Ethnic groups and religions
Bosnia and Herzegovina are situated in the western Balkan Peninsula of Europe. The larger region of Bosnia occupies the northern and central parts of the country, and Herzegovina occupies the south and southwest. The capital of the country is Sarajevo.
The region is divided into three ethnic groups that generally correspond to three major religions; Bosniaks and Islam; Serbs and Orthodox Christianity; Croats and Roman Catholicism. They all share the same South Slav heritage. The region has often felt the influence of strong regional powers which have created a vast ethnic and religious diversity. In the 20th century, ‘Muslim’ came to be used as an ethnic, not only religious, identifier and was only replaced …show more content…
Radovan Karadžić: President of Republika Srpska (Bosnian Serb Republic) he was found guilty of genocide over the 1995 massacre in Srebrenica and sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Slobodan Milošević: President of Serbia, he was exoneration for war crimes committed during the Bosnia war.
Milošević
After Josip Tito’s death, Serbian ultra-nationalist Slobodan Milošević rose to power. Previously a communist, Milošević began harnessing the regions nationalism and religious hatred citing the aim of a ‘Greater Serbia’. Tensions between Serbs and Muslims became inflamed in areas such as Kosovo, an independent province. Yugoslavia became further divided as Serbs felt even as the country’s largest ethnic group, their needs weren’t being met. Proving difficult to establish a government, the new constitution failed to form a multiparty leadership as political aims were incompatible. No agreements could be reached on a modern federation that could accommodate Serb and Croatian/Slovenian interests. Croatia and Slovenia still aimed for independence. Impossible to pass a single law, disagreements fuelled further …show more content…
Consequently, The Dayton Accords made Bosnia and Herzegovina 's political structure one of the most complicated in the world and based on ethnic divisions that continue today. The central institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina include a directly elected tripartite presidency. The presidency rotates every eight months between one Bosniak, one Serb, and one Croat member, in a four-year rotation. Presidents appoint a multi-ethnic Council of Ministers and the head of the council serves as head of government.
Though there have been internationally led efforts to replace the unwieldy and costly political structure, it has been opposed by the country’s nationalist leaders. Previously Bosnia and Herzegovina have been incapable of integrating into the European Union, however, in September this year, the EU accepted their application.
In 1995, the Dayton Accords called for war criminals to be handed over for prosecution. However, organisations made no attempt at the time to arrest Karadžić and Mladić for the International Criminal Tribunal. Karadžić and Mladić