The International Institute for Middle East and Balkan Studies (IFIMES) based in Ljubljana, Slovenia, regularly conducts analyses of events spanning the Middle East, the Balkans, and global affairs. Academician Dr Mirko Pejanović[2], vice president of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ANUBiH), professor emeritus at the University of Sarajevo, and former member of the Presidency of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–96), writes about the significance of these historic events in his article “ZAVNOBiH and the continuity of statehood in Bosnia and Herzegovina through the 20th and 21st centuries” on the occasion of the Statehood Day of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 25th November. We publish his article in full.

Academician Dr Mirko Pejanović,
Vice President of the Academy of Sciences
and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Following the loss of its state independence in 1463 during the medieval era, Bosnia and Herzegovina remained a distinct multi-confessional, multicultural, and geographically cohesive entity until the mid-20th century, under the rule of the Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires, and later the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. This status persisted until the imposition of King Alexander I Karadjordjević’s January 6th Dictatorship in 1929 and the subsequent reorganisation of Yugoslavia into nine banovinas.

Between 1941 and 1945, during the Second World War, Bosnia and Herzegovina became the primary battleground for National Liberation and the anti-fascist struggle led by partisan forces against the occupying powers on Yugoslav territory.

The idea of ZAVNOBiH emerged within the framework of the National Liberation Movement. After the organisational and political arrangements were made, the Anti-Fascist Council for the National Liberation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ZAVNOBiH) convened on 25 November 1943 in Mrkonjić Grad. During this First Session, 247 delegates from across Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted a historic decision to restore and re-establish the statehood of Bosnia and Herzegovina. By the will of the councillors of the First Session of ZAVNOBiH, Bosnia and Herzegovina was recognised as a federal state unit within the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, enjoying equal status with the other five Yugoslav republics. This decision was confirmed at the Second Session of AVNOJ on 29 November 1943.

During the three-year national liberation and anti-fascist struggle, the citizens and peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina secured the right to politically shape and organise their homeland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a fraternal and indivisible state union—a union that enshrines the national equality of Croats, Serbs, and Muslims (Bosniaks).

The statehood of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a federal state unit within the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia was solidified through the decisions made at the Second Session of ZAVNOBiH (Sanski Most 1944.), particularly in terms of establishing state institutions. At this session, the Decision on the Structure and Organisation of National Liberation Committees and the Declaration on Citizens’ Rights were adopted, guaranteeing democratic freedoms for citizens as individuals and equality among the peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

At its Third Session, held in liberated Sarajevo in 1945, ZAVNOBiH transformed into the Provisional People’s Assembly and passed the Law on the Formation of the First People’s Government of Federal Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The statehood of Bosnia and Herzegovina, grounded in the principles of ZAVNOBiH, was constitutionally defined with the adoption of the First Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Constitutional Assembly of Federal Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1946. Since then, Bosnia and Herzegovina has functioned as a people’s state with a republican system of governance.

More than four decades of peaceful development

For over four decades, Bosnia and Herzegovina experienced peaceful development, characterised by complete unity in managing economic and social growth. Between the early 1960s and the 1990s, the country achieved remarkable progress and renewal in both economic and cultural spheres. Its economy was restructured, transitioning from basic to processing industries, and employment reached one million citizens. The population grew to over four million. All children of primary school age were included in basic education. In addition to the University of Sarajevo, universities were established in Banja Luka, Tuzla, and Mostar. The Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ANUBiH) was also founded. All 109 municipalities were connected to Sarajevo, the capital, by paved roads.

In the late 1960s, a historic decision formally recognised the national identity of the Muslim (Bosniak) people. This process of full national emancipation went hand in hand with the strengthening of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s autonomy and statehood within the Yugoslav Federation.

The introduction of a multi-party system

At the beginning of the 1990s, as the dissolution of the Yugoslav Federation entered its final stage, Bosnia and Herzegovina faced the historic challenge of transitioning to political pluralism by introducing a multi-party system and deciding its political future through democratic means.

The multi-party Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, elected in the country’s first multi-party elections in 1990, passed a decision in January 1992 to hold a citizens’ referendum on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereign and independent state-legal status. All political parties, both ruling and opposition, supported the referendum, with the exception of Karadžić’s Serbian Democratic Party (SDS). In collaboration with Milošević’s regime, the SDS sought to dismantle and deny Bosnia and Herzegovina’s historically established republican statehood.

Through their democratic will, with a 64% voter turnout from all ethnic groups and 99% support for the referendum question, citizens decided that their country, homeland, and state should attain the status of a sovereign and independent nation. In this way, they determined the future of their Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina on democratic and anti-fascist principles. Honouring the will of the citizens, the countries of the European Union, the United States, and a vast number of countries across the world granted Bosnia and Herzegovina international recognition in early April 1992. This overwhelming support from the global community culminated on 22 May 1992, when Bosnia and Herzegovina was admitted as a full member of the United Nations.

With its internationally recognised borders, Bosnia and Herzegovina attained international legal subjectivity in the final decade of the 20th century. Through the citizens’ referendum and the international recognition of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, the democratic forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina successfully countered efforts to divide the country and dismantle its republican statehood during this turbulent period.

However, Bosnia and Herzegovina was denied the opportunity to peacefully develop its sovereign statehood and independence. This peaceful course was violently disrupted by an aggressive war imposed by Milošević’s regime. By the late 1980s, this regime had seized control of the former Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA), bringing it under its command. Using the military power of the JNA—renamed the Army of the Republic of the Serbian People in May 1992—ethnic cleansing of non-Serb populations was conducted in the territory declared as the Republic of the Serbian People. This campaign culminated in mass atrocities against civilians and the genocide of Bosniaks in Srebrenica.

Resistance and defence of the sovereignty and multi-ethnic character of the state

Democratic and patriotic forces mobilised to resist and defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and multi-ethnic identity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Leading the organisation of this resistance and defence was the multi-ethnic Presidency of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The wartime Presidency of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ensured political unity in directing the country’s defence efforts. This unity was defined in the Platform for the Activity of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Conditions of War, which reaffirmed the principles of ZAVNOBiH in light of new historical circumstances. Based on this Platform, the Armed Forces of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina were established, with the defence of the country led by the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Diplomatic efforts to secure a peaceful resolution to the war were pursued through the state delegation’s engagement with peace plans within the framework of international peace conferences.

After the United States assumed leadership in shaping peace initiatives, the Washington Peace Agreement was signed in 1994, followed by the Dayton Peace Agreement in 1995.

With the Dayton Peace Agreement of November 1995, Bosnia and Herzegovina entered a historic era of peacebuilding and the development of state institutions. This process was based on the internationalisation of peacebuilding efforts, with the international community and the European Union authorised to play a role in fostering peace, strengthening the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and integrating it into Euro-Atlantic institutions (the Council of Europe, the European Union, and NATO). It is certain that compliance with the EU acquis during Bosnia and Herzegovina’s EU membership negotiations will further develop solutions for the functioning of state institutions, which remain significantly constrained by the Dayton Constitution.

At the start of the 21st century, a historic challenge emerged in the form of accelerating Bosnia and Herzegovina’s integration into the European Union. One of the key factors behind this momentum has been the geopolitical changes in Europe and beyond.

Since 2022, peace in Europe—and consequently in the Western Balkans—has been jeopardised due to the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine, violating its territorial integrity and sovereignty. In response to this threat, the institutions of the European Union decided, at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024, to grant Bosnia and Herzegovina candidate status for EU membership and to open accession negotiations.

For Bosnia and Herzegovina, achieving membership in the European Union means overcoming the challenge of becoming a democratic, lawful, and economically prosperous state within the community of free nations and states in Europe.

The majority of citizens strongly support an accelerated path toward EU membership, aspiring to achieve this goal by the end of the third decade of the 21st century. To realise this objective, comprehensive measures are required to ensure the effective functioning of the parliamentary majority at the state level. In this context, it is crucial to develop a unified reform agenda and establish full coordination between the activities of the international community and EU institutions on one side, and governing parties and civil society organisations on the other.

Reinforcing political pluralism on civic principles

It is essential to halt the destructive impact of ethno-nationalist policies and strengthen political pluralism based on civic foundations. One of the key levers for accelerating Bosnia and Herzegovina’s integration into the European Union is the inclusion of a European clause in the country’s Constitution. This provision would facilitate the swift adoption of legislation enabling the transposition of the Acquis Communautaire by the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this context, intensifying the activities of the Office of the High Representative (OHR) would be crucial. Leveraging its Bonn powers, the OHR should impose sanctions and exert various forms of pressure to eliminate individuals and entities that promote institutional blockades, deny Bosnia and Herzegovina’s statehood, undermine the Dayton Peace Agreement, or endanger peace in the public political arena. The rising threat of nationalism advocating the secession of Republika Srpska from Bosnia and Herzegovina poses a serious risk to the country’s peace, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Preventing the evident dangers of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s disintegration will require the international community and the country’s democratic, multi-ethnic forces to accelerate its integration into the European Union. In addition to the threat of secession, Bosnia and Herzegovina is also grappling with the danger of demographic depletion caused by the large-scale emigration of its working-age population to European Union countries.

Ljubljana/Sarajevo, 24 November 2024.