25.01.2000

OHR RTRS News Summary, 25 January 2000

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News Headlines

  • RS National Assembly continues ninth session in Banja Luka
  • Silajdzic presents initiative on Dayton Agreement revision
  • Asanin reacts to Silajdzic statements
  • Silajdzic statement on necessity to revise Dayton Agreement announces destabilization of BiH – Plavsic
  • Revision of Dayton Agreement, as Silajdzic suggests, would not have good consequences for RS – SNSD Executive Board member Simic
  • Group for Protection of Human Rights meets in Sarajevo to set priorities in human rights issues in BiH
  • Training session for BiH police officers for East Timor mission convenes in Sarajevo – Coffman
  • Domi holds press conference on EASC decision to strike candidates off lists for April elections
  • Petritsch satisfied with Sarajevo Canton work on property claims – Stiglmayer
  • IMC issues long-term licenses to media in BiH – IMC spokesperson Babovic
  • SFOR arrests Mitar Vasiljevic, indicted for war crimes by The Hague, in Visegrad
  • Carla Del Ponte to publicly announce decision on NATO bombing of Yugoslavia after she completes analysis
  • Mesic wins majority of votes Croatian presidential elections
  • Two persons arrested in Kosovo in past 24 hours – KFOR
  • Serbs, Albanians and UN close to reaching agreement on functioning of judiciary in Kosovska Mitrovica – UN spokesman
  • Kouchner expects Kosovo Serb representatives to accept participation in work of Kosovo Interim Administration
  • Officials of Kosovo Interim Administration appointed in Pristina
  • Too early for referendum in Montenegro – Djukanovic
  • Sanctions against Yugoslavia could be suspended soon – Serbian opposition parties
  • World News
  • Sports
  • Weather
  • 13 candidates for BiH municipal elections struck off election lists in EASC decision – OSCE spokesman McCorley
  • Robertson confirms that SFOR arrested Mitar Vasiljevic
  • Adams informs RS Defense Ministry on Vasiljevic arrest
  • Croatian Deputy Defense Minister Rojs announces resignation
  • Banja Luka Obilicevo post office robbed
  • Festival Days of Svetosavlja dedicated to St. Sava commences in Banja Luka

News Summary

RS National Assembly continues ninth session in Banja Luka

The RS National Assembly continued its ninth session, which started on 27 December 1999, in Banja Luka. During a discussion on the agenda’s second point: election of a new government, SRS and SDS caucus leaders Milan Lazic and Milan Tupajic, respectively, explained their request by emphasizing the constitutional reasons behind it. According to them, by not electing a new government after the (1997) elections and formation of the National Assembly at that time, the RS Constitution and laws were violated. CD Coalition member Sulejman Tihic stated that the CD Coalition has not been supporting the government of RS Prime Minister Milorad Dodik since August 1999. Tihic suggested that National Assembly delegates demand from the High Representative that he “define the function (a man) that would nominate the next prime minister-designate.” SNSD member Krstan Simic rejected this proposal by saying that such a determination by the High Representative would damage the RS Constitution. SDS member Dragan Cavic demanded changes to the system of the executive authority, stating that there is no economic policy in the RS that could reverse the catastrophic situation in that sector. Dodik reacted to this, emphasizing his government had increased the average wage and filled the coffers of the RS budget through taxation. SPRS member Zeljka Krpic supported the Dodik Government, saying that it had contributed to the preservation of RS unity, as well as protection of soldiers and refugees. Kalinic suggested that the Assembly validate a proposal of RS Vice-president Mirko Sarovic, for Sarovic to nominate the RS prime minister-designate. SNS member Milica Markovic-Elez said that this SDS proposal would have negative consequences for the RS. Dodik reacted to this, saying that he does not oppose the proposal but still believes that the RS National Assembly does not have the right to widen authorities enjoyed by the RS Vice-president. In his opinion, this whole issue is a scenario created in Yugoslavia to cause immense damage to the RS. Dodik says that he even knows the name of the candidate that Sarovic will propose. Dodik mentioned that there were ‘orgies’ in Belgrade on 24 January, and that Poplasen, Seselj and Blagojevic had participated in them. Sarovic denied Dodik’s claims and said that there “is no time to wait for presidential elections.” He reiterated several times that he was ready to take over the duties of the president, but not the office of president. He also asked for a minimum of political will among assemblymen to confirm the fact he did not want to bypass the National Assembly in making a decision on the new RS Government. Meanwhile, assemblymen adopted the budget and verified the new mandates of Nikola Kragulj, instead of the late Nenad Bastinac, and Slavko Boljanac instead of the ousted Zoran Nikolic, a member of the SRS.

05:18

Silajdzic presents initiative on Dayton Agreement revision

BiH Council of Ministers Co-chairman Haris Silajdzic held a press conference in Sarajevo where he explained a plan for Dayton Agreement revision. He said that he would present the plan to both the domestic and foreign public. Silajdzic believes that positive provisions of the Dayton Agreement had not been realized and that the agreement had started to contradict itself. “The Dayton Agreement has became a screen behind which BiH was being killed. The other entity is mono-ethnic, which is, unfortunately, the result of genocide” he said. Asked whether the initiative requires a referendum, Silajdzic answered indirectly. He commented on a former peace plan, which proposed the further Cantonization of BiH, saying that when a person from the BiH Federation goes to Banja Luka he/she is not a constituent. He added the fact that the RS National Assembly does not have veto power. Journalists were informed of the memorandum on change in which Silajdzic explained his assessment of the situation in BiH and presented his proposed revision of the Dayton Peace Agreement.

01:45

Asanin reacts to Silajdzic statements

BiH Minister of Civilian Affairs and Communications Marko Asanin issued a press release. In the release, he comments on recent statements by BiH Council of Ministers Co-chairman Haris Silajdzic during a meeting of seven regional prime ministers, NATO and EU delegations in Bulgaria. Asanin believes that no one is surprised by Silajdzic’s statements, which only confirm the continuity of his political irresponsibility and arrogant attempts at creating and preserving tension within common BiH institutions. The goal of this, of course, is to disable the further work of BiH common institutions. According to Asanin, “Silajdzic persistently creates new conflicts by proclaiming that institutions and representatives of a people are fascist. This kind of vocabulary is a remainder of inflammatory propaganda in the war, when Silajdzic was a representative of one of the sides in the war.” In Asanin’s opinion, such statements are not accidental or unpremeditated, but the result of long-term policy aimed at creating a unitary BiH through Dayton Agreement revision and bringing Serbs and other people into a subordinate (unequal position) in relation to the majority Bosniak people. “Such political aspirations were one of the reasons for the bloody war we had” reads the release.

01:10