The High Representative, Miroslav Lajčák, today extended the State and Entity laws which temporarily prohibit the disposal of state property until 31 December 2007. He called upon the governments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Federation of BiH and Republika Srpska to reach agreement on the allocation of rights and responsibilities over State Property before December deadline expires.
The prohibition on the disposal of State property, originally imposed on 21 March 2005, expires on 30 September 2007. The Commission, which the BiH Council of Ministers first established in December 2004, is authorized to draft legislation that identifies which property is owned by the respective levels of government, and to prepare regulations for its future management. The Commission has yet to agree on the criteria that will underpin the new legislation and now the governments must now collectively re-double their efforts to guide the Commission’s work by reaching an inter-government agreement on State Property.
In the absence of legislation on the respective ownership rights and management responsibilities over state property, High Representative is again compelled to intervene to protect the interests of the Country as a whole.