Independence
Day is a
public holiday observed in Bosnia and Herzegovina on 1 March to
celebrate the independence of the then Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina from
the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992. Citizens of the Socialist
Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a constituent federal state of the
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, voted in an independence referendum
held between 28 February and 1 March 1992. The referendum question was:
"Are you in favor of a sovereign and independent Bosnia-Herzegovina, a
state of equal citizens and nations of Muslims, Serbs, Croats and others who
live in it?" Independence was strongly favoured by Bosniaks and Bosnian
Croat voters, while majority of Bosnian Serbs boycotted it. Voter turnout was
63.6 percent, of whom 99.7 percent voted for the independence.
The
Independence Day of Bosnia and Herzegovina is celebrated only in the Federation
of Bosnia and Herzegovina while Republika Srpska boycotts the holiday and
celebrates its own Independence Day on 9 January.
