Letter to the Office of the High Representative in B&H (OHR)

Letter to the Office of the High Representative in B&H (OHR)High Representative Valentin Inzko          [pdf]
Office of the High Representative and EU Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Emerika Bluma 1
Sarajevo, 71 000, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Honorable High Representative Inzko:

The Congress of North American Bosniaks (CNAB), an umbrella organization representing American and Canadian Bosniaks, supports the decision of the Office of the High Representative (OHR) to annul the adopted conclusions of Republika Srpska National Assembly (RSNA) on “Summary on Effects of Transfer of Constitutional Competencies from the Republika Srpska to the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina” which were published on June 15, 2009 in the Official Gazette of Republika Srpska (RS). The conclusions of the RS, the smaller entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), are in direct conflict with the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina; as such, they are indefensible and detrimental to the efforts of European integration and revival of democracy in Bosnia.

OHR should intensify its efforts to establish a lasting, peaceful, civilized, and sustainable solution to the political stalemate in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We believe that the High Representative has the right and should invoke Bonn powers in order to prevent any such attempts to undermine the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the purpose of destabilizing the country. This objective is becoming increasingly evident through the actions of certain members of the administration of the smaller entity and its lobbying groups operating in the U.S.A. and Europe. Their goal is to destabilize Bosnia and Herzegovina, segregate the population on ethnic grounds, and to ultimately divide up the country and its territories. The same ominous objective failed during the war of aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Encouraged by the lack of punitive action in response to the divisive rhetoric of their leaders, the representatives of the smaller entity’s National Assembly consciously and purposely made legislative decisions to undermine the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Office of the High Representative, with the intent of weakening the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, blocking the road towards Euro-Atlantic integrations and to materialize their war objectives using all political means at their disposal. By taking advantage of the passive and indecisive attitude of the international community, especially some members and representatives of the European Union, the political parties and institutions of the smaller entity strive to create political and socioeconomic conditions that are acceptable for only one ethnic group. Even further, the presence of OHR is no longer desired in the smaller entity as
evidenced by many of the public outbursts by its Prime Minister, Milorad Dodik.

CNAB had issued several warnings in the past that the return of nationalist rhetoric and the politics of secession could bring about complete political paralysis of BiH destabilizing the entire region. It is obvious that Milorad Dodik and his supporters purposely want to create an impression to the rest of the world that Bosnia and Herzegovina is not viable as a multi ethnic and sovereign state. CNAB rejects this premise, and requests that the OHR take concrete and necessary steps to remove any political representatives who purposely obstruct the democratic process in Bosnia and Herzegovina, undermine its economic development, and block the path towards Euro-Atlantic integration.

It is time for the international community to show unity, determination, and readiness to put an end to the destructive nationalistic behavior that seeks to promote hatred and division. It is imperative that the international community learns from the mistakes that were made in the past in which the same nationalist ideals were appeased and allowed to culminate in the worst atrocities Europe has seen since the Second World War. In just a few weeks, the world will be remembering the Srebrenica Genocide. We urge you to honor these victims by ensuring that their lives were not so tragically lost in vain.

Haris Alibašić, MPA
President of the CNAB