OHR related Interviews

I reported that the general political environment in BiH has deteriorated. BiH is a mix of positive and negative trends that run in parallel.

Nobody is objecting to the RS right to have an official “Day of the RS” that is in line with the BiH Constitution. Absolutely not. The issue we are talking about is not about the holiday itself but about respecting the constitutional order of BiH.

Asking citizens in the RS to declare themselves on an issue which has already been decided by the BiH Constitutional Court is a challenge to the Dayton Peace Agreement.

The decision taken by the RS National Assembly on July 15 regarding a referendum in RS on the issue of RS Day violates the General Framework Agreement for Peace.

While holidays are clearly a sensitive issue in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Rule of Law must be respected at all times. All authorities in BiH, including the RS authorities are duty bound to implement final and binding decisions of the BiH Constitutional Court.

I have always advocated early candidacy status and membership as soon as BiH meets all conditions. This is important for BiH because it would trigger much needed changes.

I have always been an advocate for a faster granting of a candidate status, and a slower granting of a member status. What is most important in-between is transition, reforms…

Maybe the international community has not been putting enough stress on coexistence, because after the war there was a lot of talk about military security, which is understandable. Maybe we should have had programmes for coexistence and reconciliation, like, for example, the French and the Germans.

I strongly believe that without truth and justice reconciliation and healing is impossible. Also, to reach the truth and justice is our debt to the victims and the last thing we can do to make them rest in peace.