BiH State-related Issues
BiH, Croatian officials optimistic ahead of high-level talks
Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers Zlatko Lagumdzija and Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan are to meet in Zagreb later today (Wednesday) to discuss the agreement on the port of Ploce, the opening of Kostajnica border crossing and the transport of oil and oil derivatives by road, as well as illegal immigration and economic cooperation. Commenting on the meeting, Croatian Ambassador in BiH Josip Vrbosic said he was confident that an agreement on the port of Ploce would be put before the Croatian parliament for ratification soon after the meeting, and Croatian Deputy Foreign Minister Vesna Cvjetkovic Kurelec expressed the hope that progress would be made on all the important issues during the talks between the two prime ministers.
Theme of the Day: CIPS – New identity cards to be ready by Summer
Oslobodjenje reports that the CIPS (Citizens Identity Protection System) is perhaps the most important projects in BiH and notes that BiH citizens should be able to obtain their new identity cards and drivers licenses already in June. These new documents should be fully competitive and in line with European standards. The daily, however, argues that this is not likely to happen, because the CIPS has just moved from a standstill and local authorities are not yet certain as to how to proceed further.
Mirko Skrbic, the CIPS project director also expressed his concern. “We have still not received all the equipment, we have not resolved the problem of location of the main printing house….”, said Skrbic. He explained that the printing house must be located in a city where it could be staffed with highly qualified professionals. “We propose that issuing places be located in post offices, unless this is previously organised within police stations. Post offices meet all the necessary requirements for the implementation of this project,” Skrbac explained.
Oslobodjenje notes that citizens will have to pay 10 KM for a new ID card, and 30 KM for the drivers license. This project is a joint project among local authorities and the OHR, which provided three of its experts for this job. Technical and commercial groups are working on the Siemens offer, and the final cost of the CIPS has not yet been determined. Skrbic explained that this work is still in progress, as the price changes on a daily basis. According to some estimates, the first phase will cost around 20 million KM, and second one over 10 million KM. Although the work was planned to start in early June, Skrbic is not sure if this deadline is realistic, as the necessary equipment has not yet arrived in BiH.
Oslobodjenje also recounts the recent “scandal” surrounding the CIPS tender, which was awarded to Siemens. The daily notes that the entire tender process was ran by the OHR, as BiH, at the time of its opening, did not have the state law on this project and was required to use a closed tender in line with WTO rules. The chairman of the Council of Ministers, Zlatko Lagumdzija, conceded that the previous CoM has not adequately ran this project in the past, which is one of the main reasons for the present delays in its implementation.
Oslobodjenje comments that CIPS is still nothing more then a mere project, despite the fact that its proper implementation is one of the main requirements for the removal of visa regime for BiH citizens who want to travel to Europe. “It is clear that Bosnia has got something very valuable in the worst possible way. At this moment, there is no way back, for the entire process would have to go back to the beginning,” reads Oslobodjenje.
Avaz poll: SDP most popular party, 37% indecisive
According to a poll conducted by Avaz agency, the most popular political party in the Federation is SDP. This party won nearly 15% of the vote, and it is followed closely by the Party for BiH with 11% of the vote and SDA and HDZ, each of which received 9% of the total vote.
The most concerning result (for political parties and candidates) of the poll was a very high percentage of indecisive voters, i.e., of those who are still not sure whether they will vote at all and/or for whom they will cast their vote at the Elections scheduled for October – 37%.
According to the same poll, by far the most popular politician in the Federation is Haris Silajdzic (18%), while Zlatko Lagumdzija is closely following with 16% of the vote. Unrecognized HDZ president, Ante Jelavic, has support of 5% of the population, while the Federation Prime Minister, Alija Behmen, also had a significant support – around 6%.
The poll was conducted among 1,048 citizens from the entire territory of the Federation and in all cantons using a method of random sampling.
Avaz also conducted a smaller poll among 100 randomly selected persons in Banja Luka and Bijeljina and found that Milorad Dodik is the most liked politician in those towns. While Dodik’c SNSD and Mladen Ivanic’s PDP has a substantial support in Banja Luka (nearly 30%), the situation in Bijeljina is somewhat different. There, the SDS has support of 29% of the population, while PDP and SNSD scored barely 13%.
Politicians in their property cards insist on their poverty
The BiH Election Commission will send a proposal to the parliamentary procedure according to which every political official in BiH would have to state/list all the property he acquired during his/her tenure at the end of his/her tenure, reads Vecernji List. According to the President of the Commission, Lidija Korac, those cards would be then compared to the cards that were filled in before in order to detect if there were any irregularities. The daily says that most of the candidates do not state actual situation and that the Election Commission does not have the legal basis to eliminate this phenomenon. “I think it is impossible that the Election Commission checks all the data. The Commission will put the property cards on the official Internet site and inform the media about the data. Any person interested in the process could lodge a complaint to the Commission. Filling out of the property card has more moral then legal characteristics”, says Korac. The daily adds that close family of the candidates would also to state their property in the cards.
Constitutional Reform
Zlatko Lagumdzija, Chairman of BiH Council of Ministers: I am shocked by brutality of SDA, which wants to return in power by any means (provided by OHR Mostar)
With regard to today’s meeting with Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan, Zlatko Lagumdzija stated: ‘First of all, I want that our talks focus on the resolving of concrete problems, which have been unnecessarily accumulated lately. I sincerely hope that this meeting will show that it was only an illusion that the relations between Croatia and BiH have aggravated. Namely, the most important thing is strengthening of neighboring relations between Croatia and BiH, as one of the greatest gains for the citizens of both countries, that are a result of changed political relations in Sarajevo and Zagreb, during the last two years. Prime Minister Racan and I are advocators of the idea to have BiH and Croatia as strategic partners, oriented towards each other.’
With regard to the constitutional changes, Zlatko Lagumdzija stated the following: ‘First of all, I am expecting that we lead simultaneously all three processes, which have been underway. The one is harmonizing of entities’ Constitutions in the entities’ Assemblies on the ground of the things proposed by Governments, that is, Constitutional Commissions of the entities.
Since the first process cannot give results by itself, the second process has been underway. Unfortunately, the Parliament majority in the RS has a radically different opinion from the Parliament majority in the BiH Federation, so that the process of political agreements is taking place as well. The third process is the process that is taking place within the institutions of the International Community- the Peace Implementation Council in BiH and powers that the HR, that is, the relevant international institutions have. The thing, that we have to bear in mind in all three processes, is that European standards that we took upon ourselves by an admission to the Council of Europe is an issue that cannot be negotiated any longer. I believe that this brings IC representatives in a different situation. The IC representatives were able to arbitrate quite often, trying to find a midpoint between opposed parties. Now, the IC representatives must not look for the midpoint but they have to find a point in which BiH is being ‘Brusselized’, the point in which BiH is being ‘Europeanized’, that is, the point, in which everything that we are doing filters through the European standards. In other words, even when the IC arbitrates and when it acts, it cannot act any longer on the ground of daily political events, but it has to act on the ground of standards that are now valid in one European country. For this reason, I believe and expect that political forces will show more maturity and that they will attempt to move from the positions that they insist on, in the coming period, that is ahead of us. I believe that the IC representatives will clearly judge the position of the European BiH, and if they had to cut something they would have to measure a European piece for BiH.’
With regard to the statements given by high-ranked officials of the RS, Mladen Ivanic and Mirko Sarovic, Lagumdzija said: ‘I believe that the arrest of Radovan Karadzic is one of the IC priorities and it should be the priority of all forces in BiH. I have to admit that their statements are not completely clear to me. However, it would be the best that they do their part of work, that is, that the competent institutions of the RS in line with the internationally recognized obligations and standards and in line with our Constitution and valid legal regulations, arrest by themselves the war criminals, who are on their territory.’
With regard to the protest rally of war victims, which was held in Sarajevo last Friday, Lagumdzija says: ‘It is completely clear that SDA decided to abuse this gathering for its political purposes and in order to manipulate with the population, that is in the worst position in BiH. I am also concerned about the hasty statements given by SDA leaders, who do not realize that each identifying of Bosniaks with so-called Algerians is something that is directed against BiH and Bosniaks as people.’
NHI’s Kresimir Zubak: Petritsch must impose solutions in BiH
In an interview with Dnevni Avaz, the president of the NHI (New Croat Initiative), Kresimir Zubak, said that he is not satisfied with the results of the ongoing discussion on constitutional changes in BiH entities. “I am not an optimist that political parties can reach a consensus on three important issues: representation of three constituent peoples in the structures of authority, definition of the vital national interest, and mechanism of protection of the vital national interest,” said Zubak. He added that the greatest resistance to symmetrical solutions is naturally coming from the RS, whose parties strongly object to the introduction of the House of Peoples in the RS National Assembly.
Zubak said that the most likely outcome of the present stalemate will be the intervention by the High Representative, i.e., the imposition of constitutional changes. He rejected allegations by some RS officials that imposed solutions could not be properly implemented, adding that numerous laws in BiH were imposed and most have been implemented. Zubak said that he heard the RS Prime Minister, Mladen Ivanic, would resign if the High Representative indeed interferes in this. “I think that this is a principled attitude and I am sure that Mr. Ivanic will resign if Petritsch imposes solutions,” Zubak stressed, noting, however, that he would not call this an “imposition”. “Rather, it is the right and obligation of the High Representative to intervene in this case in the work of the RS Constitutional Commission,” Zubak stressed at the end.
Candidate for the new Chair of the CoM: Dragan Mikerevic – Imposition of constitutional changes would be a failure of International Community
In an interview with Jutarnje Novine, the candidate for the new chairman of the Council of Ministers, Dragan Mikerevic, expressed hope that local politicians will reach an adequate solution in the debate about constitutional changes and reach a party consensus. “If solution is imposed by the High Representative, this would be defeat of International Community and local politicians. We have to open up towards the world and democratic changes,” said Mikerevic, adding that constitutional changes should be agreed upon in the entity Constitutional Commissions and entity governments. “Politicians and parties should stay out of this discussion and should simply stand aside,” Mikerevic said.
Former president of the Constitutional Court: The CC ruling is not about symmetry, it is about positive discrimination
In an interview with Jutarnje Novine, the former president of the BiH Constitutional Court and the chairman of the Club of Parliamentarians, Kasim Begic, stressed that the implementation of the Constitutional Court ruling on constituency of peoples is not about the symmetry or vital national interests. “The form of its implementation is positive discrimination. It is, so to speak, the protection of minorities following the Swiss key. In other words, this implies granting more rights to those who are in some way smaller then their elections results or numerical size,” Begic said, adding that the essence of this ruling was neither the 1991 population census, nor elections results.
Begic stressed that multiethnic states are built precisely on the compromise between elections results and institutional protection of all three constituent peoples. “I am afraid that this has not been acknowledged in the thus far debate, in the thus far proposed amendments in the two entities. Thus, the approach is not the one which is embodied in the spirit of the CoCo ruling,” said Begic.
Federation
Mostar mayor offers his resignation?
Croat Radio Mostar reports that the Mayor of Mostar, Neven Tomic, offered his resignation to the Chair of the City Council yesterday. Speaking at the press conference which was held at the City Administration building today, Tomic said that the reason behind his decision is the construction of a facility on the location of the former City Pharmacy. Mayor Tomic said that he did not receive support for his motion to renew the procedure with regards to the construction adding that his request for removal of the Head of Urban Planning of the City Administration, Sead Pintul, was not co-signed by the Deputy Mayor Hamdija Jahic. The source learns that the offered resignation will be discussed at the next emergency session of the City Council.
Capljina bridge which is to carry name of first Croatian President gets first opponents
In relation to the newly constructed bridge in Capljina which is to carry the name of the late Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, Vecernji List reads that the Federation Minister of Traffic and Communication Besim Mehmedic reacted to the decision of the Capljina Municipal Council by saying that the people who decided to name the bridge had forgotten that the bridge was paid from the Federation budget. The author of the article says that it is a case of political games with the SDP wanting to take credits for the construction saying that the stories about the alleged funding from the Federation budget are means to achieving a centralized state. With regards to the opening ceremony, the same source reads that the ceremony is still on hold because the bridge is yet to be scrutinized.
Federation radio announcer, engineer murdered in Sarajevo
Three people were killed in Alipasino polje neighbourhood in Sarajevo on Tuesday morning. Alma and Enver Krehic, employees of the Federation Radio and PBS, and Adisa Kakes were murdered. The murder was committed by Amidan Mistarovski, who shot himself in the head afterwards. He is currently being operated on in the emergency ward of the Kosevo clinical centre. The motives for the murder are not known. “Federation Radio-TV and Public Radio-TV Service are left without two employees. Alma Krehic, an announcer on Federation Radio, and Enver Krehic, an engineer in the central information department of PBS, lost their lives tragically,” announced Federation Radio and Television. The murder was the top story in all Federation media – both electronic and print.
Republika Srpska
FRY Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic in visit to Banja Luka
Glas srpski carries the report on yesterday’s visit of the FRY Foreign Minister, Goran Svilanovic to Banja Luka, where he met with the highest RS officials: President and Vice President of the RS Mirko Sarovic and Dragan Cavic, RS Prime Minister Mladen Ivanic, RS National Assembly Speaker Dragan Kalinic and Serb member to the BiH Presidency, Zivko Radisic. Banja Luka daily quotes Svilanovic: “Definition of some political circles in BiH that RS was a creation of genocide, as well as questioning of the RS’s name, is unacceptable.” Svilanovic stressed out that relations between FRY and BiH also include close cooperation with the RS and added that this could in no way endanger BiH. He said that FRY does not want to jeopardize BiH sovereignty and integrity in any way. After the meeting with RS President Sarovic, Svilanovic said that FRY supports Dayton’s BiH and its view is that any change of its internal structure has to be a result of an agreement of all three nations. “We have no ambitions whatsoever to play anybody’s older brother, since we respect political maturity of BiH people and see them capable to agree on how to arrange their own state.” FRY foreign Minister confirmed that the FRY Government will propose ratification of the Dayton Peace agreement to the Federal Parliament and expressed hope that FRY consulate will open soon in Banja Luka.
“We believe that the forthcoming constitutional changes should be carried out in a constitutional way and our determinations is to see the RS coming from those changes stronger and more functional. We think that the imposition of constitutional changes is not possible and that there are no forces that in the RS that could be able to implement the imposed solution.” – RS President Sarovic stated after the meeting.
After the meeting with Svilanovic, the RS Prime Minister, Mladen Ivanic said that it was a joint assessment that constitutional changes are not only a BiH issue since they also condition general situation in the region. Nezavisne Novine also quote Ivanic as saying that the RS Government was determined to carry out constitutional changes through the RS National Assembly, not by imposition. “The imposition would be totally unacceptable and that would be a breach of all principles of democracy. No individual can impose Constitution as the highest legislative act in one country,” he said.
SNSD spokesman says Yugoslav visit comes “too late”
Nezavisne novine quotes SNSD spokesman, Rajko Vasic, as saying that Yugoslav Foreign Minister Goran Svilanovic’s visit to the RS comes too late and in the wake of a number of visits that he already paid to Sarajevo. Noting that Svilanovic’s visit to the RS is “welcome if it is not only a show”, Vasic said that “the visit should not be yet another empty story as is the case with the Agreement on Special and Parallel Ties Between the RS and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia”. He went on to say that the SNSD had good contacts with Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, adding that cooperation between the Serb Republic officials and the neighbouring countries had to be maintained at the level of the state, “not at the level of cooperation and talks between individuals and parties”.
RS Prime Minister says RS ready to arrest Radovan Karadzic
RS Prime Minister Mladen Ivanic reiterated in an interview with AFP that his government remained ready to arrest most wanted BiH war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic. “I am convinced that the majority of police, that the main ministers and the principal members of government are committed to carrying out this task,”
Ivanic told AFP on Monday. He also dismissed criticism of his government by the High Representative, Wolfgang Petritsch, who has slammed the Republika Srpska for its lack of enthusiasm in tracking down Karadzic. Petritsch said the international community had “been waiting for action too long” on the part of RS to arrest war crimes suspects on their own. “I think the RS is really doing its duty,” Ivanic said. “It is not correct to say that the RS is doing nothing, as often said by the UN war crimes tribunal and other institutions.”
“We are making efforts and we are trying to do as much as we can,” Ivanic stressed. For the full interview quoted also by nearly all media in the Federation, click here.
Serb refugees carry Karadzic, Mladic pictures at protest
Several hundred Serb refugees, many of them carrying photographs of most wanted war crimes suspects Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, staged protests on Tuesday in Bijeljina. The refugees were demanding an end to evictions to make way for returning families but they also vowed not to turn over the two Bosnian Serb wartime
leaders for trial before a UN tribunal in The Hague. Federation TV and RTRS showed pictures of protestors holding placards that read “We will not give away Radovan and Ratko.” Protestors also held banners that read “To The Hague with Alija”, referring to former BiH president Alija Izetbegovic.
The chairman of the association of refugees of Bijeljina, Janja, Lopare and Ugljevik, Veljko Stevanovic, demanded the suspension of the talks on the constitutional changes in the RS, and a referendum in which the citizens would have a say in the matter.
Posters of support for Karadzic appear in Foca
FENA news agency, AFP and Federation Television report that posters of support to indicted war criminals, Radovan Karadic and Ratko Mladic, could be seen all over Foca on Tuesday. The posters displayed a black and white photo of Karadzic and a banner saying “We will protect our brother Radovan until death and doomsday”. According to AFP, the posters were placed over wanted Kradzic and Mladic placards offering reward for any information leading to their arrest.
RS Prime Minister and other party officials criticise government over Srebrenica status
The chairman of the RS Socialist Party, Petar Djokic, said on Tuesday that the Srebrenica municipality councillors would not have adopted the resolution on special status for Srebrenica if the RS authorities and government had paid more attention to the issue and tried to solve it. “The RS and authorities should have paid more attention to solving the issue of the municipality. If they did more about this, the inhabitants, i.e. the councillors from the Srebrenica municipality, would not have adopted any resolutions,” Djokic told SRNA. He said that there was no reason to adopt the Resolution on special status for the municipality of Srebrenica. “Srebrenica is part of the RS and all issues with regard to it should be decided by the RS institutions. Srebrenica is a specific area which invites special interest,” Djokic said.
The Party of Democratic Progress (PDP) believes that the resolution on Srebrenica’s special status which was adopted by the Srebrenica town council yesterday is “dangerous” and that it represents “the beginning of attempts to change the setup of the RS”, party spokesman Igor Crnadak said yesterday. “The PDP believes that such a decision is unnecessary, detrimental and dangerous,” Crnadak told SRNA. He added that the RS government “has done a lot for the municipality of Srebrenica, particularly in the field of local administration and self-administration”. “The improvement of the situation in Srebrenica will be achieved through the recent list of municipalities ranked according to their level of development by the RS National Assembly and measures envisaged in accordance with this ranking,” Crnadak said.
Eastern Bosnia: “Explosive device” kills Muslim returnee
ONASA news agency reported that an explosive device was activated on Tuesday morning in the Voljevica village in the Bratunac municipality, killing a returnee Sejfudin Tabakovic (18). Investigating and judicial bodies are on the place of incident, while the demining teams were also called to help, because it is assumed that the area was mined.
International Community
Petritsch, Klein warn: BiHs future depends on fearless courts
The High Representative, Wolfgang Petritsch, addressed the UN Security Council in New York on Tuesday, his sixth report to the Council since he took up his mandate in BiH in August 1999. He described the progress that has been made in the more than two and a half years since he began his work in BiH, noting that improved cooperation from the authorities in Belgrade and Zagreb, following the demise of the former nationalist regimes, and the new willingness on the part of BiH politicians to take ownership of the country’s problems, had changed the political climate and contributed to positive developments.
The High Representative also informed the the Security Council that he will put in place a reinvigorated program of judicial reform which will restructure the BiH court system over the next two years, depoliticise the appointments procedure and include the introduction of a High Judicial Council and the reform of the civil and criminal procedure codes.
Petritsch and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General, Jacques Paul Klein, who also participated in the session, warned BiH that its future as a prosperous European state depends on an immediate and radical reform of its courts. Klein supporter Petritsch’s view on judicial reform. “Band-aid measures are not enough,” he told an open meeting of the Security Council. “Immediate, radical reform of the judiciary and prosecutors is key to everything the international community is trying to achieve in Bosnia,” Klein added, Reuters, Associated Press and AFP report.
The council unanimously adopted a resolution welcoming the decision of the European Union to take over from the United Nations on January 1, 2003 the job of building a national police force in BiH. The council also formally endorsed the appointment of Paddy Ashdown, former British Liberal Democrat party leader, as the High Representative for BiH after the incumbent, Wolfgang Petritsch, stands down in May.
Petritsch told the council that while progress had been made on police reform, judges and prosecutors were “often unfit to carry out their duties”. Courts were under-funded and often subject to outside pressure, he said. Petritsch also emphasized the need to bring to justice the former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and his wartime military commander, Ratko Mladic. “Policing in Bosnia will not be fully effective as long as there is a belief that certain individuals are beyond the reach of the law,” Petritsch said.
The council also heard from Javier Solana, the EU’s foreign policy chief, who said Bosnia was at a crossroads. It could “make a positive choice to make a determined effort rapidly to implement reforms and join the path that leads to the European Union,” he said. The alternative was increasing isolation, missed economic opportunities and
being left in “a political wilderness” by its more ambitious neighbors, he said. (AFP carries report from New York, Oslobodjenje, Dnevni Avaz, Jutarnje Novine, Nezavinse Novine and BH Radio 1 extensively quoted the OHR press release, while Federation Television carried report only in its late night news)
Paddy Ashdown meets deputy speaker of the Croatian Parliament
The future High Representative (who will officially assume this post in May), Paddy Ashdown, met on Tuesday in Zagreb with the deputy speaker of the Croatian parliament and the president of the Parliament’s Council for foreign policy, Zdravko Tomac. Hina news agency reports that, during the talks, Tomac emphasized the importance of adopting symmetrical solutions in the entity constitutions in BiH which will ensure the equality and representation of all peoples in the country. Ashdown informed Tomac that he will arrive in BiH after the constitutional changes are already adopted, and added that he is less concerned with the institutional solutions and more interested in seeing that all citizens have equal rights according to European standards. During his visit to Zagreb, Ashdown also met with the Croatian president, Stjepan Mesic, the country’s Prime Minstar, Ivica Racan, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tonino Picula.
(The item is carried by Oslobodjenje and Avaz as well)
Miroslav Tudjman: “Ashdown’s claim that Croats are ustashas-like people should have not been taken as easily”
Vjesnik carries an interview with Miroslav Tudjman, a son of late Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, on the occasion of the release of Miroslav Tudjman’s book titled “Story of Paddy Ashdown and ‘Tudjman’s napkin'”. Miroslav Tudjman says that Lord Ashdown asked Franjo Tudjman on May 6, 1995 what would the future of BiH look like in 10 years when his father drew spheres of interests between the West and the East which were previously published in a Strategic Book of Maps by the “Complex” of Brussels which showed Banja Luka and West Herzegovina on the Catholic and Sarajevo and Tuzla on the Orthodox side. Miroslav Tudjman also says that Ashdown went public with the map/napkin on August 7, 1995, on the third day of the “Operation Storm” which is not irrelevant when Ashdown said: “I have seen the map of division of BiH”. “The story has been talked about that much that Lord Ashdown was summoned as a witness in The Hague for the Blaskic trials and the napkin was the key evidence that Croatia launched aggression against BiH (…) Two years down the road the evidence that spoke about the Croatian aggression look grotesque”, says Miroslav Tudjman. Miroslav Tudjman also said that Lord Ashdown does not know the history and facts and that he was heavily influenced by some circles in Great Britain who have prejudices towards Croatia. “The best proof for that is the Ashdown’s journal which said that Tudjman (Franjo) was not, as he puts it, ours, because he fought o the other side. Not even Tudjman’s greatest opponents question his participation on the anti-fascist side”, says Miroslav Tudjman, reads Vjesnik.
High Representative gets new responsibilities
Dnevni Avaz reports that the role of the High Representative will in future be enhanced as he will, at the same time, be a special EU representative and therefore be responsible for the police reform in BiH. A source in the OHR told the daily that this, however, does not mean that the EU mission in BiH will be subordinate to the OHR. This was also confirmed by the EC spokesman, Frane Maroevic. “Paddy Ashdown will be, in certain way, an envoy of Javier Solana. We will cooperate with him on the principles of partnership,” explained Maroevic.
NATO failed to act after Croatia found top war crimes suspect
Croatian intelligence located Ratko Mladic, one of the most wanted Bosnian Serb war crimes suspects, three times in the past two months and informed NATO, which failed to act on the information, a Croatian daily said Wednesday. “We do not understand why they did not arrest him,” an anonymous source close to Croatia’s intelligence services told Rijeka’s Novi List. The Croatian Intelligence Service (HIS) and the National Service for
Electronic Monitoring (NSEI) have located Mladic three times in RS and immediately informed SFOR about his exact location and movements, the source said.
NATO urges Bosnian Serbs to cooperate in arrests of Hague indictees
SRNA news agency reported that SFOR yesterday called on the local population in BiH to cooperate in the arrests of the ICTY indictees for the war crimes, and appealed to the war crime suspects to surrender themselves. SFOR spokesman Scott Lundy has told a news conference that he was not aware that posters for support of Radovan Karadzic have been put up in Srbinje/Foca with a slogan “We will Defend You to Death”. When asked if Sfor members liaise with the locals in connection with arrests of the indictees, Lundy said that Sfor does not discuss such matters or any of its operations. “Sfor has serious intentions to arrest all the war crime suspects, and Karadzic is one of them,” Lundy said.
US State Department: Religious discrimination in BiH a great problem
In the most recent US State Department country report on human rights, BIH received a mixed grade. The report notes that the level of respect of human rights is significantly different in different parts of BiH – in Bosniak, Croat or Serb dominated ones. The religious discrimination is still a problem, as well as serious discrimination against minorities in Serb and Croat-majority areas. The report notes that certain discrimination also exists in the areas predominantly inhabited by Bosniaks.
The State Department adds that that the political leadership in the RS is continuing to obstruct the return of minority population, not demonstrating an adequate level of cooperation with the ICTY, and fails to secure the freedom of media and protect vulnerable segments of the population, such as women and children. Moreover, the report notes, one could also detect isolated cases of politically and ethnically-motivated murders and violence. (Dnevni Avaz carries excerpts of the report)
For the full report see http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2001/
Editorials
Dnevni List: Ante Jelavic, pragmatic or destroyer of the constitutional organization
By Zoran Bosnjak
Mijo Anic stated that discharging of almost 11 000 members of the Federation Army will not endanger security of the BiH Federation or its defense power.
We have been following various round table discussions, statements given to media, informal meetings and other kinds of known and unknown forms of ‘non-institutional’ acting during which they have been talking and agreeing upon the changes of the constitutional organization of BiH and its entities. Petritsch, the High Representative, has organized some of them. And all of them take place out of official institutions and within informal circles.
Also, many people have been talking these days about ‘multiplying’ of the entities. When Ivanic advocates ‘the third entity’ it is democracy, when Ante Jelavic, an unrecognized HDZ President, thinks about it, the criminalization follows. When Ivanic, far from the public eye, gathers 5 or 6 representatives of political parties to agree upon the changes of the constitutional organization then it ‘a high awareness of domestic politicians and readiness to create a BiH future by themselves’. When Jelavic gathers over 500 representatives, who were elected at the elections, to speak in public and in a live show about the future of the people, who elected them, then it is ‘an informal gathering of the plotters, who act against the people and state’. After the informal meetings, during which ‘the undermining of the constitutional organization’ is being agreed upon, Ivanic is being invited to ‘prayers’ breakfast’, while after Jelavic thinks about the freedom of people, that he represents, he is invited to be heard by Idriz Kamenica. What has Jelavic been thinking about these days with his ‘destroyers of the defense power of the BiH Federation’ and ‘destroyers of the constitutional order’? Will he support ‘the undermining of the defense power of the Federation’ and ‘the undermining of the constitutional organization’, regardless of the fact that some other people make these proposals? Or, perhaps, he will demand from the HR to sanction them, at least, as much as he sanctioned him. Will the HR remove all those, who have been agreeing upon ‘the undermining of the BiH constitutional organization and its entities’ and who advocate revision ‘of a holy Dayton Bible’? Will he, at least, reproach all those, who are ‘undermining the defense power of the BiH Federation’? It seems that none is forbidden to do it apart from Jelavic, Tokic, Luzanski and their kind. The time has come that Petritsch cleanse his consciousness and reexamine his decisions on the sanctioning of Jelavic and the others. The time has come that he admits that he is not infallible and that it is better if he corrects his decisions at his departure. In any case, the time has shown that they are not sustainable. Perhaps, also, Petrisch will start to think?
Headlines
Glas srpski
- Struggle against terrorism: one man – three names
- The Hague: fire in the court
- Srbinje: one picture over another
Nezavisne novine
- FRY Foreign Minister visited Banja Luka: Ratko Mladic is not in Belgrade
- Wolfgang Petritsch address to Security Council: nationalists in Bosnia defeated
- Protests in the RS: refugees threaten SFOR
Oslobodjenje
- Horrific crime in Sarajevo
Dnevni Avaz
- Triple murder in Sarajevo
Jutarnje Novine
- Crime in Sarajevo neighborhood of Ali-pasino Polje
Dnevni List
- Tragic end of love story: Triple murder in Sarajevo
- Cantonal Prosecutor’s Office in Mostar started investigation against persons suspected of war crimes: Out of 12 suspects from Capljina there are 2 Croats and 10 Serbs
- Ivo Komsic in talk with representatives of the International Community: Komsic proposed Petritsch arrest of some politicians
Vecernji List
- As of April 1, the BiH Federation reduces a number of military units: 3225 Croats soldiers will be dismissed
- Election Commission send message to political candidates: We shall publish list of property of all politicians