OHR BiH Media Round-up, 25/7/2002

Dnevni Avaz: Anic bans financial audit – Scandal in the BiH Federation Defense Ministry; SFOR operation in Tuzla – SFOR blocks Headquarters of the BiH Federation Army Corps; Bush informs the US Congress – the US soldiers to stay in BiH

Jutarnje Novine: Anic requests Buljubasic’s removal; an ICTY action in Tuzla – the investigators seized documents of the Second Federation Army Corps; Nikola Spiric, the chairman of the BiH House of Peoples – the authorities create false affairs

Dnevni List: Mijo Anic, the Federation Defense Minister – I do not want to keep silent any more as my Deputy works behind my back

Vecernji List: Leutar case – Merim Galijatovic, the key witness, still in BiH

Glas Srpski: New names of the streets in Gradiska proposed; Prijedor – Five policemen released from custody

Nezavisne Novine: Kostajnica – the border line on Uncica river; Spiric –there is no consensus on lawsuit against FRY; Zlatko Lagumdzija, the SDP BiH leader – I do not want to be only the Bosniaks’ leader

FRY Nacional: Milosevic has sent a word from the Hague: Seselj for the President of Serbia

EuroBlic: Cedo Volas, the President of the SS RS: “The Trade Union is satisfied with the Law on Bankruptcy”; Bosko Lemez, the RS Minister of Energy and Mining Industry, on the Draft Law on Electric Energy: “Monopoly over electric power will be eliminated”; Policemen from Prijedor have been set free; Croatia does not want to go from Serb Kostajnica

The BiH Federation Defense Minister, Mijo Anic, on Tuesday prevented the Financial Police inspectors from auditing the documentation on the financial operations of the Federation Army Croat component in 2001, after which the Financial Police issued a solution temporary banning the component to use its funds. “I do not allow that the audit of 2001 is conducted until the Financial Police looks into the documentation on the Ministry’s financial operations in 1997, 98, 99 and 2002,” Anic told a press conference in Sarajevo on Wednesday. (Oslobodjenje – pages 4-5, announced on the front page, Dnevni Avaz – front page, p 4, Jutarnje Novine – front page, p 4)

Dnevni List (front and page 3), Vecenji List (page 3) and Slobodna Dalmacija (page 15) carry respective reports from a press conference organised by the Federation Minister of Defence Mijo Anic during which he accused his deputy Ferid Buljubasic for creating all affairs linked to the MoD thus compromising the reputation of the ministry and his personal reputation. Anic said that he had asked the Federation Government to conduct an audit of the MoD on several occasions and that all his requests were in vain adding that as soon his deputy asked for the same thing the deputy’s request was granted by the Federation Government which sent the Financial Police to audit the Croat component of the Federation Army only.

“The Hague Tribunal Prosecution Office expresses its gratitude to the BiH Federation Government, the BiH Federation Army Second Corps Commander and the SFOR troops for their help in the operation of seizure of the documentation conducted by the Tribunal investigators in Tuzla on Wednesday,” the Deputy Chief prosecutor, Graham Blewitt, told a regular press conference in The Hague. He did not say which documents the investigators had been looking for. The Second Corps of the BiH Army and particularly its 28^th Division operating in the area of Srebrenica during the war were mentioned in the trial of the RS Army General Radislav Krstic, who was sentenced to 46 years in prison for genocide. (Oslobodjenje – p 3, Dnevni Avaz – p 2, Jutarnje Novine – p 3)

“The SFOR members have in a recent raiding the premises of the 88^th military-intelligence unit of the BiH Federation Army Croat component in the Mostar suburb of Rodoc seized the computers and other means and sent them to Sarajevo for check,” the SFOR MND Southeast spokesman, Christophe de Lambert, confirmed at a press conference in Mostar on Wednesday. The operation was conducted under suspicion that certain illegal activities not in line with the Dayton Agreement had been carried out inside the unit. (Oslobodjenje – p 3, Dnevni Avaz – p 2, Jutarnje Novine – p 3, Nezavisne Novine – p 3)

The BiH Federation Association of Pensioners held an extraordinary session of the Assembly in Sarajevo on Wednesday. The participants concluded to once again request the BiH Federation Government to ensure the payment of 3.3 unpaid pensions as well as the harmonization of the pensions with salaries in the entity. They also concluded that under no conditions the current provisional director of the Federation Pension Fund, Bozo Misura, should be appointed as the permanent director for the four-year term since he had shown no willingness to cooperate with pensioners and their Association. (Oslobodjenje – p 8, Dnevni Avaz – p 10, Jutarnje Novine – p 6)

Slobodna Dalmacija (last page) and Vecernji List (page 4) carry statements given by Bozo Misura, acting Head of Pension and Disability Insurance Bureau PIO/MIO BiH. VL says that Misura stated yesterday that Erc Zipo, a company that offers information service to the Bureau whose owner is Mirza Ceric, is illegally registered and according to Misura there are also many other irregularities related to this company. Misura demands that the BiH Federation Government resolves this case and reintegrates Erc Zipo in the Federation Bureau. Misura also demands that a competent Prosecutor’s Office and Financial Police also get involved in the investigation. Slobodna Dalmacija carries Misura as saying that that the Bureau is financially stabilized and that it works according to the guidelines of MMF and World Bank. Misura says that pensioners will receive pensions for July on August 1.

The Hercegovacka Bank Provisional Administrator, Toby Robinson, offered the HPT Mostar (Croats Post Offices and Telecommunications) to buy 4.48 Eronet shares owned by the Croherc Compnay. Robinson is preparing  the liquidation of Croherc, a company owned by Hercegovacka Bank, and that is why she decided to sell the shares to HPT or any other interested buyer.

Vecernji List (page 4, signed by Zdenko Jurilj) carries that the implementation of a temporary provision of the Federation Government on compensation of unpaid contributions for pension and disability insurance might be a new financial strike on the Federation budget if the competent ones implement a disputable provision. VL says that the High Representative, MMF and World Bank have been informed about this situation and it has been expected that they will resolutely oppose this illogical decision. The article says that the decision was passed at the time when the appointment of Franjo Franjic to the position of the Federation Minister of Finances is being obstructed.

In a two page article, this week’s Walter (by Alisa Lekic-Mehicevic) argues that the CIPS project is a perfect example of work of “domestic and international mafia and its links with BiH politicians.” According to the bi-weekly, although the OHR has tried to keep a low profile in public after the alleged affair was broken, it is evident that some of its senior officials (e.g., Mike Rios and Michael Fluegger, former head of the Political Dept.) have been involved in “ the CIPS project, dubious business, secret opening of the sealed envelopes with bids and illogical approach to the methodology” for the selection of most successful bidders for the implementation of the project. As evidence of this, Walter publishes a full transcript (minutes) of a January 2001 meeting of the Technical Working Group on CIPS. At the meeting, some of the local Ministry of Interior officials (most vocally Goran Dubinovic of the RS MoI) complained that the entire procedure for selection of most successful bidders was not sufficiently transparent and claimed that the relevant domestic institutions were not even informed about the procedures. Moreover, Dubonovic said that the methodology of selection was never explained to BiH and entity officials who were supposed to be involved in decision-making process. “OHR was responsible for the implementation of the process and for the technical details…OHR was not involved in the selection process. The Ministry for Civil Affairs and Communications was responsible for this,” Rios is quotes as saying at the meeting.

Commenting on his letter sent to the High Representative, Paddy Ashdown, the BiH LDS leader Rasim Kadic claims that the ballots can be printed in BiH. Kadic is also confused about a fact the distribution of ballots for the out-of-country vote will be carried out directly by the Cakovec-based Zrinjski Company. That is why he has recently requested from the BiH Election Commission to present him the list with names and addresses of the citizens who will vote abroad. However, the Commission responded that it was about protected state data. “If I as a Council of Ministers member cannot come to these addresses, that is a reason for me to doubt in a possibility that these data might be misused,” Kadic told Dnevni Avaz – p 9.

 “I am not convinced that everyone in this state care to have the elections, organized and carried out for the first time by BiH only, on October 5”, Nikola Spiric stated at a press conference on Wednesday in Sarajevo. As the proof for his claim, he presented a letter of the BiH Presidency, issued on July 19, in which they have asked a revision of the tender for selection of the firm that will print ballots, although the Election Commission, according to his words, has published the decision on the selection of the firm for this work only two days ago. (Blic, p 3, all Sarajevo and both Banja Luka dailies)

According to Blic (p 11),Svetozar Mihajlovic, the Minister for Civil Affairs and Communication, stated: “At today’s session, the BiH Council of Ministers will discuss the documents that the BiH Central Commission for Identification and Notation of the BiH Borders has tried to harmonize two days ago. These documents are related to certain open issues and the Annex to the Agreement on the Joint Location at the Border Crossing Point in Kostajnica, as well as the Protocol on a permanent solution on the issue of the border crossing point”. Mihajlovic explains that the Agreement on the Border between BiH and Croatia signed in 1999 is harmful for BiH, since the border between BiH and Croatia intersects with Una river in 13 places, but it also provides a possibility for the exchange of territory. He says that the procedure of solving this problem will run slowly, since he doubts that Croatia is ready to discuss this issue in this moment because of the current situation in Croatia. The OHR Banja Luka Spokesperson, Sonja Pastuovic, stated yesterday that High Representative Paddy Ashdown was expecting BiH and Croatia to solve the issue on the border in Kostajnica, and OHR would keep following the development of the situation with regard to this. She also said that this problem should be solved only on the state level of the two states.

Vecernji List (page 2), Dnevni List (page 8) and Vjesnik (page 1) also deal with the Kostajnica issue. Both dailies carry that delegations of BiH and Croatia met yesterday and discussed the issue. The articles say that they agreed to respect Agreement on state borders between Croatia and BiH from 1999. The Croatian delegation rejected a BiH proposal on the construction of a by-pass for Bosanska Kostajnica and proposed to construct a joint by-pass for both Hrvatska and Bosanska Kostajnica that also envisages construction of a new bridge.

Since BiH Council of Ministers will discuss these issues today, the delegations agreed that both sides would not make one-sided moves. During the meeting the two sides agreed on a text of an Annex to Agreement on joint locations on border crossing Kostajnica and if the BiH Council of Ministers adopts the Annex, the Croatian side would immediately start with works and the border crossing could be opened in 15 days. 

Vecernji List (page 10, signed by Milan Jacinovic) carries that the problem with the Kostajnica border crossing is not a dispute between Croatia and BiH over a border crossing but that the problem is the fact that the world ‘political geneticists’ created in BiH Siamese twins that cannot stand each other, but who have to live together. Jacinovic says that due to a wish of the geneticists for some sort of balance the so-called RS is the most exclusive area in Europe. The editorial concludes that the idea because of which it all started and because of which prison camp Manjaca was established and massacre in Srebrenica took place has been realised.

Vjesnik (page 7, by Mario Marusic) reads that 7188 persons have been confirmed as eligible candidates for the October elections in BiH and adds that 1054 candidates from lists of 57 political parties have been eliminated from the lists. The parties have a five-day deadline to replace them with new candidates.

Nezavisne Novine (p 4 and 5)carries an extensive interview with the President of BiH Social Democrat Party, Zlatko Lagumdzija, in which he comments on various issues (CIPS project Am Sped, election campaign, etc). Lagumdzija stated that it is obvious that some political opponents do everything possible to discredit SDP and its President and that some media support that anti SDP campaign. According to Lagumdzija, it is much easier to displace ten thousand people than dismiss ten ambassadors, process the case of former foreign Minister and prevent some individuals to become Ambassadors.

Slobodna Dalmacija (page 15) under title “Dictator without brains: carries a HDZ BiH reaction to an interview that the former SDHR Matthias Sonn gave to “Dnevni Avaz” when Sonn said that his biggest success during the mission in BiH was “breaking of Jelavic’s gang”. HDz says that it is not amazed with Sonn’s messages suggesting him to show a minimum of decency upon the departure. We did not like him either but we had to put up with him knowing that the time of false democrats and experts is running out. We knew that we would outlive another dictator and turn to our own brains and solve problems, reads the HDZ BiH press release.

Dnevni List (page 5) carries a report from a session of HDZ BiH Presidency which was held in Livno when the Presidency rendered the issue of pre-election strategy. The acting President of HDZ BiH Barisa Colak said that the first part of the pre-election activities that includes contacts with HDZ municipal and cantonal boards is almost complete announcing holding of public forums, tour of western Europe and pre-election rallies. HDZ BiH reiterated its dissatisfaction with the constitutional-legal position of the Croat people in BiH especially after the imposed constitutional solutions imposed by the High Representative. “The main aim of HDZ BiH is to get prepared for the elections, win as many votes and assume as many positions within the authority at all levels thus influencing the events is the areas of economy, social affairs and constitutional-legal matters in the next four years”, said Barisa Colak.

Dnevni List (page 2, signed by Miso Relota) carries that people from the Una-Sana Canton, who have been brought to verge of poverty due to SDA and Party for BiH policy, see Fikret Abdic as the only person who is able to recover the economy of this area. Relota says that time is on Abdic’s side and for this reason people from aforementioned parties are afraid that they might lose their positions. The editorial says that it is obvious that SDA and Party for BiH were not so loud when Sefer Halilovic, a General of BiH Army who was charged with crimes committed over Croats, was in question. Relota says that it is shameful that none from Bosniak parties reacted against the fact that such person was performing a ministerial duty in the Federation Government. Relota wonders as to who is more responsible morally Abdic or Halilovic since The Hague was interested in Halilovic and not Abdic.

According to his constitutional authorities, the RS President, Mirko Sarovic, proposed the RS National Assembly to appoint Radomir Lukic and Miodrag Simovic for RS judges to BiH Constitutional Court (Glas Srpski, p 3). The delegates of the RS NA will vote on Sarovic’s proposal today.

The RS Customs Administration announced yesterday that 34 disciplinary cases are ongoing and based on that 20 customs officials were suspended. 9 employees of the RS CA were suspended earlier and 11 were suspended on Tuesday. Amongst the ones suspended, there are employees of the RS CA mentioned in the CAFAO report. (Nezavisne Novine, p 7)

Nezavisne Novine (p 3)reports that the contract on privatization of the Banja Luka Kristal Bank between the RS Finance Ministry and Hypo Alpe Adria Bank from Austria was signed before the decision of the RS Government by which it approved the purchase came into effect. The contract on purchase was signed on 17^th April in Banja Luka, while the Government’s decision was publicized in the RS Official Gazette on 30^th April – however, the contract was signed 13 days before that.

According to unofficial information, all five policemen from Prijedor have been set free on Wednesday. Policemen Ranko Jakovljevic, Miroslav Cadzo, Mile Rodic, Drazen Rakovic and Rade Savic have been detained on May 8^th, under a suspicion of committing war crime by detaining catholic priest Tomislav Matanovic and his parents and keeping them illegally in home custody. They have been set free by the decision of the County Court of Banja Luka on accepting the offered guarantee. Policemen obliged not to escape until the trial finishes. (Blic – p 10, both Banja Luka dailies)

• Federation Defense Minister Mijo Anic on Wednesday accused his Deputy Ferid Buljubasic of all the parallelisms and affairs in the Ministry
• It seems the issue of Kostajnica border crossing has not been resolved last night at the meeting of delegations of the two countries.
• Republika Srpska National Assembly Speaker Dragan Kalinic decided that the 18th session of the Parliament will be held on July 25 in Banja Luka, and that the agenda will have 37 items

FTV 1 (1930)

• ICTY Deputy Prosecutor Graham Blewitt told reporters on Wednesday that the Office of the Prosecutor this morning sought the assistance of the BiH Federation Government, in particular the assistance of the Ministry of Defense, to carry out a search of the 2nd corps archives at the 2nd corps headquarters and barracks in Tuzla
• Federation Defense Minister Mijo Anic on Wednesday accused his Deputy Ferid Buljubasic of all the parallelisms and affairs in the Ministry
• President of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton Dragan Vrankic on Wednesday sent a letter to Federation Prime Minister Alija Behmen requesting from the Federation Government to submit documents on the secret ammunition warehouses, discovered at the end of April in Mostar, to the cantonal Interior Ministry.

RTRS (1930)

• BiH and Croatian border commission confirmed last night in Croatian Kostajnica a Draft agreement on opening of a temporary border crossing on Una river near Kostajnica (3)
• The BiH Election Commission (IK) on Wednesday published the list of parties arranged by the number on the voters’ ballots at the upcoming general elections in BiH, scheduled for October 5. (2)
• Chairman of the BiH House of Peoples Nikola Spiric branded as disputable the conclusion of the BiH Presidency of July 10 in which it called on the Council of Ministers to secure 95,000 euro from budget reserves for covering the costs of BiH’s charge against FRY before the International Court of Justice in The Hague. (2)