The High Representative, Christian Schwarz-Schilling, today corrected the translation of the 2004 High Representative Decision Enacting Amendments to the Constitution of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The High Representative replaced the first sentence of Article VI.C, Paragraph 7 of the local language version of the Constitution, which had read “Svaki građanin Bosne i Hercegovine koji ispunjava uslove za glasanje u Gradu Mostaru može biti izabran za gradonačelnika Grada Mostara”, with “Samo vijećnici izabrani u Gradsko vijeće mogu biti birani za gradonačelnika Grada Mostara.”
This correction was necessary after an inconsistency was identified between the official English version of the text of the Decision of the High Representative Enacting Amendments to the FBiH Constitution signed on 28 January 2004, and the translated version published in the FBiH Official Gazette No. 9/04 of 16 February 2004.
The inconsistency came to light in the wake of the Federation Constitutional Court’s Ruling following a request for the review of the constitutionality of certain provisions of the Mostar City Statute by the Herzegovina Neretva Canton Prime Minister.
The Constitutional Court ruled, inter alia, that Article 44, paragraphs 1 and 3 of the Mostar Statute concerning the modalities for the election of the Mayor, were incompatible with the Federation Constitution on the basis of the translated version of Article VI.C, Paragraph 7 of the Constitution of the Federation.
The High Representative issued today’s Decision to correct the technical mistake in translation and implement the Federation Constitutional Court decision.
Article VI.C, Paragraph 7 of the local-language version of the FBiH Constitution is now in line with the official English version as enacted by the High Representative on 28 January 2004.