| CROAT RADIO HERCEG-BOSNA (18:00 hrs) | BH TV 1 (19:00 hrs) | FTV (19:30 hrs) | RT RS (19:30 hrs) |
| Sarajevo cemeteries | Croatia on 5c | Taxation commission head | RS government session |
| BiH Presidency session | BH Presidency on Ploce | Presidency on Ploce | 2 mil KM for Srebrenica |
| Croatia on 5c | Regional news | Letter of intention for 5c | War monuments |
| RS government session | World news | Protests in Drvar | Refugees protests in Drvar |
| Oslobodjenje | Graphic designers called on a boycott against textbooks from abroad; Tihic in Malaysia checking ‘Bosmal’; Nomination of BiH customs – Kasumovic’s and Kudic’s nomination confirmed; Vandalism at Sarajevo cemeteries – 20 grave stones desecrated |
| Dnevni Avaz | Palavric on bomb attacks – the investigation shamefully diminishing; Reis Ceric – Bosniaks are the ones who have to invest the most in the BiH state; Ajanovic against ‘Slobodna Bosna’ – they called on a lynch against me |
| Dnevni List | The OHR intensifies negotiations on Mostar re-structuring – the OHR starts negotiations with all political parties; Election of candidates for Head of Indirect Taxation Administration – only candidates with criminal charges acceptable to HZD BiH; Ivica Racan – the Croatian government warned BiH CoM |
| Vecernji List | SFOR is carrying out exercises on roads; Relations with Zagreb aggravated |
| Slobodna Dalmacija | Sarajevo refused Protocol on Ploce; Other headlines in SD are Croatia related |
| Glas Srpski | At Orthodox and Catholic graveyards in the Federation Sarajevo – no peace for the dead; Serbian Special Prosecutor – murderers of Zoran Djindjic charged; Following clash at Borja – the name of the killed smuggler still unknown |
| Nezavisne Novine | Zagreb offer reg. construction of the highway through BiH arrives to Sarajevo today – Croatia is ready to finance the study on the construction of 5c corridor; At four Orthodox and Catholic graveyards in Sarajevo – vandals at graveyards set fire to broken crosses; Koricani Rocks near Knezevo – the anniversary marked |
| Blic | 17 thefts in three days; Dragan Cavic – Srpska has not vanished, nor it will be destroyed |
| Slobodna Bosna | Peter Mullan – Ashdown could destroy this lovely country! |
| DANI | Holiday in Sarajevo – Pjer! |
Political Affairs | |
| BiH Presidency session
| CRHB at 18:00 hrs by Zana Rebo – during a BiH Presidency session held on Thursday no agreement was reached regarding between the Council of Ministry (CoM) and Croatian government on accepting the Ploce harbour protocol. “In the offered version of the decision it was not defined who would take the place of the third ad hoc member of the arbitration, nor the procedure of making the decisions of arbitration,” stated Borislav Paravac after the session. Paravac stressed that the Bosniak member of the Presidency had most objections to the protocol and even wanted to propose the new content of the protocol. The BiH Presidency also discussed the draft Law on Foreign Affairs. BiH Presidency members concluded that the draft was insufficiently defined, and needed to be further examined by the CoM. The August 28th was established as the beginning of a discussion between the BiH Presidency and Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the issue. Presidency also accepted the invitation from the Greek President to visit this country on October 22nd. The delegation that will soon visit Malaysia will examine the ‘Bosmal’ offer on the construction of the 5c corridor. BHTV at 19:00 hrs by Darko Doslo – the BiH Presidency informally discussed initiatives for the construction of the 5c corridor, and stated that it was ready to review proposals of all those interested in investing in BiH. Proposal of the protocol on the Ploce port, notwithstanding being harmonized in the Council of Ministers, was not agreed by the BiH Presidency and will be returned for additional changes. Council of Ministers is expected to undertake further analysis and together with Croatian side to find solutions. FTV at 19:30 hrs by Dzenana Zolto – Tihić and Foreign Minister Ivanic should meet with Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Malaysia in order to explore financial capacities and feasibility of the 5c corridor project. Paravac shares the view that Malaysia has got enough capital to support such project. RTRS at 19:30 hrs by Stjepan Zlikovac. Dnevni List pg. 1 and 2, Slobodna Dalmacija pg. 1 and 2 and Vecernji List pg. 13 ‘BiH Presidency rejected Protocol on Ploce’ – also covered this issue and the dailies also say that due to this situation there will be no meeting between Chairman of the BiH Council of Minister Adnan Terzic and Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan, which has been supposed to take place in Kostajnica today. Vjesnik pg. 2 ‘BiH Presidency did not adopt Protocol on change of agreement with Croatia on Ploce Port’ and Jutarnji List pg. 1 and 5 also dealt with the aforementioned issue. |
| CoM session | CRHB at 18:00 hrs by Zana Rebo – at a BiH CoM Thursday session, reps adopted the Memorandum on understanding the needs for taking the necessary actions for stamping out of crime. Deputy Minster of Security, Dragan Mektic, stressed that the CoM examined creating a legal frame on the matter. The decision about establishing a special team for fighting against human trafficking and illegal migrations was also adopted. The CoM adopted the Memorandum on understanding between the South European countries in the field of tourism. BHTV at 19:00 hrs – the BiH Council of Ministers on Thursday made a decision to establish an impact group for the fight against human trafficking and illegal immigration, and also adopted the Memorandum of understanding on the issue. The impact group will be compromised of representatives from the entities, District Brcko, BiH Prosecution’s offices, State Border Service, FBiH and RS interior ministries, Brcko police and the RS and FBiH Taxation administrations. These measures taken by the BiH authorities came as the answer to the US threat that BiH would face economic sanctions unless radical measures were taken to fight human trafficking. RTRS at 19:30 hrs by Milan Stojic. Nezavisne Novine pg. 2 ‘Task Force for fight against trafficking in people formed’. |
| FBiH govt | BHTV at 19:00 hrs – in order to review the work of public companies in the most effective way, the FBiH government, at a session held on Thursday, tasked the Ministry of Transport and Communication to analyse and prepare a report on the work and conditions of 11 public companies in the FBiH. “The authorized Ministry will also prepare measures to be taken to secure the most sufficient operation of public companies,” reads a press release issued by the FBiH government. |
| RS NA session | BHTV at 19:00 hrs – the RS government on Thursday made a decision to pay 2 million KM to the account of the Srebrenica – Potocari Foundation bank account, in accordance with the decision of the BiH Human Rights Chamber made in March 2003. RS Prime Minister Dragan Mikerevic at the session refused a demand by the RS Health Union to pay Banja Luka Clinical Centre workers the debt of 2.5 million KM from the budget reserves or from the Health Fund budget. He explained the demand was refused in order to avoid partial solutions to the problems in the RS health system. FTV at 19:30 hrs – very briefly reported the RS will allocate 2 million KM to the Potocari Foundation. RTRS at 19:30 hrs – at a press conference held following the session, there were questions about the recent increase of salaries of the Prime Minister and his ministers. ‘You all know what are the salaries of both RS PM and ministers in that government, and I ask you – as colleagues – that we all together investigate and establish how big are the salaries of the people that present the Union,” said Goran Radivojac, Spokesperson for the RS PM. According to Radivojac, ministers must be adequately awarded if ‘we expect them to provide more jobs, better pensions and tax collection’. Nezavisne Novine pg. 3 ‘Fire damages of million KM’, Glas Srpske pg. 2 ‘New labour price’. |
| DL on Mostar restructuring | Dnevni List pg. 1 and 7 by Zvonimir Jukic – announces that Senior Deputy High Representative, Werner Wnendt, should visit Mostar soon to talk to political parties, individuals and representatives of returnees about the restructuring of the City of Mostar and making of a new Statute. Jukic says the visit comes after a fiasco the Mostar Commission suffered because it could not agree on a joint proposal of the Statute. The author goes on to say that there are three blocks in Mostar, all three offering completely different proposals with regards to the restructuring. The first block, which wants to maintain the current organizational set-up is, according to Jukic, led by the SDA together with some Serb councilors in the Mostar City Council (MCC). What’s shocking, according to Jukic, is that the block has been joined by some members of the SDP Mostar who advocate territorial divisions. In this context, DL wonders whether President of the SDP, Zlatko Lagumdzija, will allow certain officials from the SDP Mostar to promote the ideology of ‘blood and earth’. The second block comprises of many officials of the SDA who are either returnees or moderates, some members of the SDP and this block, according to DL, is supported by the SBiH and local intellectuals, such as Neven Tomic and Slavo Kukic. This block is reportedly advocating a single municipality of Mostar with guaranteed equality for all peoples and election law with national quota that provides institutional protection of vital national interests. And finally, the third, HDZ’s block, supported by some Serb councilors in the MCC, and the Croat right wing parties. Reportedly, this block proposes a single Mostar, but without equality since the HDZ’s proposal does not envisage national quota which can lead into domination. Jukic is of the opinion that the OHR will have a hard time to solve the issue, and according to Jukic, the issue will have to be solved by giving a chance to the block number two. |
| Mostar SDP | Dnevni List pg. 15 ‘Standardization of names of Mostar streets will take place soon’ – during yesterday’s regular press conference of the SDP Mostar, a member of the SDP Mostar City Board, Sead Djulic, stated that SDP’s working version of the Statute of City of Mostar had been completed. This document should be presented to public after the SDP meets with the new Deputy High Representative and Head of OHR South, Jacques Andrieu. “During a session of the SDP Mostar City Board held on Monday, we summarized information from public forums and other meetings and our conclusion was that the proposal had a considerable support of citizens.” Djulic added that many citizens believed that the proposal of the territorial transformation of the city into four local units of self-government with the strong administration was the right way towards the re-integration and not towards further divisions. |
| Cavic with RS Veterans | Blic pg. 6 ‘RS has not vanished, nor it will be destroyed’ – RS President Dragan Cavic has responded to those who pledge for disappearance of the RS, saying that the entity is still alive and that it will not vanish by will of those who want to destroy it. After a meeting with representatives of the RS Veterans Association, Cavic condemned statements by Federation politicians who called the RS a product of genocide and were trying to ‘put the blame of the past war on the Serb nation’. “If they (Federation politicians) want to view the past realistically, the door is opened. But, if they want to put the blame on the Serb nation, then it means that someone wants to cause a chaos,” Cavic said, adding he hoped that such statements did not have support of any people in BiH. He also condemned the recent demolition of several memorials to fallen soldiers of the RS Army, saying the RS Interior Ministry had to find the culprits. Head of the Association Savo Cvjetinovic said that the meeting also considered the construction of a memorial to fallen victims of the past war in Banja Luka and a memorial in Kravice. “The President has accepted the initiative and talks on the issue will resume in the next few days,” Cvjetinovic said. Glas Srpske pg. 3 ‘Srpska will survive’, Nezavisne Novine pg. 6 ‘Destruction of monuments results in euphoric atmosphere in RS’. |
| Hays on BiH lawsuit | Nezavisne Novine pg. 3 ‘BiH lawsuit against S&M is a matter for courts’ – PDHR Donald Hays assessed on Wednesday, that the BiH lawsuit against Serbia and Montenegro is an issue ‘which should be dealt by the court in charge instead of politicians’. During his visit to Bijeljina, Hays told members of the press the following. “There are lawsuits, that have not been resolved for a long time. The courts should be dealing with these issues, and not politicians. When politicians address the Court, they should then keep their mouth shot and stop interfering in the matter.” He also assessed that speeches by politicians ‘point at various divisions’, aimed at ‘concealing the incapability’. |
| DL public poll on BiH lawsuit
| Dnevni List pg. 10 ‘To withdraw lawsuit against Serbia and Montenegro’ – the Banja Luka-based ‘Partner Marketing’ agency conducted a public opinion poll according to which 75% of interviewees in the Republika Srpska believe that the BiH lawsuit against Serbia and Montenegro should be withdrawn. 11% of interviewees supported the lawsuit. DL says that unlike in the RS, 75% of interviewees in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina support the lawsuit, whilst 10% is against it. 1,550 persons were interviewed in both entities. |
| SB on Gorilov | SB pgs. 5 – 7 ‘SDS heads generously awarding Vadim Gorilov, their own man in Ashdown’s office’ – an extensive article on a Russian diplomat in OHR, Vadim Gorilov. The magazine claims that Gorilov ins on the SDS pay list. According to SB sources, the SDS allocates every three months 2 million KM to pay off certain diplomats from the OHR and other international institutions that lobby for them. One of those diplomats is, according to the magazine, Gorilov. Apparently, even some OHR employees speak of Gorilov’s preference for the SDS and without reserves call him Cavic’s and Kalinic’s man. |
| OHR Taylor on a yacht with Covic | SB pg. 13 ‘Dragan Covic with friends from the OHR on a cruise on a yacht owned by Dinko Slezak’ – the magazine tells of a cruise beginning of August on a 4 million Euro yacht, owned by Dino Slezak where BiH Presidency Chair Dragan Covic was as well as Miroslav Coric (HNK PM), Branko Kolobaric (Deputy Main Auditor in the Federation Auditor’s Office), as well as an OHR official (from the OHR Special Auditing Office) David Taylor and an associate of his whose name remained unknown. The magazine believes the people on the yacht were not only holidaying, but also discussing the ways of avoiding responsibility in already documented criminal acts, as well as how to cover up for those that have not been documented as yet. |
Economic Affairs | |
| Croatian govt on 5c
| CRHB at 18:00 hrs – at a session held on Thursday, the Croatian government established the contents of a letter of intention regarding the model of Croatian participation in the construction of the 5c corridor, with the conviction that BiH would accept this as well an intended act. Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan stressed that the Croatian interest in corridor construction was not interpreted in BiH very well. However, he believes that the letter of intention would be well accepted. Among other things, the letter talks about great significance of this project for both Croatia and BiH, and that Croatia is willing to participate in all the stages of the preparation and the construction. If the BiH announces the international tender, the Croatian government will support all their companies that wish to apply. BHTV at 19:00 hrs by Gvozden Sarac – Racan said that some in BiH did not accept well-expressed Croatian interests in the 5c corridor, probably alluding to statements on the issue by Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers Adnan Terzic. Racan expressed his belief that intention letter will be seen in BiH as a step of a well-intended neighbour. “Whether our possible assistance in the realisation of this project will be accepted or not, we deeply believe that our move will be seen and understood as well-intended neighbourly move in friendly BiH,” stated Racan. FTV at 19:30 hrs by Melisa Saferovic – the preparatory works are estimated at $7 to $9 million and would last one year. After that, the concession would be awarded via an international tender. Dnevni List pg. 1 and 3 Jutarnji List pg. 1 and 5, Vecernji List pg. 1 and 13 and Slobodna Dalmacija pg. 2 ‘We shall not get angry if BiH refuses us’. Nezavisne Novine pg. 1 and 3 – the Croatian government is ready to participate with around $9 million in the financing of the study on construction of 5c corridor. The Croatian Government will today forward a letter of intent to the BiH Council of Ministers. |
| Terzic vs. Racan
| RTRS at 19:30 hrs – Chairman of the BiH Council of Ministers Adnan Terzic refused the Croatian offer to finance drafting of documentation needed for the public tender in order to chose companies for the construction of the 5c corridor. Terzic sent a message to Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Racan not to worry about BiH and consequences following its decision on the company, but to prove his worry over BiH ‘by advocating to solve issues such as the return of refugees to Croatia and accelerating the signing of a bilateral agreement on property and legal relations.’ The Croatian government confirmed on Thursday a text of the intention letter on Croatian participation model in the construction of the 5c corridor through Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Whether our possible assistance in the realisation of this project will be accepted or not, we deeply believe that our move will be seen and understood as well-neighbour move in neighbouring and friendly BiH.” stated Racan following a session of the CRO government. |
| Lagumdzija on 5c | DANI pgs. 30 – 33 ‘The SDA and HDZ made a real deal – let us launder your money through Bosmal, and we will let you do that through Eronet’ – an interview with SDP leader Zlatko Lagumdzija. According to Lagumdzija, the previous government, the Alliance, created legal grounds for the adoption of the Law on Concessions in order to ensure the realization of the construction of the highway. As to whether Bosmal should get the job without an international tender, he thinks the Feasibility Study should answer the question. |
| VL commentary | Vecernji List pg. 2 by Robert Bubalo ‘Worried Terzic’ – the author says that BiH and Croatia never manage to have good, neighborly relationship because one side always creates problems. According to Bubalo, the one that creates problem lately is BiH, citing examples of the Ploce Port and 5c corridor and Croatian PM Racan’s statement that it is a matter for BiH to decide what to do and subsequent reaction by Chair of BiH CoM, Terzic, who recommended Racan not to worry about BiH and to take care of return of refugees to Croatia. “Since when is Terzic worried about refugees in BiH that come from Croatia? Europe requests co-operation of the states in the region, but BiH obviously sees danger in it. Hasty Terzic, instead of trying to establish normal, neighborly relations, persistently acts like an offended kid,” says Bubalo. |
| Candidates for Indirect Taxation Commission | FTV at 19:30 hrs by Verica Kalajdzic – the Commission for Indirect Taxation proposed candidates for heads of the Commission. This proposal, with names of Miodrag Kurdić and Fuad Kasumović, was submitted to the CoM for an approval. It seems two candidates were selected in a political agreement between the SDA and HDZ without any merit selection. These functions require high professional qualities, no affiliation to political parties and clean record on criminal charges. The leading position in the Commission has been allocated to Bosniaks. However, Kasumagić has got preliminary criminal charges against him by the Tuzla Prosecutor for misusing 90,000 KM for purchasing an apartment. Dnevni List pg. 1 and 5 – the Indirect Taxation Commission is interviewing candidates for the position of Director of Administration for Indirect Taxation and that so far the interviews have been conducted with Zelimir Rebac, Sefika Hafizovic, Ismet Suljendic, Miodrag Kudic and Fuad Kasumovic. According to the paper, representatives of the HDZ and SDA, who sit on the interview board, voted for Kasumovic. Unofficially, two names have been sent to the BiH CoM, namely Fuad Kasumovic and Miodrag Kudic from The Republika Srpska. DL reports that HDZ members of the board, Ljerka Maric and Dragan Vrankic, left the room during the interview with Suljendic just to let everyone know that Kasumovic was their candidate, an action which appalled representatives of the IC including Joly Dixon. According to DL, Kasumovic is acceptable to the HDZ because the SDA will concede the office of the Director of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Financial Police to the HDZ. Glas Srpske pg. 3 ‘Kasumovic the closest to the seat’, Nezavisne Novine pg. 4 ‘Kasumovic and Kudic candidates for Director’ – Frane Maroevic, Spokesperson of the European Commission to BiH, yesterday confirmed that the new director of the BiH Indirect Tax Administration will be selected between Fuad Kasumovic, former Deputy Head of the BiH Customs Administration, and Miodrag Kudic, currently Deputy Head of the Republika Srpska Customs Administration. Joly Dixon, Chairperson of Indirect Taxation Commission, yesterday addressed a document to BiH CoM, containing the qualifications of these two candidates. Maroevic also said that apart from passing the tests with best grades, two candidates would have to go through additional tests by the BiH CoM and a vetting procedure of the OHR. |
| FBiH Printers Trade Union | FTV at 19:30 hrs by Aleksandar Markovic – the Federation Trade Union of Printers organized a press conference to warn that textbooks would not be printed in BiH. It is against the decision of the BiH Parliament. They informed that it seemed only 180 out of 543 books would be printed in BiH, and BiH would lose significant finances. One of their major problems is import of paper, since there is no local production in BiH. |
| NN editorial | Nezavisne Novine editorial by Dragan Jerinic pg. 7 ‘Mladen Ivanic and Dragan Kalinic’ – the author makes a reference to numerous affairs in the Republika Srpska, listing particularly those concerning Milenko Vracar, Simeun Vilendecic and Branko Dokic, all close associates and collaborators of Mladen Ivanic. The author concludes the first part by saying that the strength of Ivanic and his party is proved by the fact that almost no affair (including the ‘Orao’) disreputed them. According to the author, the connection between Mladen Ivanic and Dragan Kalinic is through institutions and firms where the rest of the money that has not been placed as ‘time deposit’ can be found. In the conclusion, the author raises a couple of questions and concludes the article by the following paragraph. “Can Dragan Kalinic still be leading what is left from the Republika Srpska National Assembly and whether Mladen Ivanic can still be holding his portfolio of BiH Minister of Foreign Affairs under his arm? If responses to these questions are positive, another question can be raised: can Paddy Ashdown still be assuming the duty of the HR? If the answer to this question resembles ‘we will see’, then it would mean that the international community is buying time and together with the BiH citizens waiting for coming September to see what will happen. If responses to these questions are negative, then it would mean that the situation in Republika Srpska is being cleared and that similar things might be taking place in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina soon.” |
| DANI on Ashdown | DANI pg. 6 ‘Bosanski Barometar’ (the column is entitled ‘PDP for VAT – Paddy for CCCC’ – the column carries a recent statement by Mladen Ivanic on the VAT and army reforms. Amongst other things, Ivanic stated that the entity finance ministers will be able to block each fiscal related decision if they assess it as damaging for their entity. Also, he said the PDP would keep advocating the decentralization of BiH and transferring of most state institutions from Sarajevo to Banja Luka. As for the armed forces, he said the Bih might become a member of the Partnership for Peace, but the RS would have to maintain its ministry of defence, HQ and its army. The article ends with the following sentence paragraph. “This info was broadcast last week by the federation news agency FENA. No need for any kind of commentary – congratulations Mr. Ashdown.” The magazine marked it with three black dots, meaning a catastrophic move. |
| Covic on Eronet | Vecernji List pg. 5 ‘Eronet receiving license in September’ – Chairman of the BiH Presidency, Dragan Covic, stated during ‘a TV interview’ that the ‘Eronet’ would get the working license during the month of September this year. VL adds that an anonymous source from the BiH Council of Ministers confirmed similar information. |
| New proposal of the Law on Taxation | Avaz pg. 4 ‘The SDA, HDZ and SBiH preparing a new proposal of the Law on Indirect Taxation’ – the three parties will have the new proposal by August 28 since the existing version is inconsistent. Tihic stated that there were three groups of problems that came out of the existing proposal on indirect taxation. He thinks that Banaja Luka as a city has no necessary infrastructure to become the HQ and that the distribution of regional seats has to include Tuzla. Halilovic said that practically the fiscal independence of the RS had been preserved. He also thinks the issue of the implementation fo the law is disputable as there are no clear deadlines. |
Education Affairs | |
| IC press conf
| CRHB at 18:00 hrs – “Administrative and legal uniting of the ‘Two schools under One roof’ can be literally interpreted: a single school administration and a single teacher’s council will be established,” stated OSCE Spokeswoman at a press conference held in Sarajevo on Thursday. She also reminded of the fact that there were over 50 schools in BiH that should be united on these principles, adding that we could have considered this as a progress if it had happened two years ago. OHR Spokesman Mario Brkic recalled the deadline for the schools administrative uniting, which would significantly reduce the costs of the school administration. The Council of Mostar Southwest municipality will hold an extraordinary session on Friday to discuss the administrative uniting of two Mostar grammar schools. DL pg. 8 ‘Unification of schools is test for the HDZ BiH’ carries an OHR spokesperson, Mario Brkic, as saying the deadline for the rationalization of expensive school administrations expires tomorrow. “We were encouraged by the statement made by HDZ BIH President Barisa Colak in Vitez on this matter. We hope that the education ministers in Central Bosnia and Herzegovina-Neretva Cantons will follow this lead and issue instructions by the weekend to end this administrative duplications,” said Brkic. Brkic also cited High Representative for BiH, Paddy Ashdown, on the issue. “I view the ending of administrative duplication as a litmus test for BiH’s commitment to Europe and HDZ’s commitment to the reform. These reforms will free up desperately needed resources to be spent on teachers and children, not bureaucracy. They will not affect the curriculum and teaching in the Croatian language. These reforms are test for HDZ BIH. We will see by the weekend whether they have passed it.” |
| BiH Education Union
| CRHB at 18:00 hrs – the BiH Higher Education Union supported the BiH Union of Graphic Designers in their initiative for assigning the graphical projects of state interest to the local graphical companies. The BiH Higher Education Union also supported the initiative for providing free textbooks for students or at least reducing the prices. |
| OHR warns HDZ | FTV at 19:30 hrs – the OHR warned the HDZ about the expiring deadline for merging of administration of schools in the Central Bosnia and Herzegovina-Neretva cantons. The OHR considers it will be a test for the HDZ if they are committed to reforms. The cancellation of dual administration would reduce costs and automatically would increase spending on teachers and pupils. The OHR confirms that the new curriculum basics allow for teaching to be organized in the Croatian language. |
| Gavran threatened | Dnevni List pg. 8 ‘Removal of ministers over obstruction of unification of schools’ – according to DL’s findings, if the decision on unification of ‘Two schools under One roof’ is not implemented, there will be removals of responsible ministers in cantons where the decision is not implemented. The article notes that Croat teachers are resisting the unification, claiming it would jeopardize the use of the Croatian language in schools, whilst the officials policy of the HDZ BiH is in favour of the implementation, trying to avoid clashes with the IC. |
| DL on education reform | With regard to the unification of two Mostar Grammar Schools, Slobodna Dalmacija pg. 19 ‘Head-master was threatened’ – carries that Secretary of Mostar Grammar School ‘Fra Dominik Mandic’ Ante Gavran stated for this daily that during a meeting of the School Board on Wednesday somebody, someone, who introduced himself as an OHR representative, phoned Head-master Dinko Marjanovic and threatened him with dismissal in case that they did not agree with the fast unification of the Mostar Grammar Schools. |
| Coric | Dnevni Avaz pg. 14 ‘Yes to administrative integration, but No to joint classes’ – carries Miroslav Coric, Herzegovina-Neretva Prime Minister, as saying that he could finish the job regarding the administrative integration of ‘Two schools under One roof’ even without the IC, but that the issues stipulated by the Constitution and Law, such as the language and the right to a curriculum, should not be tackled. He adds that any Serb, Croat or a Bosniak child has the right to classes and getting education in his/her mother tongue. |
Police Affairs | |
| Cemeteries in Sarajevo vandalized
| CRHB at 18:00 hrs – the Sarajevo Canton Ministry of Interior announced that several catholic and orthodox cemeteries in Sarajevo were vandalized on Wednesday night. Several crosses on the tombstones were buried in the cemeteries St. Josip, St. Marko and Lav. The police are making all the efforts to find the perpetrators. The Sarajevo Board of the New Croatian Initiative (NHI) gave the following statement regarding the incident. “We are surprised and disappointed that no one from the authority services or citizens who were the eyewitnesses reacted on this incident. Croatians, as well as other nationalities in Sarajevo, are wondering what kind of message was sent to them. We expect the answer to this question from the most liable authorities in the FBiH that are promoting multinational BiH and multinational Sarajevo.” BHTV at 19:00 hrs by Boris Grubesic – in the course of the investigation of a series of explosions that occurred in the Sarajevo Canton, seven apartment searches had been conducted, three persons were detained and released after the interrogation, while 61 persons were interviewed. This information was presented on Thursday by the Sarajevo Canton Interior Ministry to the Sarajevo Assembly. Also, new vandalism acts were reported in Sarajevo. Unknown perpetrators vandalised a number of tombstones and wooden crosses in the graveyards of St. Mihovil, St. Joseph, St. Marco and Lav cemetery late on Wednesday night. In the past several days, the Sarajevo Canton MoI were informed of a series of vandalism acts on orthodox religious facilities and sacral sites in Ilijas and Plandiste. Spokesperson for the Sarajevo Canton MoI Ljiljana Sakic said that the crime police had been investigating these incidents. She also added that these incidents marked failure of the cooperation with citizens. Several sites that were seriously damaged are densely populated areas, and judging from damages, it took perpetrators a lot of time to commit them and made a lot of noise in the process. RTRS at 19:30 hrs – on Wednesday night, 24 tombstones and 11 crosses were vandalised in the graveyards St Mihovil, St Joseph, St Marco and Lav cemetery in Sarajevo. The Sarajevo Canton Interior Ministry was asked to urgently investigate and solve these cases. Glas Srpske pg. 1, Nezavisne Novine pg. 1 and 2. |
| NN editorial | Nezavisne Novine editorial by Almedin Sisic pg. 7 ‘We investigate…’ – the focus of the editorial are bomb attacks in Sarajevo. Although so many explosions have not happened in such a short time period for such a long time, the situation is extremely alarming for the entire state. The author is saying that the police and judicial institutions should deal with speculations as to who may be responsible for the bomb attacks. “However, it is hard to suppress the fact that politicians took advantage of this classical violation of security in Sarajevo in order to accuse each other of being responsible for the attacks. “ |
| Halilovic on reorganizing police | Vecernji List pg. 5 ‘Centralisation of police’ – the FBiH Minister of Interior, Mevludin Halilovic, will propose a program of reduction of FBiH police administration, which also includes the strengthening of the position of the FBiH MoI at the expense of the cantonal MoIs. According to the proposal, there should be a ‘re-arrangement of the police structures’ according to which the special police units and counter-terrorism units, currently under the cantonal MoIs, would merge and be put under the FBiH MoI. Furthermore, Halilovic is reportedly proposing that the current 10 MoIs be re-organized into five regional offices for public safety, namely Bihac-Livno, Mostar, Zenica-Travnik, Sarajevo and Tuzla-Posavina. On top of this, VL says Halilovic’s plan advocates strengthening of the BiH Ministry of Security at the expense of the entity MoIs. |
Property Affairs | |
| Kotorsko | BHTV at 19:00 hrs by Cvjetko Udovicic – even through the case Kotorsko has been marked as a priority for the courts, it doesn’t seem it would be finalized any time soon. Bosniaks do not want to give up their land, while Serbs inhabiting it are willing to do so if they are compensated for the houses they built on the land. The municipal authorities from Doboj, which previously awarded Serbs with the licences to buy and build on this land, are now not even willing to discuss these issues with refugees. Bosniaks seek the land and require for houses to be destroyed. Jovanka Jovanovic, a Judge in the municipal court, said that the court would deal with this process following the report by the court inspectors. |
Media Affairs | |
| Ashdown and BiH officials discuss Law on PBS | Avaz pg. 2 ‘Ashdown, Terzic, Hadzipasic and Mikerevic talked about PBS’ – according to Avaz’s sources, HR Paddy Ashdown met yesterday with BiH PM Terzic, and his entity colleagues, Mikerevic and Hadzipasic, to discuss the law on PBS. The OHR drafted and presented yesterday a model of the law, which, according to OHR officials, was done according tot eh European standards and was applicable in BiH. |