The Politics of Bosnia and Herzegovina takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, whereby executive power is exercised by the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Legislative power is vested in both the Council of Ministers and the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Members of the Parliamentary Assembly are chosen according to a proportional representation system.
The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The system of government established by the Dayton Agreement is an example of consociationalism, as representation is by elites who represent the country's three major ethnic groups termed constituent peoples, with each having a guaranteed share of power.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is divided into two Entities – the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska, which are politically autonomous to an extent, as well as the Brčko District, which is jointly administered by both. The Entities have their own constitutions.
Dayton Agreement
Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Due to the Dayton Agreement, signed on 14 December 1995, Bosnia and Herzegovina forms an undeclared protectorate with elements of hegemony by neighboring Croatia and Serbia as co-signatories to the Agreement, where highest power is given to the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina. The intention of the Agreement was to retain Bosnia's exterior border, while creating a joint multi-ethnic and democratic government based on proportional representation similar to the former socialist system, and charged with conducting foreign, economic, and fiscal policy.
The Dayton Agreement established the Office of the High Representative (OHR) to oversee the implementation of the civilian aspects of the agreement. About 250 international and 450 local staff members are employed by the OHR.
High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina
The highest political authority in the country is the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, the chief executive officer for the international civilian presence in the country.
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The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are native in both regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. They’re one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country mainly residing in the political-territorial entity of Republika Srpska and are known as Bosnian Serbs (Bosanski Srbi) in English, regardless what region they’re from. Serbs have a long and continuous history of inhabiting the present-day territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and a long history of statehood in this territory.
The Bosniaks (Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, boʃɲǎːtsi; Bošnjak, Bošnjakinja) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Kosovo as well as in Austria, Germany, Turkey and Sweden. They also constitute a significant diaspora with several communities across Europe, the Americas and Oceania.
Bicameralism is a type of legislature that is divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single group. , roughly 40% of world's national legislatures are bicameral, while unicameralism represents 60% nationally, and much more at the subnational level. Often, the members of the two chambers are elected or selected by different methods, which vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.