Article: The Dayton democracy model and its impact on the Bosnian State Journal: International Journal of Human Rights and Constitutional Studies (IJHRCS) 2016 Vol.4 No.1 pp.45 - 53 Abstract: The Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA) ended the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina (B&H) and created a new constitutional order. The very first unique feature of DPA is its 10th Annex which provides one person (The High Representative of the International Community in B&H) with enormous powers (legislative, judicial and executive) which is granted to him by this Annex. In this respect a new concept of interventionism is introduced to justify the involvement of external factors in internal affairs of B&H. The 'prescribed Dayton democracy' from outside is not really a democracy in a full sense, because it has put the war elites in charge, with a questionable legitimacy, who are under foreign influence. The DPA formalised and emphasised this concept of 'ethnicalisation' of the constitutional system, by putting the constituent peoples at the very core of Bosnian statehood. This constituent people's concept created an ethnic based power sharing that did not function until today. State-building in B&H has been drastically slowed down by internal disagreement, fostered by the consociatal model of democracy. Such 'constitutional and democracy model& impacts significantly the stability of the Bosnian state. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: The Dayton democracy model and its impact on the Bosnian State

Authors: Mahir Muharemovic

Addresses: Faculty of Law-University of Tuzla, Muhameda Hevaija-Uskufija 7, 75000 Tuzla, Bosnia-Herzegovina

Abstract: The Dayton Peace Agreement (DPA) ended the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina (B&H) and created a new constitutional order. The very first unique feature of DPA is its 10th Annex which provides one person (The High Representative of the International Community in B&H) with enormous powers (legislative, judicial and executive) which is granted to him by this Annex. In this respect a new concept of interventionism is introduced to justify the involvement of external factors in internal affairs of B&H. The 'prescribed Dayton democracy' from outside is not really a democracy in a full sense, because it has put the war elites in charge, with a questionable legitimacy, who are under foreign influence. The DPA formalised and emphasised this concept of 'ethnicalisation' of the constitutional system, by putting the constituent peoples at the very core of Bosnian statehood. This constituent people's concept created an ethnic based power sharing that did not function until today. State-building in B&H has been drastically slowed down by internal disagreement, fostered by the consociatal model of democracy. Such 'constitutional and democracy model& impacts significantly the stability of the Bosnian state.

Keywords: veto players; extractive institutions; ethnocracy; consociational democracy; rule of law; state institutions; Dayton Constitution; federalism; ethnic territories; ethnic voting; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Dayton Peace Agreement; Dayton Peace Accord; DPA; interventionism; stability; power sharing; state-building.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHRCS.2016.076076

International Journal of Human Rights and Constitutional Studies, 2016 Vol.4 No.1, pp.45 - 53

Received: 30 Jan 2016
Accepted: 31 Jan 2016
Published online: 22 Apr 2016 *

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Title: The Dayton democracy model and its impact on the Bosnian State

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