We demand the introduction of the official name for the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina: “Bosnian” as a constitutional category of national identity in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
I am a Bosnian too.
Reason
In the post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina, pre-defined categories (Bosniaks, Serbs, Croats) were granted all political rights. At the same time, these rights are denied to all other citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina,which are classified as "Others". [1], [2], [3]
Bosnians are looking for:
· equal rights for all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
· the right to choose the national name (Bosanka/Bosanac) “Bosnian”.
· the right of every citizen to run for and be elected president of the state.
· Bosnia and Herzegovina, one constituency.
That is why we invite you to contribute to the improvement of Bosnian society with your signature.
What we get from your positive response:
· Support for the realization of necessary civil rights within the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina.
· The process of restoring the mutual trust of citizens and restoring the policy of optimism and good neighborliness will be opened.
· Bosnians outside of Bosnia and Herzegovina would participate more actively in the process of preserving the unity of all people originating from Bosnia and Herzegovina. This would potentially increase economic investment in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which would eventually lead to a reduction or even stop the outflow of population from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
· The citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as to Bosnian women or men, would finally be getting a sense of dignity and belonging to their homeland.
· Opening the way for the preservation of peace and respect among all countries in the region and beyond.
· With enough number of your votes, we will have support that will enable us to take further steps to realize those set of goals. One of them is the introduction of the institution of the President instead of the Presidency of the State.
Let's say YES to unity, civil equality and the beauty of good neighborhood that has always been present in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
THANK YOU!
Initiator:
Bosnian Academic Society EU / European Union (BADEU)
Sources:
˙[1]EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS: Sejdic and Finci v. Bosnia and Hercegovina: https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=001-96491 ;
[2] EuroNews, 29.08.2023: Bosnia and Herzegovina elections undemocratic, amplify ethnic divisions - Human Rights Court
[3] EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS: Zornic v. Bosnia and Hercegovina: https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/fre?i=002-9578 )
Thank you for your support, Gesellschaft Bosnischer Akademiker in Europa, Wien
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Why people sign
Belmont
Because I am Bosnian.
Visoko
This petition is important because it advocates for basic human right guaranteed to every citizen of every other democracy in Europe and in the United States, but which denied to many people who identify solely as Bosnians (Bosanac / Bosanka) and to religious / ethnic minorities (Jews, Romani) in Bosnia and Herzegovina since the Dayton Peace Agreement. I am a BOSANKA by my birth right, and NO ONE has right to deprive me of my right to identify that way and to run for a political office in my own country. Yet, a faulty interpretation of the Dayton Peace Agreement which was subsequently built into laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina have done just that in the political practice that has persisted for almost 30 years. As a result, if I want to seek a political appointment or run for a political function, the current practice would require me to identify as one of the three main religion-defined ethnicities, which I do not accept and do not want to do. Currently, my being a BOSANKA is not enough, even though I am a Bosanka by birth right, and even though this has always been my national identity my entire life - including the time when Bosnia and Herzegovina was one of six federal units of Yugoslavia, i.e. BEFORE the 1992 aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina and BEFORE the Dayton Peace Agreement. Other Bosnian nationals who either do not want to align themselves to one of three religion-defined "ethnicities", or who belong to a religious or national minority (e.g. Jews, or Romani) have the same problem of being deprived of their right to be elected for political appointments or run for a political function in Bosnia and Herzegovina even though they and their ancestors have been citizens / nationals of BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA for centuries before the 1992 aggression on our country. THIS IS AN ANNOMALY AND A BLATANT VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRATIC PRACTICES AND IT HAS TO STOP.
Gorazde
Jer sam u svojoj zemlji - Ostali.
Sarajevo
Because every person has to have right to name his/her own nationality.
Bugojno
Zbog opredjeljenja za gradžansku državu u kojoj bi bili svi ravnopravni.