The High Representative, Paddy Ashdown, has today written to the Prime Minister of the RS, Pero Bukejlovic, responding to Mr Bukejlovic’s request that a Commission be established to look into crimes against civilians in Sarajevo between 1992 and 1995.
In his letter, the High Representative notes that he has on several occasions, in conversation and in writing, advised Mr Bukejlovic on how to deal with this issue.
“As with the Mothers of Srebrenica and Mrs Esma Palic, you should take this matter to the Human Rights Commission within the Constitutional Court , who can rule on how best to proceed with this.
“If a ruling by the Human Rights Commission requires action to be taken, I will ensure, as with the Mothers of Srebrenica and Mrs Palic, that the action they require is taken in full. As you will appreciate I cannot act before any ruling is made.”
To date, however, the Prime Minister appears not to have acted on this advice.
The High Representative expresses in his letter dissatisfaction with the fact that Mr Bukejlovic released his letter to the High Representative to the media, before the High Representative had an opportunity to read it. This suggests that “the purpose of the letter was more to do with obtaining publicity than getting action.”
The High Representative notes that time spent making political points rather than pursuing the proper legal channels prolongs the suffering of those who are searching for missing loved ones.