OHR related Articles

There was in my country a few years ago a popular catchphrase that originated in relationship therapy. Couples were encouraged to ask one another “What have you done for me lately?” The idea was to highlight the fact that relationships aren’t static; they are continuously developing – and they’re all about give and take.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has traveled a long way over the past decade as the country has sought to rebuild itself with international support in the wake of Europe’s most devastating conflict since World War II. But progress will only be irreversible when Bosnians themselves take responsibility for the peace process. It is my task as Bosnia and Herzeg [...]

How do you prevent failed states from becoming launch pads for terrorism? How do you turn them into functioning democracies? How do you intervene effectively to serve the citizens of those states and the citizens of the global community? A decade of peace implementation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, following the U.S.-brokered agreement signed at Dayt [...]

Bird flu has infected around 120 people in Asia since late 2003 and killed more than 60. It isn’t a pandemic – and it doesn’t have to become one. Currently, the risk of infection by a deadly strain of bird flu is infinitely smaller than the risk of infection by a seasonal, non-fatal flu virus. This risk can be kept low if the authorities around the [...]

With the opening of Stabilisation and Association negotiations, BiH’s future path is clear. This country aspires to be, and stands a very good chance of becoming, a normal European democracy. With the road ahead now mapped out, the pace of change – and, much more importantly, the pace of getting the benefits of difficult reforms to citizens - can q [...]

When the people in power abuse the law to help their friends and political allies, the rights of citizens are put in jeopardy. This is the issue that lies at the core of the controversy now surrounding the decision by Federation President Niko Lozancic to grant a Pardon to his former party colleague Miroslav Prce. The facts of the case are well kn [...]

This autumn, parliamentarians will debate new business legislation that will modernise the rulebook for doing business in BiH. The existing Federation, RS & Brcko Laws on Obligations, as good as they are, do not cover all aspects of normal 21st Century business. The new legislation will, for example, regulate the information that must be given to t [...]

Farmers have been demonstrating in front of the JointInstitutionsBuilding in Sarajevo for more than a month now. The number of demonstrators has remained constant – but the number of politicians inside the building has diminished, as more and more head to the coast for the summer holidays.

After more than nine years of economic stagnation, BiH is at last turning a corner. Poverty is slowly beginning to decline. It is not declining fast enough or broadly enough anywhere in BiH. But it is declining.

At the end of this week (19 March) I will leave OHR and Bosnia and Herzegovina, after almost four years. I will leave with conflicting emotions – deep affection, a sense of promise, and frustration. I have developed a deep affection for the wonderful people I have had the privilege to work with and become acquainted with.