The High Representative, Paddy Ashdown, has placed a temporary freeze on disbursements of political party funding to the HDZ from all Cantonal, Entity and State level budgets. This party funding will be made available again immediately after the competent authorities in the Central Bosnia and Herzegovina-Neretva Cantons have adopted the Decision on legal and administrative unification of the remaining “two schools under one roof”. This administrative unification in no way affects the curricula taught, textbooks used or the languages spoken in these schools. The High Representative welcomed the decision by the Croat Ministers of Education Co-ordination Board, announced last week, to participate actively in the Education reform process. However, the delay in putting in place the Decision on administrative and legal unification of the remaining “two schools under one roof”, which is an obligation BiH must meet as a post accession requirement of the Council of Europe, meant that the High Representative had to put in place measures that would ensure action. The sooner the competent authorities take the required steps, the sooner these funds will be available again. The High Representative looks forward to these steps being taken without further delay, so allowing for the speedy lifting of this temporary freeze.
03/30/2004