OHR related Articles

Bosnian entrepreneurs, struggling for years with administrative obstacles in the still largely divided Balkans country, have recently been given the opportunity by the international community to work on improving the business environment here. Bosnia's parliament passed in May 50 proposals formulated by businessmen which focused on harmonization o [...]

Now comes the difficult part, what Kipling described as "Winning the savage war of peace." The coalition has won the war in Iraq, but could still lose the peace. Public debate, today as always, focuses largely on the mechanics of war, not on how to forge a settlement in a far-off country. That is natural. Just a few weeks ago, before the coalitio [...]

This week I am in Belgrade, attending the Inter-Balkan Cooperation summit. One of the topics that I will be discussing while I am there will be the urgent need to develop an effective regional response to the problem of organised crime. Last year some though I was wrong when I said that the biggest security threat to BiH comes not from nationalis [...]

There is a sense today in Bosnia and Herzegovina that economic reform is beginning to take on a momentum of its own. This is critical if this country is to find its proper place in Europe and in the world's market place. Reform means more than just sweeping away outdated legislation and privatization. It means changing an entire mindset - from wait [...]

The debate concerning how best to provide BiH citizens and companies in this country with competitive telecom services at competitive prices - has now been engaged. I think this is a good thing, the people of this country need to be better informed about all aspects of this issue. Telephone calls made in and from this country are too expensive for [...]

"Where Did All That Money in Bosnia Go?" (Week in Review, Feb. 16) correctly notes that Bosnia and Herzegovina has set out to "build a market economy based on the rule of law and privatize state assets to attract foreign investment that can create jobs." But it is suggested that this may be a nearly impossible task. It isn't.

The way forward on customs and VAT reform in BiH will be decided this week. These reforms will affect every man, woman and child in the RS. On Wednesday, the High Representative will establish the Commission that will oversee the process of setting a single customs administration and state-level VAT. He will also issue a legal Decision setting [...]

After a decade of engagement in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the United Nations mission is leaving at the end of this year. While the United Nations agencies will remain, the organization's responsibilities for policing will be taken over by the European Union. History will look back on our engagement in Bosnia and Herzegovina as the first faltering st [...]

Regarding "Time to concede defeat in Bosnia-Herzegovina" (Views, Oct. 10) by William Pfaff: Suggesting, as Pfaff does, that Bosnia-Herzegovina might usefully be carved up is unacceptable to the international community, and dangerous for the Balkans. First, such a division would deliver a dishonorable victory to individuals indicted by the Interna [...]