LOCAL PRESS

Djuric: Special court for KLA – only first step made (RTS)

The Head of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija Marko Djuric has told the morning news of Radio and Television of Serbia (RTS) that the adoption of the constitutional amendments is only the first step towards the establishment of the court for crimes committed by the KLA, and that the greatest part of the job is yet to come. He says that Serbia will be carefully monitoring in the following period the composition and work of the court for KLA crimes, adding that we cannot be satisfied as long as those who had committed crimes are not convicted. He notes that those who voted yesterday were not ready to punish war crimes over the past 15 years and recalls that most of the work for persecuting KLA criminals is yet to come. Djuric points out that he doesn’t trust former KLA leaders who, as he put it, took off their uniforms and put on suits in the Kosovo Assembly. He says the good thing is that this court will be an international one where they will process war crimes that never expire. Commenting the pressure on the Serb side in the Kosovo Assembly, Djuric says that many things in the political life in the Serbian province resemble a farce, and that it is not only the Serb leaders who are not at peace but also witnesses. “Those who voted yesterday in the Kosovo Assembly are winking with one eye to those who should be convicted, saying – everything will be all right. We are looking with certain skepticism at Pristina’s intentions and remain prepared to help those who wish to condemn war crimes,” says Djuric.

Speaking about the dialogue that is to resume in Brussels tomorrow, Djuric recalls that Pristina tried to use the previous agreement on insurance and, as he puts it, push through this agreement the license plates with Kosovo insignia. He points out that the disagreements regarding the agreement on insurance are slowing down the dialogue in Brussels, adding that the Pristina side has interest for such a situation to continue. Djuric expects the problem regarding insurance to be resolved within two to three days.

Ljajic: Constitutional amendments an important step for reconciliation process (Tanjug/RTS)

The adoption of constitutional amendments for the establishment of the special court for war crimes committed by the KLA, the law on the special court and the office of the special prosecutor are an important step for the reconciliation process that cannot exist unless everybody faces crimes that were perpetrated in the region of former Yugoslavia, Serbian Trade Minister Rasim Ljajic told journalists. He says that the Serbian government also expects the adoption of a final decision on the establishment of the special court, and that the adoption of the amendments and laws in the Kosovo Assembly had been done under big international pressure, and they are not an expression of the mood of either the Assembly or the public in Kosovo. Ljajic says the Hague Tribunal didn’t dispute that these crimes existed. “Unfortunately, there were no processes in this sense and I believe that the court will compensate for the missed cases in some previous period and that everybody will be held accountable. Crimes have a name, crimes do not have nationality, color but a specific name and I believe they will be processed,” said Minister Ljajic.

“It is not important to launch these proceedings, because the Hague Tribunal also launched some proceedings but only two percent of them led to a verdict, whereas other ones had been more or less unsuccessful,” said Ljajic.

Mogherini: Adoption of amendments and laws an important step (Tanjug)

The EU High Representative Federica Mogherini has stated that the adoption of constitutional amendments and laws in the Kosovo Assembly is the crucial step towards establishing the necessary legal framework for response to the serious accusations from the Council of Europe report. Mogherini said that the step of Kosovo MPs was not an easy one but it is a sign of responsibility and determination to reach the truth and adopt decisions in keeping with Kosovo’s European path, the statement reads. The EU is committed to providing assistance in the process and continuing cooperation with everyone so as to complete the process aimed at establishment of necessary legal mechanisms which will make it possible to launch independent and fair court proceedings in near future, reads the statement.

REGIONAL PRESS

Pendes to attend military parade in Zagreb (RTRS)

The Croatian Defense Ministry has confirmed that the B&H Defense Minister Marina Pendes will attend the military parade in Zagreb. Earlier it was announced that Minister Pendes approved the Chief of the Joint Staff of B&H Ante Jeleca to attend the military parade at which Croatia is celebrating 20 years of the military operation “Storm”. Her deputy Boris Jerinic claims that Minister Pendes brought the decision on her own, without the consent of the Serb and Bosniak deputies.

RS government declares 5 August day of mourning (Srna)

The RS government declared yesterday 5 August the day of mourning in the RS as the “Day of remembrance of the exiled and killed Serbs”. The flags on all buildings of the public institutions in the RS are to be lowered to half-mast, cultural and sports events will be adjusted to the given circumstances and the public broadcasters are obliged to adjust the program scheme to the day of mourning, it was announced by the RS government. The marking of Day of remembrance was agreed at the joint session of the governments of the RS and Serbia, which was held on 26 June in Belgrade.

Bajramovic: Decision on protests by week’s end (Nezavisne)

The Chairperson of the Alliance of Independent Unions of B&H (SSS B&H) Ismet Bajramovic said that the Main Board should decide by the end of the week on whether it will hold protests in front of the FB&H government building and demand the dismissal of FB&H Prime Minister Fadil Novalic, and whether it will launch a general strike. He says that the SSS B&H will try to dispute the new labor law in the FB&H Constitutional Court because they think that it was unconstitutionally adopted in both houses of the FB&H parliament, and that they had sent a request to the International Labor Organization for its re-examination, while they expect support from the International Union Confederation in these activities.

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

EU Sees Kosovo Court Formation as Step Forward on European Path (Bloomberg, by Boris Cerni and Misha Savic, 4 August 2015)

The Kosovar parliament’s agreement to set up a special war-crimes court probing accusations such as alleged organ trafficking during its war for independence from Serbia is a step toward meeting European Union standards, the EU said. Lawmakers in the capital Pristina passed constitutional changes on Monday that pave the way for the formation of the tribunal, marking “ a crucial step” in addressing “serious allegations” from a 2011 Council of Europe report, Federica Mogherini, the EU’s high representative, said in a statement from Brussels Tuesday. The report accused some of Kosovo’s leaders, including Foreign Minister Hashim Thaci, of being involved in selling organs harvested from local ethnic Serbs and other opponents of its fight to break away from Serbia in 1999. Thaci has denied any allegations of wrongdoing. “While recognizing that this step by lawmakers of the Kosovo Assembly was not easy, it is a sign of responsibility and determination to establish the truth and make decisions compatible with Kosovo’s European path,” Mogherini said in the statement. The abuses and killings of minorities in Kosovo started before the North Atlantic Treaty Organization intervened in the conflict in 1999 and drove out Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic’s troops from the Balkan province, which Serbs still consider the cradle of their culture. Both nations now aim to follow Slovenia and Croatia into the EU as they work to improve their economies and the rule of law. The process of establishing the court is not yet complete, and further steps need to be taken, David Schwendiman, the lead prosecutor of the EU’s Special Investigative Task Force, said in an e-mailed statement.

Unwinding Enmity

“We encourage all actors involved to pursue their efforts so that this judicial mechanism can be functional as early as possible,” Schwendiman said. Kosovo and Serbia are also involved in talks aimed at smoothing the thorny relations between the former enemies. Serbia has been an official candidate to join the world’s largest trading bloc since 2012 and hopes to start membership talks this year and join the EU by the end of the decade. Kosovo has yet to initiate its official EU accession. “We cannot be satisfied as long as those who committed crimes are not punished,” Marko Djuric, Serbia’s chief of office for Kosovo, said in a live interview to RTS broadcaster on Tuesday.

Bosnia mired in ethnic politics and frustration (BBC, by Guy De Launey, 4 August 2015)

Business as usual is a concept which does not apply to Bosnia

How can it in a country divided into two “ethnic entities”, governed by 14 prime ministers and with three presidents acting as head of state? But even by Bosnia’s bizarre standards, it is going through challenging times – with the notion of its continued existence once again a live topic.

The president of the majority ethnic-Serb Republika Srpska (RS), Milorad Dodik, has called a September referendum challenging the authority of Bosnia’s National Court in the RS. Mr Dodik also has a policy of RS secession from Bosnia by 2018. Meanwhile some Croat nationalists are upset that they share the other entity (the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina) with Bosniaks (the majority-Muslim ethnic group). Mr Dodik has lent his support to the idea of a third entity – which would, not coincidentally, leave RS as the largest of the three. Emphasising the enduring anger among some Bosniaks – 20 years since the war ended – the recent commemorations at Srebrenica saw Serbia’s Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic come under verbal and physical attack. To the outsider it looks as though Bosnia might be on the verge of breaking up. But things here are never quite as they seem.

Citizens stranded

Mr Dodik has been making secessionist noises for years now. There was an attempt at a referendum in 2011, before international pressure forced a retreat. And Serbia has given no encouragement to the RS leader – in fact Prime Minister Vucic has urged Mr Dodik to reconsider the referendum. A Sarajevo-based political analyst, Kurt Bassuener of the Democratisation Policy Council, believes the affair is really a challenge to the international community’s authority in Bosnia. “This is Dodik testing the systems to see what the reaction will be,” he says. There is also a gap between the rhetoric of political leaders and the feelings of the large number of Bosnians who feel stranded in a malfunctioning state. Protests across Bosnia last year indicated widespread anger towards politicians – widely viewed as enriching themselves at the expense of the people. But come election time, the same old faces were voted back in. There are several reasons why this may have happened. No compelling leaders emerged from the protest movement. None of the political parties made a credible effort to appeal to voters of all ethnic backgrounds. And a patronage system means some people fear they will lose their jobs if they vote “the wrong way”. But the roots of all the trouble go back to the peace agreement signed in Dayton 20 years ago. This set in place the divisions and patronage networks which still persist – and Kurt Bassuener insists that international figures have to take responsibility for changing it. “This is an oligarchy that we identify as a democracy because we midwifed it,” he says. “People in this country are very reasonable and problems could be solved. The hurdle which needs to be cleared is changing the beneficiaries of the system into change agents. But they’re not going to rise to the occasion by themselves.” The role of the considerable international presence in Bosnia is a matter of great concern to local people. A banner on daily display outside the presidency building in Sarajevo calls on the EU to intervene. But theatre director Haris Pasovic, who made his name by running festivals during the siege of Sarajevo, says foreigners who were supposed to help Bosnia have become too comfortable with its faulty state. “What would happen if everything was good?” he asks. “If you have worked in ‘democracy’ for 20 years and suddenly everything is OK, what would you do? As a human rights oligarch you have no accountability – the world needs you forever.”

Crisis or opportunity?

After years of a laissez-faire attitude towards Bosnia’s political class, some international players have recently become more active. An Anglo-German plan to encourage change in Bosnia has become an EU initiative. Brussels has reactivated its mothballed Stabilisation and Association Agreement – offering the possibility of economic assistance in return for meaningful reforms.

Perhaps most encouraging of all, the recently-appointed EU Special Representative in Bosnia, Lars-Gunnar Wigemark, believes it is time to reassess the Dayton agreement. “Dayton was not perfect. We need to refine and update it so that Bosnia can stand on its own,” he says.

That would not be a path without peril. The Serb member of the presidency, Mladen Ivanic, points out that Dayton has helped to ensure peace for two decades. But it has not brought prosperity. And perhaps the recent ructions in RS, Srebrenica and the Federation present Bosnia with an opportunity rather than a crisis. A chance to discuss what this country’s people need to move away from a frozen conflict – and towards a functional future.

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Media summaries are produced for the internal use of the United Nations Office in Belgrade, UNMIK and UNHQ. The contents do not represent anything other than a selection of articles likely to be of interest to a United Nations readership.