BH-Central Institutions HDZ to boycott authority but stays in the Federation; Is the naming of Bozidar Matic of the vital interest for Croats?; OSCE and OHR warn that deadlines for the formation of authority are passing; Ante Jelavic: As long as I am leading it, the HDS will not fall into the trap of radicalism; OSCE says Inter-Cantonal Council cannot have political function; HDZ BiH helps anti-government demonstrations in Croatia; Republika Srpska RS Constitutional Commission formally established; Labor Law - Discrimination according to the law; International community: The High Representative imposes Official Publication of Telecommunications Sector Policy; OHR and OSCE promote the Draft Law on Defamation, Slander and Libel; SDHR Matthias Sonn says the OHR will not allow educational apartheid; BiH daily carries excerpts from Wolfgang Petritsch's book on BiH; Editorials Slobodna Dalmacija: Bosnian Cross Central Institutions related Issues: HDZ to boycott authority but stays in the Federation: The Central Board of the HDZ made a decision to boycott the formation of authority at the entity and state levels until the conditions are met for its participation. "For us, the established authority is illegal, and we refuse to take part in it," said Ante Jelavic following yesterday's session. Radical decisions, such as the political divorce from the Federation and the creation of the Inter-Entity Council, have not been made, most likely because the HDZ delegated this authority to the Croat National Assembly. The Central Board also expressed support the suggestion of Ante Jelavic to organize a new international conference on BiH, which would provide for the self-sustainable state which respects the rights of all of its peoples. Members of the Board stressed that the creation of the Federation House of Peoples according to new PEC rules and regulations would be illegal and would lack legitimacy. Commenting on the possible reactions of the International Community to decisions made at the session, Jelavic said that he expect to have a "dialog within a democratic framework" with the IC. "I do not believe that the IC is considering any radical measures, such as banning the party or arrests. "And, as far as the sanctions are concerned", said Jelavic, "we are used to them". Is the naming of Bozidar Matic of the vital interest for Croats?: Legal Advisor to the Bosniak member of the BiH Presidency, Kasim Trnka, told Oslobodjenje that the decision on the nomination of Bozidar Matic may be overturned if Croat deputies in the Federation House of Peoples decide that this issue was of the vital interest for the Croat people in BiH. Since the Croat member of the Presidency, Ante Jelavic, filed a compliant immediately following the nomination, it is certain that the House will discuss this matter. However, Trnka noted that is still not clear whether the issue will go before the present or newly-to-be-formed House of Peoples. Also commenting on the nomination of the new Chair of the Council of Ministers, OHR Spokesperson Alexandra Stiglmayer stressed that, in this particular case, Jelavic could not claim the "vital national interest" clause, since this was a matter of the nomination and not of a formal decision. However, Tihomir Begic, Jelavic's advisor for media, told Habena news agency that the above assertion is unfounded, and quoted the Article V.2d of the BiH Constitution which stipulates that the dissenting member of the Presidency may declare that certain decision is destructive to the vital interest if he does so within three days. "Since Jelavic declared at Tuesday's session that the Decision of the BiH Presidency to nominate Bozidar Matic as the candidate for the Chair of the CoM was destructive...it is clear that the Croat Presidency member has the right to refer to the protection of the vital interests. (Please note that Begic was referring to the statement of Oleg Milisic, which was identical to the one of Stiglmayer). OSCE and OHR warn that deadlines for the formation of authority are passing: At yesterday's press conference, the Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH, Robert Barry, and the High Representative, Wolfgang Petritsch, stressed that they expect a faster formation of the Federation House of Peoples and the entity government. Commenting on the threats of the HDZ and its leader, Ante Jelavic, of the formation of the Inter-Cantonal Council, Petritsch said that any party which goes beyond the established legal framework will have to face consequences for such behavior. Referring to the possible boycott of Federation bodies by the HDZ, OHR's Alexandra Stiglmayer said that the Federation House of Peoples could be formed even if one party happens to be blocking its formation. In other words, thirty member of one people will not be occupying their seats, while the other may comprise a quorum, explained Stiglmayer. "The entire political system should not be blocked because of the obstruction of one political party." Ante Jelavic: As long as I am leading it, the HDS will not fall into the trap of radicalism: In an interview with Slobodna Dalmacija, the Croat member of the BiH Presidency and the leader of the HDZ commented on the present situation of Croats and the HDZ in BiH. Q: You addressed a letter to the UN Security Council. What did you write in it and what are your expectations from the Security Council? A: We informed in details the UN Security Council that the peace agreement signed in Dayton is violated in B&H and that by the violation the rights of the Croats, as one of the three constituent peoples, are very seriously jeopardised. We asked for those one-sided processes to be stopped and a new international conference on B&H to be organised, at which the legal establishment of the state would be reviewed, since it is obvious that the present one does not have good results. I am not sure if our public knows about it in details. However, if the House of Peoples is abolished, if the HVO is abolished, if the Chairman of the Council of Ministers is appointed in such a way, without the consent of the Croat people, then I can not see in that anything else but the change of the Dayton Constitution to the detriment of the Croat people. It, clearly, may have far-reaching consequences with an uncertain outcome. Q: With a lot of nervousness one is expecting the reactions of the HDZ's hard-liners? A: I can assure you that the HDZ, as long as I lead it, will not fall into any trap of radicalism, separatism or any kind of destruction of the state. Bosna and Herzegovina is indisputable, it is the state of the three constituent peoples and it is not just any kind of state. By the Dayton Peace Agreement it was designed as a complex and I can say a unique state in the world. It may be that it is a challenge to us, who are living in B&H, but also to the international community that has been investing huge funds, to enable it start functioning to the benefit of all of its peoples and citizens. Q: And what about the third entity? A: The third entity - no. We do not want the third entity, but we are asking for all the rights of Croats to be very precisely ensured by the Constitution and laws, in the same way as they are for the other two peoples. We are asking for those rights to be standardized in the entire state, for the majority-principle to be eliminated since we equally care about any Croat, from the Sava River to the sea. We do not want that some Croats in BiH enjoy more privileges, than those who are living in some other territory. That is why we will pay a special attention to the issue of return to the Bosnian Posavina and Central Bosnia because our people there still have important resources and property. We will struggle for everything to be returned to them and support them politically and economically. OSCE says Inter-Cantonal Council cannot have political function: In an interview with Vecernji List, the Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH, Robert Barry, commenting on the possible creation of the Inter-Cantonal Council, said that its creation per se is not unconstitutional, but that such bodies could not have legislative or executive powers. "Therefore, it would be completely unconstitutional for this council to deal with issues of tax or custom policies," said Barry. HDZ BiH helps anti-government demonstrations in Croatia: The formal organizers of the transportation of over 15,000 demonstrators to Split, mostly from the areas of Tomislavgrad, Suica and Livno, were the HVIDRA of Herzeg-Bosnia and the Association of the HVO Volunteers and Veterans. However, the soldiers' associations could hardly organize something like this operationally and without the help of local political authorities. Globus' sources from Herzegovina claim that the associations of soldiers were only the instigators, while the real organizer of the rally was the leadership of the HDZ BiH. Two days before, the HDZ BiH officials phoned their former central office in Zagreb and exchanged synopses of the Split "happening of soldiers." Globus' interlocutors claim that Ivic Pasalic was assigned with this task in the most direct way but with the usual discretion, and he was the real back stage star of the Split rally. One of the Globus' sources thinks that the rally in Split considerably reinforced the interest axis of Gotovina and Pasalic, whom, in Herzegovina, are supported by retired General Stanko Sopta, Jelavic's Advisor for National Security. It is a well known fact in Herzegovina that no action on the line of political radicalism is made without the knowledge and approval of Stanko Sopta, who has a great influence in one part of the army. Involvement in the organization of the Split rally is not the only common action of Pasalic, Gotovina and Sopta. The other project, which was developing simultaneously with the rally in Split, was saving the HDZ candidate in the BiH Council of Ministers, Martin Raguz. According to the information that Globus has, right after he saw how spectacular the rally in Split was, Ivic Pasalic hurried to Sarajevo, via Lukavica, i.e. Republika Srpska (where, according to Bosnian press, had some semi-formal talks with the domestic leadership). A source close to Cardinal Puljic claims that Pasalic asked the Sarajevo Archbishop for help in saving the HDZ BiH. During the talk, Pasalic dramatized the appointment of the CoM designate and pointed to the threat of HDZ personnel not being elected to the new Bosnian authority structures. The engagement of Ivic Pasalic in Sarajevo cannot be explained as nothing else but a part of a wider political project of the survival of the HDZ on both sides of the border between Herzegovina and Croatia. The figures such as Ivo Sanader or Vladimir Seks do not fit at all in that scenario, but the help from General Sopta and his political personnel, who were engaged in the Convict's Battalion until recently, is absolutely necessary in the revolutionary and putschist raising of tensions. The most recent news from the rally in Split is extremely alarming. Shortly before this edition was rounded up, two Globus' sources, one from the diplomatic circles in BiH and the other close to the HDZ BiH leadership, confirmed that there were around 70 persons armed with short barrels among the "demonstrators" from Herzegovina. Globus' sources claim that those were Croat officials from the lines of the Federation Army and Police, who went through the border control at Doljani without any problems. A formal investigation may be conducted on how it was possible for a few buses with armed demonstrators to cross the border and enter Croatia. Republika Srpska RS Constitutional Commission formally established: The RS Constitutional Commission within the RS National Assembly held its first session on Wednesday in Banja Luka. According to its Chairman, Miroslav Mikes, the Commission is to commence work on the harmonization of the RS Constitution with the decision of the Constitutional Court on the status of peoples in BiH. Labor Law - Discrimination according to the law: Jutarnje Novine reports that the RS Labor Law includes some discriminatory provisions, such as the Article 152 which stipulates that illegally dismissed workers from the RS can get a modest severance pay instead of the right to return to their lost jobs. According to the daily, several thousand dismissed workers mostly of Bosniak nationality have initiated a petition for the change of the controversial law, or at least the disputable article. Despite the fact that the petition was sent to the OHR as well, the organization's spokesperson, Oleg Milisic, said that the OHR cannot change this law. Furthermore, he stressed that the RS and the Federation Laws give similar possibilities to dismissed workers. Commenting on this, Ramiz Salkic of the SDA Podrinje said that Milisic's statement is an utter hypocrisy. "If it turns out that Milisic's statement reflects the attitude of the OHR...then we want to ask whether the denial of work rights also means the denial of rights to return," said Salkic. In a shorter interview with Jutarnje Novine, OHR Spokesperson Alexandra Stiglmayer said that she understands the complaints of the dismissed Bosniaks but that they have take into consideration the present state of economy in BiH. "Most of these companies are no longer operational, and we cannot expect to have a system like before the war," Stiglmayer said, and added that BiH is moving towards the market economy and it would be irrational to expect that all those people could return to their jobs. International community related issues: The High Representative imposes Official Publication of Telecommunications Sector Policy: The High Representative, Wolfgang Petritsch, imposed yesterday a decision which is to ensure the immediate publication of the Telecommunications Sector Policy, as was adopted by the Council of Ministers in November 2000, in the Official Gazettes of the Federation and the Republika Srpska. All Federation media carried the OHR press release. OHR and OSCE promote the Draft Law on Defamation, Slander and Libel: All Federation and RS media reported that the OHR and the OSCE presented yesterday the Draft Law on Defamation, Slander and Libel which will be applicable in both entities. "Freedom of expression is a pillar of democracy. It must be guarded, guaranteed and protected," Wolfgang Petritsch told journalists during the press conference, and added that the law is to ensure a balance between the freedom of speech and a perception of genuine defamation. Petritsch concluded that the adoption of this law is an important contribution to the building of freedom and democracy in BiH. SDHR Matthias Sonn says the OHR will not allow educational apartheid: In an interview with Dnevni Avaz, the Senior Deputy High Representative, Matthias Sonn, said that the OHR will not allow any education apartheid in BiH. "We can resolve the problem [of segregation] step by step or all at once," said Sonn, and added that the first step is placing children in the some class, while the real answers will come with the modern curriculum. BiH daily carries excerpts from Wolfgang Petritsch's book on BiH: Today's issue of Dnevni Avaz carried excerpts, on six full pages, of Wolfgang Petritsch's book on BiH "Bosnia and Herzegovina - Five years after Dayton". Editorials: Slobodna Dalmacija: Bosnian Cross By Petar Milos Provided by OHR Mostar Bearing a Bosnian cross in Zagreb is more difficult than in any other state in the world, especially to a Croat. There has always been a petty-bourgeois complex in their attitude to Europe, and they always treated their BiH fellow-countrymen in the way Europe treated them. Franjo Tudjman, like Stjepan Radic, understood that the Croats in BiH could be a strong Croatian trump card in the process of disintegration of Yugoslavia and establishment of the independent Croatia. That is why he played on the card of pan-Croathood emphasizing that BiH is a cradle of the Croat(ian) statehood. After Tudjman the new Croatian authorities are coming, which resolve the problem of the Croats in BiH with a laconic statement that such a problem does not exist. So, in that why Mesic and Racan were given points by the international community and left the BiH Croats to the mercy of it. Judging by the latest development it is more like disfavor. How could one, otherwise, interpret the fact that, due to the election engineering, the Croats in the federal and B&H authorities will be represented by the persons like Ivo Komsic, Ivan Brigic, Kresimir Zubak, Bozidar Matic....in other words the old Commies and proven incompetents, and also the persons who received only about a hundred Croat votes. The last news say that not even Martin Raguz, from the HDZ, was supported as a candidate for the Chairman of the CoM. He admits himself that the international representatives were asking him to give up his membership in the HDZ. Otherwise, he is commended by everybody as a capable person. But, why does Bosnia need the capable persons at all? And then the Norac case happened and Mesic and Racan became very preoccupied with their work. They easily 'resolved' some problems, such as the problems of the Croats in B&H, the problems of the Diaspora etc. .. and now they have to play in their own penalty box. And the international community has started a strong attack. They reduced the number of Croats and their own citizens who should be taken care about, but even that is too much for them. They would like to resolve only the problems of their own voters. And the circle closed. Croatia is almost blocked because of the protests and civil disobedience and the Croats in B&H announce they would, after all, try to express, through the civil disobedience, their dissatisfaction with the changed election rules and implementation of the election results, by which a sovereign people was completely turned into the opposition.

The BiH Media Round-up is being compiled primarily for the OHR's internal purposes under time pressure. Please disregard grammar and typing mistakes. The mentioned media reports do not reflect OHR views, and the OHR does not take responsibility for them.

OHR BiH Media Round-up