Bosnia Herzegovina marks Independence Day

By Kayhan Gul, Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - Bosnia Herzegovina on Thursday marked the 27th anniversary of its independence.

Independence Day is treated as an ordinary day in the Serb-dominated Republika Srpska, one of two constitutional and legal entities of the country. The other is the Bosniak-majority Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which observes the holiday.

Bosnia and Herzegovina became independent from the former Yugoslavia when an independence referendum was held on Feb. 29 and March 1, 1992.

Most Serbs boycotted the referendum while the 64 percent of the population voted for independence.

The results of the referendum were announced on March 6,1992 and Bosnia and Herzegovina was admitted to the United Nations on May 22,1992.

Bosnia and Herzegovina became an independent state, but had to suffer a bloody battle for independence and the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives.

In the country, where Bosniak Muslims make up more than half of the population, the traces of the bloody war in 1992-1995 are still not completely erased. The complex political structure of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the war, does not allow the country to fully stabilize.

Bosnia and Herzegovina's main objective is to become a member of the European Union.

The country expects to receive a "candidate country" status in the current year. NATO membership, which is another strategic target of the country has been impeded by the opposition of Serbs in the country.