The Statehood Day of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is celebrated on November 25th , and thanks to the library of the Historical Archive Sarajevo we have the opportunity to see how this date was marked in 1943.
On that day in 1943, at the first session of the ZAVNOBiH in Mrkonjic Grad, the foundations of the modern statehood of BiH, as equal republic within the Yugoslav federation, were set in its historical borders.
The first session of the ZAVNOBiH started in Mrkonjic Grad on November 25th , 1943 at 7 pm. It was completed the same night, on the 26th of November, at 4 am.
This founding assembly was attended by 247 delegates from all over BiH, 173 of them with the voting right. At its first session, ZAVNOBiH was formally constituted as a representative body of the National Liberation Movement (in Bosnian: NOP) of BiH, but in reality and practice it acted as highest political authority.
The councilors adopted the Resolution of the ZAVNOBiH and the Declaration of the People of BiH in which it is emphasized that in the future, BiH and its nations in the country and abroad can only be represented by ZAVNOBiH and AVNOJ.
At the same time, these acts expressed the determination of the people of BiH that their country, which is neither Serbian, nor Croatian, nor Muslim, but also Serbian, Muslim and Croat, should be a community that will ensure full equality of all Serbs, Muslims and Croats.
At the session, delegation of 58 members was elected to represent BiH at the Second Session of AVNOJ (November 29th , 1943).
(Source: Radiosarajevo.ba)
