary
The Inter-Entity Boundary LineInter-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...
(IEBL) between Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities essentially follows the front lines at the end of the Bosnian War
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
with adjustments (most importantly in the western part of the country and around Sarajevo) defined by the Dayton Agreement
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...
. The total length of the IEBL is approximately km. The IEBL is an administrative demarcation uncontrolled by military or police and there is free movement across it.
Municipalities
Under the Law on Territorial Organization and Local Self-Government, adopted in 1994, Republika Srpska was divided into 80 municipalities. After the Dayton Peace Agreement the law was amended to reflect changes to borders: it now comprises 63 municipalities.Population
There has been no census since the end of the war. The next census is expected to occur in 2011 but has not yet been confirmed: these figures are estimates.| Year | Total | Males | Females | Births | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1,391,593 | 12,263 | 10,931 | ||
| 1997 | 1 409 835 | 13,757 | 11,755 | ||
| 1998 | 1,428,798 | 679,795 | 749,003 | 13,527 | 12,469 |
| 1999Includes Brčko District | 1,448,579 | 689,186 | 759,351 | ||
| 2000 | 1,469,182 | 14,191 | 13,370 | ||
| 2000 | 1,428,899 | 695,194 | 733,705 | ||
| 2001 | 1,490,993 | 13,699 | 13,434 | ||
| 2001 | 1,447,477 | 704,197 | 743,280 | ||
| 2002 | 1,454,802 | 708,136 | 746,666 | 12,336 | 12,980 |
| 2003 | 1,452,351 | 706,925 | 745,426 | 10,537 | 12,988 |
| 2004 | 1,449,897 | 705,731 | 744,166 | 10,628 | 13,082 |
| 2005 | 1,446,417 | 704,037 | 742,380 | 10,322 | 13,802 |
| 2006 | 1,443,709 | 702,718 | 740,991 | 10,524 | 13,232 |
| 2007 | 1,439,673 | 700,754 | 738,919 | 10,110 | 14,146 |
| 2008 | 1,437,477 | 699,685 | 737,792 | 10,198 | 13,501 |
| 2009 | 1,435,179 | 698,567 | 736,612 | 10,603 | 13,775 |
| 2010 | 1,433,038 | 697,524 | 735,514 | 10,147 | 13,517 |
Ethnic Composition
| Ethnic Composition | |||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Serbs | % | Muslims | % | Croats | % | Yugoslavs | % | Others | % | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 869,854 | 55.4 | 440.746 | 28.1 | 144,238 | 9.2 | 75,013 | 4.8 | 39,481 | 2.5 | 1,569,332 | ||||||||
| 1996 | 96.8 | 2.2 | 1.0 | ||||||||||||||||
Economy
The currency of Republika Srpska is the Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible markBosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark
The Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark is the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is divided into 100 fenings...
(KM). A so-called "regulatory guillotine" means that it takes only a few days to register a business there whereas in the 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...
it takes several months. Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
(PPP
Purchasing power parity
In economics, purchasing power parity is a condition between countries where an amount of money has the same purchasing power in different countries. The prices of the goods between the countries would only reflect the exchange rates...
) was estimated in 2010 was about US$7,895 per capita, but the growth in the particular area was measured the highest in Bosnia, with 6,5%.
Foreign investment
An agreement on strategic partnership has been concluded between the Iron Ore Mine Ljubija Prijedor and the British company LNM, a leading world steel producer. The RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n company Yuzhuralzoloto also signed a strategic partnership with the Lead and Zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
Mine Sase Srebrenica. Recent foreign investments include privatisation of Telekom Srpske
Telekom Srpske
Telekom Srpske is a telecommunications company based in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The company is owned by Telekom Srbija, and is the second largest telecommunications company in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the biggest one listed on the Banja Luka Stock Exchange, with the market...
, sold to the 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...
n Telekom Srbija
Telekom Srbija
Telekom Srbija is a telecommunications company based in Serbia, with its headquarters in Belgrade...
for (€646 million, and the sale of the petroleum and oil industry, based in Bosanski Brod
Bosanski Brod
Brod also known as Bosanski Brod is a town and municipality located on the south bank of the river Sava in the northern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the north-western part of the Republika Srpska and the western part of the Posavina region.-Name:Prior to the Bosnian War it...
, Modriča
Modrica
Modriča is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Republika Srpska entity. It is located near the towns of Šamac, Derventa and Doboj...
and Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
, to Zarubezhneft
Zarubezhneft
JSC Zarubezhneft is a Russian state-controlled oil company based in Moscow that specializes in exploration, development and operation of oil and gas fields outside Russian territory....
of Russia, whose investment is expected to total US$970 million in the coming years. On 16 May 2007, the Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
power utility
Electrical power industry
The electric power industry provides the production and delivery of electric energy, often known as power, or electricity, in sufficient quantities to areas that need electricity through a grid connection. The grid distributes electrical energy to customers...
ČEZ
CEZ Group
CEZ Group is a conglomerate of 96 companies , 72 of them in the Czech Republic. It is involved in the electricity generation, distribution, and trade. CEZ Group operates also in Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, Hungary, Kosovo, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and...
signed a €1.4 billion contract with the Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske
Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske
Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske is a state-owned integrated power company in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina...
, to renovate the Gacko
Gacko
Gacko is a town and municipality in southeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Republika Srpska entity. It is situated in the Foča Region.-Geography:The town is in a short distance from Montenegro...
I power plant and build a second, Gacko II.
External trade
In recent years exports (not including trade with the Federation of Bosnia and HerzegovinaFederation 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...
) have grown significantly and the level of import coverage has improved – from KM 1,130,518,000 (€565 million) and 38.3% in 2005, to KM 1,539,229,000 (€770 million) and 55.8% in 2006. In the first two months of 2007, exports grew 19% year on year and imports by 39%. In 2010, exports amounted to €1.11 billion and imports €2.07 billion.
Taxation
Since 2001, Republika Srpska initiated significant reforms in the sector of the tax system, which lowered the tax burden to 28.6%, one of the lowest in the region. The 10% rate of capital gains tax and income tax are the lowest in Europe and highly stimulating for foreign investment, and there are no limits on the amount of earnings. Increasing the number of taxpayers and budgeted incomes, and creating a stable fiscal system, were necessary for further reforms in the fields of taxation and duties; this area is a priority goal of the RS authorities. VATValue added tax
A value added tax or value-added tax is a form of consumption tax. From the perspective of the buyer, it is a tax on the purchase price. From that of the seller, it is a tax only on the "value added" to a product, material or service, from an accounting point of view, by this stage of its...
has been introduced in 2006. Income tax is 46% in the RS, compared to nearly 70% in the Federation, and the corporate tax
Corporate tax
Many countries impose corporate tax or company tax on the income or capital of some types of legal entities. A similar tax may be imposed at state or lower levels. The taxes may also be referred to as income tax or capital tax. Entities treated as partnerships are generally not taxed at the...
rate is 10%, compared to 30% in the Federation. These tax advantages have led to some companies moving their business to RS from the other entity.
Salaries
Republika Srpska saw accelerated salary growth in 2008. The average net salary in 2008 amounted to KM 755 (€386), which represents an increase of 29% compared to 2007 average. High inflation rate in 2008 caused the difference between the nominal and the real salary growth to be higher than in 2007. Average net salaries in Republika Srpska saw a real growth of 21.8%, since 2008 inflation measured by Consumer Price Index was 7.2%. Marked salary growth was particularly contributed to by salary growth in individual economic sectors, especially in public sector. Regarding pensions in Republika Srpska, their growth in 2008 kept pace with salary trends. Average pension in 2008 amounted to KM 294 (€150), which is larger by 27.8% (y/y). Somewhat higher pension growth in the RS might be explained by significantly faster growth of contributions of the PDI Fund. The average wage as of May 2009 stood at KM 794 (€406).Politics
Air Srpska
Air Srpska was an airline of Srpska, an entity of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was operational between 1999 and 2003....
, ceased operations in 2003. The new airline, Sky Srpska
Sky Srpska
Sky Srpska is an airline in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, founded in February 2007. The airline is a public enterprise owned by the entity government and has its hub at the Banja Luka International Airport...
, has been established in 2007, and has a codeshare agreement with Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n airline Adria Airways
Adria Airways
Adria Airways d.d. is the Slovenian national airline. Today, the majority of Adria Airways business is in scheduled flights. Adria operates to 16 cities throughout Europe this winter and offers excellent connections to South East Europe. It is a Star Alliance member since 2004 and a Lufthansa...
since 2010.
Although the constitution names Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
as the capital of Republika Srpska, the northwestern city of Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
is the headquarters of most of the institutions of government – including the parliament – and is therefore the de facto capital.
After the war, Republika Srpska retained its army, but in August 2005, the parliament consented to transfer control of Army of Republika Srpska
Army of Republika Srpska
The Army of Republika Srpska ; Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian Vojska Republike Srpske ) also referred to as the Bosnian Serb Army, was the military of today's Republika Srpska which was then the "Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina", a self-proclaimed state within the internationally recognized...
to a state-level ministry and abolish the Republic's defense ministry and army by 1 January 2006. These reforms were required by NATO as a precondition of Bosnia and Herzegovina's admission to the Partnership for Peace
Partnership for Peace
Partnership for Peace is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation program aimed at creating trust between NATO and other states in Europe and the former Soviet Union; 22 States are members...
. As of 14 December 2006, Bosnia and Herzegovina is a part of the Partnership for Peace
Partnership for Peace
Partnership for Peace is a North Atlantic Treaty Organisation program aimed at creating trust between NATO and other states in Europe and the former Soviet Union; 22 States are members...
programme.
External relations
On 26 September 2006, Republika Srpska officials signed a "special ties agreement" with SerbiaSerbia
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...
aimed at promoting economic and institutional cooperation between Serbia and the Republika Srpska (RS). The accord was signed by Serbia's President Boris Tadić
Boris Tadic
Boris Tadić is the President of Serbia and leader of the Democratic Party. He was elected to a five-year term on 27 June 2004, and was sworn into office on 11 July. He was re-elected for a de facto second five-year term on 3 February 2008 and was sworn in on 15 February...
and Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Koštunica is a Serbian politician, statesman and the president of the Democratic Party of Serbia. He was the last President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, succeeding Slobodan Milošević and serving from 2000 to 2003...
, former RS President Dragan Čavić
Dragan Cavic
Dragan Čavić was the President of Republika Srpska 2002-2006. He was Vice President of Republika Srpska between 2000 and 2002.-References:...
, and Prime Minister Milorad Dodik
Milorad Dodik
Milorad Dodik , is the President of Republika Srpska, and the president of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats political party. He graduated from the Belgrade University of Political Sciences .-Political career:...
.
Tadić and Koštunica, accompanied by several ministers and some 300 businessmen, arrived in Banja Luka
Banja Luka
-History:The name "Banja Luka" was first mentioned in a document dated February 6, 1494, but Banja Luka's history dates back to ancient times. There is a substantial evidence of the Roman presence in the region during the first few centuries A.D., including an old fort "Kastel" in the centre of...
, the de facto capital of the Republika Srpska, on two special planes from Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, in what was seen as the biggest-ever boost to strengthening ties in all spheres of life between the Republika Srpska and 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...
. The Serbian Komercijalna banka
Komercijalna banka
Komercijalna banka is a bank founded in 1970 in Belgrade, Serbia.It has a network of 251 branches all over Serbia. It is also the founder and 100% stake owner of Komercijalna banka Budva operating in Montenegro...
and the Dunav osiguranje insurance company opened branches in Banja Luka and the Serbian news agency Tanjug
Tanjug
Tanjug was founded on November 5, 1943. It is now a Serbian news agency based in Belgrade....
also inaugurated its international press center in Banja Luka, in a day packed with business engagements.
The document sets out steps taken by Serbia and Republika Srpska officials to increase economic and political ties. It is similar to a previous one signed in 2001 between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Republika Srpska, which had envisaged close cooperation in economy, defense, education and dual citizenship for the residents, said a Serbian government statement. The agreement gives Republika Srpska, the same status with Serbia as the state of Bosnia-Herzegovina as a whole. "This agreement will stabilize the relations between countries in the region and it will promote economic, political and cultural relations between Serbia and Republika Srpska," Čavić told reporters after the signing ceremony. Koštunica added "We have long waited for this day," and insisting that the agreement would not be "a dead letter on paper," but would "live and be useful to the citizens of Serbia and Republika Srpska."
Under the Dayton Agreement
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 ended the Bosnian war
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
in 1995, two entities – 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...
, and the Republika Srpska - formed a single state, but with many decentralised powers.
Representative offices
On 12 February 2009, Republika Srpska opened a new representative office in BrusselsBrussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
. While EU representatives were not present at the time, all top Republika Srpska officials attended the opening ceremony, saying it would advance their economic, political and cultural relations with the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. This notion has been strongly condemned by Bosniak leaders saying that this is further proof of Republika Srpska distancing itself 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...
. President Rajko Kuzmanovic
Rajko Kuzmanovic
Rajko Kuzmanović is a Serb politician in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was the President of Republika Srpska from December 7, 2007 to November 15, 2010...
, on the other hand, told reporters that this move does not jeopardize Republika Srpska's place within 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...
. He added that Republika Srpska just used its constitutional right "to open up a representation office in the center of developments with European relevance." Republika Srpska already has four other representation offices – in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, Moscow, Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
– and there are plans to open two more in 2009, in Washington DC and Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
. Former Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader |Split]]) is a Croatian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.Sanader obtained his education in comparative literature in Austria, where he also later worked in the 1980s. He worked as a journalist, in marketing, publishing and also as a private...
stated that the proposed Zagreb office could not be seen as the embassy of a sovereign state.
Holidays
According to the Law on Holidays of Republika Srpska, passed by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, the holidays are divided into three categories: the republic holidays, the religious ones, and the holidays not accompanied by leave of absence. The republic holidays include Republic Day (9 January), New Year's Day, International Workers' DayInternational Workers' Day
International Workers' Day is a celebration of the international labour movement and left-wing movements. It commonly sees organized street demonstrations and marches by working people and their labour unions throughout most of the world. May 1 is a national holiday in more than 80 countries...
, Victory over Fascism Day, and Day of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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...
(21 November). The religious holidays include Christmas and Easter according to both the Julian
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...
and the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...
s, for respectively the Orthodox
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
and the Catholic citizens, and Eid al-Adha and Eid ul-Fitr
Eid ul-Fitr
Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Fitr, Id-ul-Fitr, or Id al-Fitr , often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting . Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity," while Fiṭr means "breaking the fast"...
for the Muslims. The holidays not accompanied by leave of absence include School Day (the Feast of Saint Sava
Saint Sava
Saint Sava was a Serbian Prince and Orthodox monk, the first Archbishop of the autocephalous Serbian Church, the founder of Serbian law and literature, and a diplomat. Sava was born Rastko Nemanjić , the youngest son of Serbian Grand Župan Stefan Nemanja , and ruled the appanage of Hum briefly in...
, 27 January), Day of the Army of the Republika Srpska (12 May), Interior Ministry Day (4 April), and Day of the First Serbian Uprising
First Serbian Uprising
The First Serbian Uprising was the first stage of the Serbian Revolution , the successful wars of independence that lasted for 9 years and approximately 9 months , during which Serbia perceived itself as an independent state for the first time after more than three centuries of Ottoman rule and...
(14 February).
The most important of the republic holidays is Republic Day, commemorating the establishment of Republika Srpska on 9 January 1992. It coincides with St. Stephen's Day
St. Stephen's Day
St. Stephen's Day, or the Feast of St. Stephen, is a Christian saint's day celebrated on 26 December in the Western Church and 27 December in the Eastern Church. Many Eastern Orthodox churches adhere to the Julian calendar and mark St. Stephen's Day on 27 December according to that calendar, which...
according to the Julian calendar. The Orthodox Serbs also refer to the holiday as the Slava
Slava
The Slava , also called Krsna Slava and Krsno ime , is the Serbian Orthodox tradition of the ritual celebration and veneration of a family's own patron saint. The family celebrates the Slava annually on the patron saint's feast day...
of Republika Srpska. They regard Saint Stephen The Protomartyr And Archdeacon
Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen The Protomartyr , the protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox Churches....
as the patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of Republika Srpska. The holiday has therefore a religious dimension, being celebrated with special services in Orthodox churches.