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Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnia and Herzegovina): Flag proposals, 1996

The selection process
Second equal prizes
- Proposal by Suzana Cerić & Feđa Isović
- Proposal by Ivica Belinić
"Bought-off" proposals
- Proposal by Vinko Baković
- Proposal by Edita and Tomislav Goluban
Other flag proposals

See also:

The selection process

When the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina was ended with the so-called Dayton Agreement, agreed in November 1995 and formally signed on 14 December 1995, the country was divided into the form it has today in two entities - Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (so-called the Croatian-Muslim Federation or the Croatian-Bosniak Federation), the latter composed of 10 cantons.

The process of adoption of a new flag for the Federation was initiated even before the Agreement, probably already in September 1995, since by the end of October the public competition was over.
The Constitutional Assembly of the Federation established a Commission for the coat of arms and the flag, which ran a public competition. As reported on 9 November 1995 by Petar Grubišić (Novi bosanski grb bit će crveno-bijelo-zelen s ljiljanom i šahovnicom, Arena, No. 1,821, pp. 50-51), 625 proposals were submitted. The Commission selected four of them: two were awarded an second equal prize while another two were awarded to be "bought off" for rights. The results were proclaimed in Decision Odulka o izboru prijedloga grba i zastave Federacije Bosne i Hercegovine i nagraĐenih i otkupljenih radova prijavljenih na javni natječaj za izradu prijedloga idejnog rješenja grba i zastave Federacije Bosne i Hercegovine, adopted on 26 October 1995 by the Cimmission in Neum, on behalf of the Constitutional Assembly in Sarajevo.
The two second awards were granted 7000 DEM each in prize and an additional 550 DEM each for correction requested. The "bought off" works were granted 300 DEM each.

Željko Heimer & Tomislav Goluban, 23 Feburary 2016

Second equal prizes

Proposal by Suzana Cerić & Feđa Isović

Symbols proposed by S. Cerić & F. Isović, top row, original proposals, bottom row, amended proposals - Images by Željko Heimer, 22 February 2016

The proposal titled "S&F II", submitted by Sarajevo designers Suzana Cerić (in some sources apparently misprinted as Ferić) and Feđa Isović, had a coat of arms in a triangular shield shape, per bend embattled azure a fleur-de-lis or and chequy argent and gules 5 x 6, the shield edged argent. The shield is set in the centre of a flag horizontally divided red-white-green. The jury required the fleur de lys to be changed to argent on vert instead of or a on azure.
The corrected proposal was published, among others on 6 March 1996 (Jozo Pavković, Mogu li zeleno i crveno zajedno, VeS;ernji list, which reported, from "unofficial sources", that the Croat members of the Assembly preferred this design.

Željko Heimer & Tomislav Goluban, 22 Feburary 2016

Proposal by Ivica Belinić

Symbols proposed by I. Belinić, top row, original proposals, bottom row, amended proposals - Images by Željko Heimer, 23 February 2016

The other second equal award was granted to the design titled "1.godina" that was submitted by Ivica Belinić, a young designer from Zagreb. The aforementioned mentioned article in Arena is mostly interview with him.
The arms are a triangular Samnitic shield, "Per pale azure in chief a fleur-de-lis or and gules in chief quartered argent and gules".
The flag is a vertically divided blue-red with the fleur-de-lis in the canton and the chequy squares in the fly canton.
The commission requested the author to replace blue with green and the yellow fleur-de-lis with a white one. When the requested corrections were made (as published in the aforementioned article in Večernji list), the flag was made for vertical hoisting, and the charges were moved to the bottom.
Jozo Pavković (Mogu li zeleno i crveno zajedno, VeS;ernji list) reported, from "unofficial sources", that the Muslim members of the Assembly preferred this design.

Even if the proposal was rejected by the Parliament of the Federation, this flag was hoisted in the Parliament sessions almost since the debate on the new flag had started, until the new flag was finally adopted, so this flag may be considered as the flag in use from April 1996 until November 1996.
The flag is shown, for instance, on a small photo accompanying an article in the weekly magazine Tjednik, 1 March 1997. The photo (undated) pictures Krešimir Zubak, the President of the Federation.

Željko Heimer & Tomislav Goluban, 22 Feburary 2016

"Bought-off" proposals

Proposal by Vinko Baković

Flag proposed by Vinko Baković, 23 February 2016

The proposal "1404 SR", submitted by Vinko Baković, from Zagreb, is quartered hite, blue, red and white per an offset cross, forming square fields next to the hoist.
The available sources do not provide any hint on the companion coat of arms, which might have been (if any), the orrhogonally clockwise rotated design of the flag set in a shield shape.

Željko Heimer & Tomislav Goluban, 22 Feburary 2016

Proposal by Edita and Tomislav Goluban

Symbols proposed by Edita and Tomislav Goluban - Images by Željko Heimer, 23 February 2016

Unlike the previous proposals based on the national emblems of Croats and Bosniak, design "200960", submitted by Edita and Tomislav Goluban, was "neutral".
The flag is a banner of arms in proportions 1:2. The coat of arms is a purple, triangular heart-shaped shield with five fretted wavy strings crossed per saltire, from top to bottom, red, yellow, green, cyan, and blue. The fret is made so that the first, middle and last stripe of the dexter bend go over all others, while the second and fourth pass behind all others.
The design emphasize importance of rivers for the country, both forming most of its boundaries as well as the main communication routes within the country, and symbolizes interconnection of cultures. The unusual heraldic colour for the background makes the flag distinctive, said the designer.

Željko Heimer & Tomislav Goluban, 23 Feburary 2016

Other proposals

Rejected flag proposal - Image by Željko Heimer, 23 February 2016

The TV news on HRT (Croatian TV), 21 October 1998, showed a document entitled "New proposal for the coat of arms and flag of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina". The document is open on a table. Papers are in a leather folder, looking like they were prepared for some ceremonial signing; the paper and printing are looking of high quality. The page that is opened consists of several images of the coat of arms and flag in several sizes, and is entitled Novi prijedlog grba i zastave Federacije Bosne i Hercegovine.
The flag is in proportions 1:2, vertically divided red-white-green (1:2:1), with the coat of atms in the middle. The coat of arms is "Per pale, vert a fleur-de-lis argent and gules in chief checky gules and argent 5 x 5.

Željko Heimer, 26 October 1998

Other flag proposal - Image by Željko Heimer, 23 February 2016

Yet another proposal had the white stripe widened, seemingly as the result of the rejection of "simple" tricolours that were mostly already used by other nations. The quartering of the central square was intended to symbolize the equivalence of the two nations.

Željko Heimer, 2 March 1997