A/HRC/25/49/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. The Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights visited Bosnia and Herzegovina from 13 to 24 May 2013 at the invitation of the Government. She visited Sarajevo, Mostar, Stolac, Jajce, Banja Luka, Brčko and Srebrenica. She met with a number of senior government officials at the level of the State, the two entities and Brčko District, as well as with senior cantonal and municipal officials responsible in the areas of culture, science, education and youth affairs. She also met representatives of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established under annex 8 to the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the institution of the Human Rights Ombudsman, directors of cultural and educational institutions, artists, academics, civil society representatives, United Nations agencies and other international organizations. She visited several schools and memorials. 2. Thorough discussions were held with all interlocutors on the successes and challenges in implementing cultural rights in the country, particularly with regard to history teaching, memorialization issues, participation in cultural life and the freedom of cultural institutions. The Special Rapporteur considered these issues with a view to assisting the Government and other relevant actors in their efforts to address the challenges and obstacles they meet in this regard. 3. The Special Rapporteur thanks the Government for the invitation to undertake the visit, which enabled her to deepen her understanding of issues relating to her mandate, including the teaching and writing of history, and memorialization processes in postconflict and divided societies.1 She expresses her gratitude to all those who have given her the benefit of their time and expertise. II. General context: legacies of the conflict and impact on cultural rights A. Political and administrative structure 4. Bosnia and Herzegovina declared its independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in March 1992. Three and a half years of armed conflict followed, ending with the signing of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Dayton Agreement) and the annexes thereto in December 1995. Annex 4 to the Agreement established the constitutional framework of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Annex 6 addressed the issue of human rights protection, referring to, among other international instruments, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. 5. Annex 8 to the Dayton Agreement contains the Agreement on the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, demonstrating the vital importance of cultural heritage matters in the post-conflict period. Significantly, from the outset of the war, monuments, cultural institutions such as museums and libraries, and mosques and churches were heavily and deliberately shelled as the symbols of the “others”, their ideology or faith, as were other institutions closely associated with the former Yugoslavia. 1 See A/68/296 and A/HRC/25/49. 3