The independent state of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was created in 1995 through the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Dayton Accords). Two multi-ethnic constituent entities within the state were created: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Federation) and the Republika Srpska (RS), along with the independent District of Brcko. The Federation has a Bosnian Muslim (Bosniak) and Croat majority, while the RS has a Bosnian Serb majority. Each entity has its own government, and the Office of the High Representative (OHR) oversees implementation of the Dayton Accords. The OHR can impose legislation and remove officials who obstruct implementation of the Accords.

The Presidency in BiH rotates among three members (Bosniak, Serb, Croat), each elected for a 4-year term. The 3 main nationalist parties won seats in the tripartite BiH Joint Presidency in elections that were regarded as generally free and fair. The BIH President appoints the Prime Minister subject to parliamentary approval. In RS, the President is directly elected, while the National Assembly selects the Prime Minister.

The Election Law requires that at least 30% of political candidates are women. In the Federation, women hold 21 seats in the 98-seat House of Representatives, while in RS women hold 15 seats in the 83-seat National Assembly. In BiH, only Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks are eligible to hold government positions. Minorities are under-represented, and only a single minority member holds a high government position.

Each entity is responsible for law enforcement, while a European-led force and NATO retain responsibility for defence reform, counter-terrorism and cooperation with the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY). Some persons indicted for war crimes were transferred to the ICTY, where they were tried, convicted and sentenced. Arrest warrants have been issued against persons still at large. The RS has transferred people to Sarajevo, where they await a decision at the federal level whether to send their cases to the ICTY.

Former President Milosevic, who was charged with 66 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity in BIH, died while the case was still being heard before the ICTY.

Police forces are locally recruited, and some members of the police and security forces in both entities are accused of abuse of detainees. The judiciary in both entities is subject to influence by political parties and the executive branch. An internationally supervised re-appointment process for judges and prosecutors has been established to curb political influence on the judiciary. Independent judges and prosecutors are subject to intimidation, and some local authorities refuse to enforce their decisions.

Courts faced a huge caseload in trying to deal with the rights of returnees driven out during the war. The rate of returns has declined, but reports indicate that minority returnees are targets of violence. Some areas of Croat-controlled Herzegovina and parts of eastern RS resist the return of people from minority groups. The Commission for Real Property Claims (CRPC) has ended its work, leaving some 50,000 property claims unresolved because of lack of documentation. Roma families in particular have problems repossessing their property, and the legal status of Roma settlements is unresolved. RS established an independent Srebrenica Commission that resulted in the authorities taking responsibility for the massacre and acknowledging war crimes.

The economy is in transition, but the public sector remains the main employer. Unemployment is estimated at 40% and is above 60% in many rural areas. There is widespread public perception of corruption among officials.

Freedom of speech and of the press are legally guaranteed but not always respected. Cantons in the Federation and central authorities in the RS are responsible for safeguarding press freedom, but pressure and harassment of the media continues. The BiH Defamation Law prohibits filing criminal cases against journalists for defamation, though journalists investigating organised crime have been threatened. Access to government records is permitted, but limited resources make it difficult for departments to comply.

Religious discrimination remains a problem in both entities. While some political parties are multi-ethnic, others are dominated by a single ethnic group and identify closely with their religion. Some clerics express nationalist political sympathies as part of their religious practice. Homosexuals who are open about their sexuality have been fired from their jobs; their dismissal letters giving sexual orientation as the reason then make their job search very difficult. Some gay teens are reported to be harassed at school, and some have had to leave home after coming out to their parents. Attempts to conduct a gay pride march in Sarajevo faced verbal and physical abuse.

Government statistics show only 64 cases of HIV/AIDS in the country, though the number is thought to be higher in the absence of comprehensive, anonymous, confidential testing.

Trafficking in persons remains a serious problem, with officials reportedly involved. BiH is a destination, transit and source country for women, girls and teenage boys trafficked for sexual exploitation. The government has partnered with the EU police mission to implement public awareness campaigns and education for potential victims.

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is incorporated by reference in the Dayton Accords, making it law in both entities. Education in the Federation is a cantonal responsibility, leading to varied levels of financing. In RS it is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education. The provisions of the CRC are not met in education in either entity.

Education is free and compulsory for ages 6 to 15, but costs to parents make it prohibitively expensive. A lack of financial resources led to teacher strikes in the RS and in individual cantons in the Federation. The Helsinki Committee Report states that up to 70% of Roma children attend school only sporadically and dropout rates are high. Some Roma girls do not attend school after Grade 5, and reports indicate some are married at ages 12 to 14. Many are unable to attend due to extremely poor living conditions, lack of clothing and the inability to purchase the necessary schoolbooks.

The combination of verbal harassment, language problems and the costs and requirements of registration makes almost inevitable the exclusion of Roma children from schools. The OSCE organised a campaign to encourage Roma parents to register their children and to enrol them in school.

Students in minority areas face a hostile environment in some schools. Nationalist politicians and officials have slowed efforts to remove discriminatory material from textbooks and to abolish school segregation. Administrative and legal unification of 52 schools in cases where 2 schools shared a single building has not led to integrated classrooms; despite some sharing of extra-curricular activities and recreation facilities, classes remain separate for Bosnian Croats and Bosniaks.

The teaching of national history and religious education is controversial. In the RS, fewer than 5% of teachers in elementary and secondary schools are non-Serbs. In the Federation, minority teachers account for 5% to 8% of the total. The Inter-Entity Textbook Review Commission reviews textbooks to remove discriminatory material from the "national group of subjects" in use in all primary and secondary schools. There are textbooks in use outside the national group of subjects that are not reviewed and contain inappropriate material. Textbooks on politics and economics in schools in the Bosnian Croat majority cantons are produced in Croatia and contain material considered derogatory to Serbs.

Public schools offer religious education classes that are mandatory for Serbs in the RS and optional in other parts of the country. In practice, they are offered only for students of the majority religion. Children who choose not to attend religion classes are reported to be subject to pressure from peers and teachers. Public schools in Sarajevo offer only Islamic religion classes. In Croat-majority West Mostar, minority students do not have the option to study non-Catholic religions as part of the school curriculum. Children continue to suffer unduly from the social stresses of the post-war era.

A 3-year programme begins at age 3.

Primary education begins at age 6 and lasts till age 9.

An 8-year secondary education programme begins at age 10.

Apart from students in domestic higher education, 9,572 postsecondary students study abroad, mainly in Germany (2,801), Croatia (2273), Austria (1,306), USA (433) and Denmark (432).

Children with disabilities lack sufficient educational opportunities and medical care. Though prohibited by law in both entities, discrimination against persons with disabilities exists in education and in other state services. Discrimination also exists between different categories of persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities resulting from the war have a privileged status not enjoyed by civilian disabled persons and those born with disabilities. Children with disabilities are often hospitalised in residential institutions or confined to their homes; they rarely have opportunities to attend school. UNICEF has established 23 classrooms throughout the country to provide primary education to special needs children.

Accurate statistics on internally displaced persons (IDPs) are difficult to obtain, but estimates suggest that 118,000 of some 500,000 IDPs are children. The UNHCR and the entity refugee ministries launched a re-registration campaign for displaced persons and refugees. Asylum or refugee status is granted to persons in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, and the government has established a system for providing protection to refugees. The government cooperates with the UNHCR to assist refugees. 635 refugees from Serbia and refugees from Kosovo remain in 3 centres in the country.

Ethnic differences remain a powerful political force in the country, but mixed communities are living peacefully in a growing number of areas. Nationalist Bosnian, Serb and Croat politicians push for ethnic homogeneity of the population in areas they control. They discourage IDPs of their own ethnicity from returning to their pre-war homes in areas where they will be in a minority situation.

Discrimination continues in education and employment. The Roma population, estimated to be 40,000 to 80,000, faces serious difficulties. Many are excluded from public services by lack of a birth certificate, an identification card or a registered residence. Only a small number of Roma adults have full-time employment; many, particularly children, subsist by begging.

While academic freedom is not legally restricted, it is constrained by ethnic favouritism and politicisation of faculty appointments. Complaints are frequent that the University of Sarajevo favours members of the Bosniak SDA party, and Bosniaks in general, in appointments and promotions. The University of Banja Luka limits faculty appointments almost exclusively to Serbs. The University of Mostar is divided into eastern and western branches reflecting the ethnic divide in the city. Access to the Internet is restricted only by cost, which nevertheless deprives 95% of the population of Internet access.

Gender-based discrimination is prohibited, but the law it is not enforced. Women serve as judges, doctors and professors, but few have positions of economic or political power. The principle of equal pay for work of equal value is applied in government-owned enterprises but not in the private sector. Women in all parts of the country encounter problems with non-payment of maternity leave allowances and with the dismissal of pregnant women and new mothers. Job announcements openly advertise discriminatory criteria, such as age and physical appearance of female applicants.

Violence against women remains widespread and under-reported. It is higher in rural areas and appears to be increasing as the economic situation worsens in many parts of the country. Alcoholism and poverty are the most common triggers. Police have received special training to handle cases of domestic violence. Trafficking in women for purposes of sexual exploitation is a serious problem. The law does not prohibit sexual harassment, which remains problematic and poorly understood according to media reports.

The minimum age for employment of children in the Federation and in the RS is 15; minors aged 15 to 18 must provide a valid health certificate in order to work. The law prohibits children from performing hasardous work and night work. Forced or compulsory labour by children is illegal, but such practices exist. Roma children beg on the streets in larger cities. There are no social programmes to prevent the hiring of children in exploitative child labour. The entity governments are responsible for enforcing child labour laws.

Workers have the right to form and join trade unions, except members of the military. In the Federation, the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Bosnia and Hersegovina (SSSBiH) represents most unionised workers, as does the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Serb Republic (SSRS) in RS. Union membership is deterred by high unemployment and the large number of workers in the grey economy. Rates of unionisation are lower in the private than in the public sector. Collective bargaining is provided for in both entities. Collective agreements largely apply as work agreements between the government and the public sector.

In the Federation, there are no collective agreements in the private sector. In RS, a general collective bargaining agreement applies to all workers whether or not the workers are union members. In the District of Brcko the labour law requires a separate law for collective agreements, which has not been enacted. In both entities the law provides for the right to strike. Strikes by sector, including the education sector, took place in the RS. Strikes also took place in the education sector in some cantons in the Federation.

The monthly minimum wage in the Federation is US$184 (295 KM) and in the RS US$51 (82 KM); neither provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Outstanding claims for payment of salaries and pensions have not been settled. Employers often do not register their employees to avoid paying social welfare benefits. Workers whose employers do not pay health insurance contributions are not entitled to public health care. The legal work week is 40 hours.