By Talha Ozturk
SARAJEVO, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nineteen years on since the Dayton Peace Agreement successfully ended the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the state structure of the country remains fragmented, university professors and students say.
The General Framework Agreement for Peace, known as The Dayton Peace Agreement, ended the four-year war in Bosnia on Nov. 21, 1995 after three weeks of negotiations by the then Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, Bosnia and Herzegovina President Alija Izetbegovic and President of Croatia Franjo Tudjman.
Professors and students from the University of Sarajevo say that even though the peace agreement is considered crucial for ending the war in Bosnia, it created a fragmented state structure in the country.
This fragmented structure is one of the biggest factors blocking the country's development and progress towards the EU, they added.
Experts say the complex state system makes it difficult for the three ethnic groups in the country to agree on necessary European reforms.
University of Sarajevo’s Professor Mirsad Karic said the aim of the Dayton Peace Agreement was not to create a functional state to begin with.
"The main objective of the accords was to end the war. Its goal was not to create a functional state. This agreement was designed to act as a transitional phase,” Karic said.
The professor said the agreement was meant only to be a short transitional period until only one constitution could allow normal developments in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“However, that never happened. Some also wanted to make changes in the existing constitution, but could never reach an agreement on proposals," he said.
The professor said the current system was preventing Bosnia's EU membership.
He added that there could not be major changes in Bosnia's constitution without influence of the U.S. and the international community.
Young people want change
Fahira Vroda, a third-year law student at University of Sarajevo, said her teachers talked only about consequences of the Dayton agreement.
Vroda believed Bosnia and Herzegovina lacked a central government, which could take vital decisions in the country.
"We rarely think how to overcome the situation after the Dayton agreement. The accord was supposed to be a temporary act to stop the violence and bring stability in the region. Unfortunately, we lost too much time to take concrete steps to change this," she said.
"I think there are still people who believe there is no need for this country. As long as people believe like that, we cannot progress,” the student added.
The Dayton Peace Agreement was initiated on Nov. 21, 1995, at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, U.S.
The agreement was formally signed in Paris on Dec. 14, 1995. It officially ended the nearly four-year war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and established Bosnia and Herzegovina as a three-state constitution.
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