LOCAL PRESS

 

Vucic: Serbia will be no parking lot for refugees (Tanjug/RTS)

Serbia will not be a parking lot for migrants - it will not, and cannot, take in hundreds of thousands of those people, but it is ready to participate in the quota system, even though, unlike EU member states, it is under no obligation to do so, Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic said Wednesday. Commenting on unofficial information that a part of the money to be allocated at the upcoming London conference will be used to keep a portion of the migrants in Serbia, he said that “we have never seen that money, that is a lot of money for our country, and if someone were to give us that many millions of euros, it would mean that hundreds of thousands of migrants would remain in Serbia”. “That is not possible. Serbia is not, and cannot be, a parking lot for anyone. We do not need money, we can take in a number of people, but Serbia cannot sustain hundreds of thousands of people,” Vucic said.

 

EP to debate resolution on Serbia ahead of Thursday vote (Tanjug)

The European Parliament will at Wednesday’s plenary session debate a resolution on Serbia urging a soonest possible opening of key negotiation chapters 23 and 24 in the country's EU accession talks. The resolution welcomes the progress in the normalization of Belgrade-Pristina relations in 2015, calling on authorities to ensure a full and timely implementation of agreements reached to date as one of the conditions for Serbia’s EU accession. MEPs are scheduled to vote on the proposed resolution on Thursday, with Serbian Minister for European Integration Jadranka Joksimovic to attend the debate and the vote.

 

McAllister: Serbia must not block Kosovo (Novosti)

“The dialogue with Kosovo is linked to Serbia’s EU accession process. Continued engagement towards a visible and sustainable improvement of relations with Kosovo is requested from Serbia. This process must ensure that both sides can continue their EU path, avoiding blocking each other in these efforts,” the European Parliament Rapporteur for Serbia David McAllister responds to Novosti’s question as to whether Belgrade will have to recognize the false state at the end of the EU path. His report on Serbia’s progress in EU integration will be presented today before the MEPs in Strasbourg. In comment to the remark that pressure is increasing on five EU member states to recognize independence of Kosovo, he says: “The draft resolution on Kosovo composed by Ulrike Lunachek points out that five members states have not officially recognized Kosovo and voices the opinion that further recognitions would contribute to strengthening stability in the region. However, the decision on recognizing Kosovo as an independent state is exclusively in the jurisdiction of these member states.”

 

Veselinovic: Authorities preparing election theft “via bags with ballots from Kosovo) (Tanjug)

The leader of the Movement for Turnaround Janko Veselinovic has stated that there will be a possible theft at the upcoming elections, claiming that the authorities are preparing to thus compensate the part of support that it has lost, according to Veselinovic. “One danger is for the votes to arrive in bags from Kosovo and Metohija, just as they arrived from Serbia proper at the last elections in Kosovo and Metohija, organized by Vucic and Vulin,” Veselinovic told journalists in the Serbian parliament. That is why, he says, it is not an accident that the residents of entire municipalities in Kosovo and Metohija have joined the SNS. Another possibility that is being prepared according to him is the buying of votes “at various places – markets, at home, in exchange of money and other things, such as food.” The goal of the opposition in the following period is to ensure as greater as possible turnout of citizens and for every vote at the elections to be protected, said Veselinovic.

 

One-month detention for arrested at Visoki Decani (Tanjug)

The Basic Court in Pec ordered a detention of one month for four men who were arrested near the Visoki Decani monastery in Kosovo on Sunday, and the decision is only in connection with charges of illegal possession of weapons, Pristina-based media reported on Tuesday. Judge Violeta Usaj-Rugova confirmed the media reports on detention, pointing out that the detained men were suspected of illegal possession of weapons. Koha Ditore daily also cited prosecutor Valbona Hadzosaj as saying that her investigation was only into illegal possession of weapons.
Pristina-based media reported earlier that the Basic Prosecutor’s Office in Pec suspected one of the four arrestees to have fought in Syria and another one of them to have attempted to travel to the Middle East but had been stopped and brought back to Kosovo.

 

News on postponement of Nikolic’s visit to Croatia is a spin (Politika/Blic)

The visit of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic to Zagreb was never agreed and the information of the Croatian media on the postponement of that visit is a media spin, Politikareports,citing sources close to the Serbian President’s cabinet. The daily writes that the initiative for Nikolic to visit Zagreb had originated from the Croatian President Kolinda Grabar Kitarovic at the Brdo-Brioni summit, which was held at the end of November 2015 in Croatia, or rather two and a half months after Nikolic’s visit to the Vatican. Blic was told in Grabar Kitarovic’s cabinet that Serbia needs to resolve at least one of the open issues, such as missing persons and return of property, in order for Nikolic to be able to visit Zagreb. “The conditions of the Croatian President for the meeting with the Serbian President are: resolving the issue of the missing persons in the war, return of property on which Croatia claims its rights in Serbia, return of cultural treasures and archive material (that went missing from Croatia during the war in the 90s), and the problem of the border between Serbia and Croatia on the Danube (145km-long),” Blic was told in Croatian President’s cabinet.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Izetbegovic called for a hearing by SIPA (Srna)

The Bosniak member of the B&H Presidency Bakir Izetbegovic was called to a hearing by The State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) B&H regarding the appointment of Nermana Hadzijahic as the B&H ambassador in Slovenia, Srna learned from sources close to the security agencies in B&H. Izetbegovic will be examined, most probably tomorrow. According to Srna sources, Izetbegovic will be examined for non-compliance with the procedure regarding the appointment of Hadzijahic to the position of the B&H Ambassador in Slovenia, connected to the criminal offense of rewarding or other forms of benefiting in influence trading. Nermana Hadzijahic was appointed as an ambassador after Izetbegovic proposed her at the B&H Presidency session held on January 12.​

 

B&H Prosecutor’s Office: We did not provide the transcripts; we will investigate how they leaked (Dnevni avaz)

The B&H Prosecutor’s Office will check all stakeholders in the proceedings that could leak documents to the media, i.e. the transcripts of intercepted conversations involving the leader of the Alliance for a Better Future (SBB) Fahrudin Radoncic, prior to their presentation at the hearing before the Court of B&H. This statement came after the President of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) Milan Tegeltija told Dnevni avaz on Tuesday that the publication of transcripts of intercepted conversations from the proceedings against the SBB leader meant that his constitutionally guaranteed rights were violated and that an investigation into this issue should be urgently launched. His yesterday’s statement caused quite a stir in B&H public as it pointed to many unresolved issues in the Radoncic case, which the lawyers, intellectuals, soldiers have been discussing openly in the last few days. In response to the inquiry by Dnevni avaz regarding whether the B&H Prosecutor's Office will conduct an investigation into this issue or not, it was pointed out that the documents were not forwarded to the media from the Prosecutor’s Office. “The B&H Prosecutor’s Office acts in accordance with the law. Given the fact that these documents were not provided by the Prosecutor's Office, this institution will carry out checks of all stakeholders in the proceedings that could leak the documents” it is stated in the reply sent by Boris Grubesic, spokesman of the institution. Tegeltija also said that the publication of intercepted conversations before their verification by the Court might constitute the abuse of authority and obstruction of justice. - I do not know whether an investigation was launched, but I think that it should be initiated by all those who are responsible for conducting investigations of criminal offenses, because if something from the sphere of privacy goes public before it is verified in court, it means that someone's rights are violated - says Tegeltija. Only three and a half hours passed after the arrest of the SBB leader Fahrudin Radoncic, when Sarajevo-based portal Klix published the transcripts of intercepted conversations between Radoncic and the B&H Secretary of the Ministry of Security Bakir Dautbasic. This exclusive material was also reported in other media with reference to the said portal. “The B&H Prosecutor's Office is in possession of several hours of intercepted conversations between Bakir Dautbasic and Fahrudin Radoncic who are suspected of attempting to engage in witness tampering in case of Azra Saric, a witness in the proceedings against Naser Keljmendi. Klix.ba exclusively publishes several intercepted conversations - reported the Sarajevo-based web portal in an article published on 25 January at 6:28 PM, i.e. two days before the hearing on detention for Radoncic which was held on January 27 at 4 PM, and at which the transcripts were officially presented before the Court of B&H. It is interesting that in one of yesterday's articles published by this portal, it is claimed that, for unknown reasons, the published transcripts are actually from the detention hearing for Bakir Dautbasic which was held on 12 January. However, the Klix’s article on the hearing of 13 January does not refer to the transcripts of intercepted conversations, but it rather merely states that “the Prosecutor’s Office obtained several intercepted conversations between Bakir Dautbasic and Fahrudin Radoncic”, as well as some other conversations. Also, other media did not publish transcripts of intercepted conversations in their reports. In order to avoid confusion, following some inquiries, multiple sources confirmed to Dnevni avaz that the transcripts of intercepted conversations were not presented at the custody hearings for Dautbasic and Bilsena Sahman at the Court of B&H which were held on January 12. Of course, in this case, it is difficult to talk about the responsibility of the media for publishing the transcripts before they are presented in court, but it is clear that we must talk about the responsibility of those who allowed the transcripts to be leaked to the public.  In his last night’s statement given to N1, Tegeltija reiterated: “ If something from the protected sphere of privacy is published in the media, if it was leaked to them before it was verified in court, this could be punishable and, therefore, an investigation should be launched - said Tegeltija. He stated that the Chief Prosecutor informed him that no one from the Prosecutor's Office gave any transcript or evidence to any of the media. “They are ready to investigate the possible occurrence of leaks of information from protected sphere of privacy. This is about the criminal proceedings that are proceeding as usual, and in which the evidence is obtained based on the Court’s orders. It is important to distinguish between constitutional citizens’ rights that must be respected” Tegeltija said, adding: “Given the fact that many people became familiar with these transcripts in the course of the proceedings, starting with the telecom operators, police officers who were involved, inspectors, and prosecutors, as well as defense attorneys who received this evidence, if there was a leak, we must identify where it happened for the benefit of future practice”.

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B&H Prosecutor withdrew the order to search Milorad Dodik’s facilities, accounts and transactions (Vecernji list)

The B&H Prosecutor’s Office withdrew the order to search facilities, accounts and all transactions used by the Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik, the daily Vecernji list, B&H Edition, has learnt from the source in this judicial institution. The order to search facilities, accounts and all transactions used by RS was issued on January 14.

 

Dodik: I believe in the independence of the Republika Srska (RTRS)

I believe that Republika Srpska (RS) will, one day, become an independent state, said the President of the RS Milorad Dodik. In an interview with the Official Gazette Dodik said that this kind of Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) is not a place where any people can assert their national, economic and political capacities. The SNSD President Milorad Dodik has said that the request of the SDS for holding elections in RS is frivolous, noting that he is willing to accept elections at all levels and is confident in his victory and the victory of the SNSD at all levels. Dodik, who is the President of RS, has said that RS is a part of B&H that is more stable and that no one can deny it. Leaders of the so-called Alliance for Change asre not telling the truth when they say that it is impossible to hold elections at the state level. For early elections at all levels, it is necessary that all MPs resign including the member of the B&H Presidency, Mladen Ivanic, says the President of RS, Milorad Dodik. In that case, elections are inevitable. I am ready to resign and go to the polls. I'm confident of my victory and the victory of the SNSD at all levels. The question is whether, after the new election, Bakir Izetbegovic could form a government at the B&H level, without SNSD - Dodik said.

 

Interview with HR Valentin Inzko (Vecernji list)

Asked how he comments the recent development related to the arrest of the SBB leader Fahrudin Radoncic and of the consequences for the B&H political climate, High Representative, Valentin Inzko said: “I never comment on ongoing judicial proceedings. In general, what I always say is that, firstly, I expect everyone to refrain from putting undue pressure on judicial institutions and allow them to do their job, and secondly I expect that all relevant authorities act with highest standards of professionalism, equity, and accountability.”

Asked if he believes that a referendum on state judiciary will be held in the RS and if concrete results within the structural dialog can prevent its implementation Valentin Inzko said:  “My position is very clear and consistent. In my September 2015 Special Report to the UN Security Council in my capacity as the final authority regarding the interpretation of the GFAP, I determined the referendum to be clear breach of the GFAP, in particular of Annexes 4 and 10. The PIC SB unequivocally declared that the announced referendum in the RS would represent a fundamental violation of the GFAP, and challenge the cohesion, sovereignty and territorial integrity of B&H. Matters of state judicial institutions fall within the constitutional responsibilities of the state and do not fall under the entity’s constitutional responsibilities, while the status and powers of the High Representative are matters arising under the GFAP and international law, and therefore do not fall within the purview of the entities. Please bear in mind that all 28 foreign ministers of the EU, the vast majority of the UN Security Council, Serbian Prime Minister Vucic and President Nikolic, have expressed opposition to the referendum. Shall we conclude that they are all wrong and RS authorities are right? My clear advice to RS authorities, which I take this opportunity to repeat, is to put the referendum aside and to fully respect and work within the framework of the Peace Agreement.”

 

Competent only the judgment of the public (RTCG)

Regarding the request of the SDP, the Civic Movement URA and the Demos to dismiss the editorial team of the Radio Television of Montenegro, headed by the Director of Television of Montenegro Radojka Rutovic, the RTCG Director General Rade Vojvodic reacted. Representatives of the SDP, the Ura and the Demos, Ranko Krivokapic, Zarko Rakcevic and Miodrag Lekic made this request in the draft decision on the establishment of the government of the electoral trust,upon which the DPS and other parties participating in the parliamentary dialogue will declare on Friday. Vojvodic’s complete statement to follow: “The request made by the part of the opposition for the changes in the RTCG presents continuation of the grotesque practice of the times that we thought were behind us. Namely, Montenegro is well advanced in the process of Euro-Atlantic integration, and would simply be unthinkable to apply the model of political trade, beyond what has already become a good practice based on the constitution and the law. Understanding the discontent of some political parties with editorial policy of the news program, we recall the position of RTCG as a public service for all citizens whose independence as a condition sine qua non for such a position, would be jeopardized if the editorial positions, regardless of the competence of the Council of RTCG and management, would have been shared by the acts of political will. Of course, we do not intend to reproach any political party, but we want to suggest the dangers of such a request in time, since the ad hoc suspension of the constitution and the law would cause damage not only to PBS, its present technical and technological as well as personnel transformation, but the overall image of Montenegro as a country that already fosters the acquis of Western democracy. For the RTCG only judgment of the public is relevant. In this respect, results of the survey on confidence and power of the brand will soon be presented and only on the basis of its results, the Council and the management of RTCG, that have exclusive competence over it, would be able to opt, based upon the constitution, the law and the editorial and personnel development direction of this house, stated the RTCG Director General Rade Vojvodic.

 

Electoral Roll: State Election Commission adopts methodology for purification (MIA)

State Election Commission on its Tuesday session adopted the rules for the methodology for full access, changes and deletion of data in the Electoral roll, as well as a procedure for conducting on-site inspection to update it, the State Election Commission said on Tuesday. The Commission adopted the Rulebook on the methodology for updating the Electoral roll based on checks and statistical analyzes, cross checks on different databases and records, unlimited outreach checks and other appropriate recognized methods for verification. The Commission adopted the methodology for the purification of the Electoral roll after obtaining written consent of the four largest parties in the Parliament of the Republic of Macedonia.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

20 years after Dayton, here’s what Bosnians think about being divided by ethnicity (The Washington Post, by Gerard Toal and John O’Loughlin, 2 February 2016)

Last November and December, a series of events and conferences marked the 20th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Accords of 1995, the negotiated agreement that ended the Bosnian war and devised a complex governance structure for the country.

The Dayton agreement was not a democratic agreement. It was not even an agreement negotiated by Bosnians or written in Bosnian. Pushed by the U.S. and European powers, the agreement between the authoritarian presidents of Croatia (Franjo Tudjman) and Serbia (Slobodan Milošević) carved up the territory of the third president in the talks, Alija Izetbegović of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). His country was recognized as a unified state but divided 49 percent/51 percent into two ethnoterritorial zones, a Republika Srpska for Bosnian Serbs and a Bosnian Federation for Bosnia’s Muslims (Bosniaks) and Croats. For victims of ethnic cleansing and genocide, which had recently occurred in Srebrenica, the peace was bitter. Many felt it was a win for perpetrators and criminals. The International Criminal Tribunal on the former Yugoslavia would later charge Milošević with war crimes and find Tudjman posthumously guilty of joint criminal enterprise in Bosnia. But it was also a triumph of American diplomacy. Dayton gave Bosnia a chance as a state; it gave a younger generation the possibility of transcending the ethnopolitical divisions that had plunged it into war. Twenty years later, what does Bosnia’s “Dayton generation” — those who were children or not yet born in 1995 — think about the agreement? How do their attitudes compare with the generations that grew up in Yugoslavia and lived through its collapse and the bloody war that followed? Ten years ago, funded by the National Science Foundation, we organized a representative survey of 2,000 Bosnians, asking face to face how they felt about the Dayton Peace Accords and ethnic separation. Last month, 20 years on, we asked 3,000 people the same questions, again face to face. Although we did not resurvey the same people we had surveyed in 2005, the large numbers in these demographically representative surveys allow us to track evolving attitudes in post-war Bosnia. Prism Research, a reputable Sarajevo-based research firm, conducted both surveys for us and the margins of error are less than 2.5 percentage points.

What do Bosnians think of the Dayton accord?

In 2005, we asked folks to choose among four statements about Dayton. Two were simple positive/negative reactions: “Dayton has been generally positive and should not be altered” or “… negative and should be abolished.” Two expressed other viewpoints also found in Bosnia: “Dayton was necessary to end the war but now BiH needs a new constitution to prepare for the EU” and Dayton was “an imposition of foreign powers.” Not much changed in Bosnians’ attitudes to the Dayton Peace Accords between 2005 and 2015. The unqualified endorsement rose from 19.7 to 24.1 percent, the “necessary but” option rose from 47.5 to 50.5 percent, and the unqualified negative view was cut in half, from 10.8 to 4.8 percent. Those who thought of Dayton as an external imposition remained essentially unchanged.

Which ethnicity most highly approves of the Dayton accord?

Attitudes by ethnicity essentially stayed the same over the decade as well. As we explained in an analysis of our 2005 results, it was “indeed ironic that the greatest opponents to the implementation of the Dayton Peace Accords from 1996 onwards, the Bosnian Serbs, are now the community that view the agreement the most positively.” They did so because “Dayton legitimated Republika Srpska as an ethnoterritorial entity.” By 2015, this attitude had deepened among Bosnian Serbs (as a previous post here explained). Fewer now echo the view of Radovan Karadžić, the Serbs’ wartime leader, that Dayton was an unwelcome imposed peace. Bosnian Croats have shifted their attitudes significantly, from 43 to 57 percent for “necessary but” — and now hold that the Dayton framework needs to be updated. As a minority in the Bosniak-Croat federation, Croats feel aggrieved by their weakened political position and want a more favorable structure. As the majority population now in the country — about 52 percent of the total — Bosniaks also want a restructuring of Dayton to institutions and political authority that reflects current demographics. In the graphic below, we see that BiH remains ethnically divided in its attitudes over Dayton. Differences by gender, age, education and income levels within each group are not important since ethnic attachment overrides other factors. Designed more to end war than to build a European state, the governance structures negotiated in Dayton are still in place. Only a minority of Bosnians approve of them — but right now there’s no good alternative that appeals to every Bosnian ethnicity. The country remains poor overall, ranking 101st of 185 countries in GDP per capita, according to the World Bank’s 2014 figures. Ethnic differences are also evident. Bosniaks report the highest unemployment rate at 32 percent, while Serbs and Croats are at 27 and 25 percent, respectively. Serbs report significantly lower household incomes than the other groups at an average of $413 a month (converted at current exchange rates); Croat households earn $513 and Bosniaks $447.

Should Bosnia’s ethnicities be separated into different territories?

In 2005, we asked Bosnians if they agreed or disagreed with the following statement: “Ethnic relations will improve in my locality when all nationalities are separated into territories that belong only to them.” (In 2005, 50.5 percent of the sample said “yes”; at the time, we compared those results with attitudes in the North Caucasus of Russia, another former war zone, where less than 14 percent wanted ethnic separation.) Here we have seen some important shifts in opinion. Fewer and fewer Bosnians — in all ethnic communities — support exclusive ethnic territories. Over 43 percent of Bosniaks supported ethnic separation in 2005; today that’s 33, a drop of 10 percentage points. Among Bosnian Croats, support has dropped from 58 percent to roughly 40, or 18 percentage points. The decline is strongest among Bosnian Serbs, with a drop from 57 percent to 33, or 24 percentage points. Less-educated individuals in all three communities still prefer separation. Has this drop come because of the attitudes of the “Dayton generations”? Let’s look at the graphic below, which shows various age groups’ attitudes towards ethnoterritorialism.

Our age categories have roughly equivalent respondent numbers in each. The youngest age group (18 to 35) in 2015 is the “Dayton generation,” ranging from those not yet born in 1995 to those who were 15 years old when Dayton was signed. This cohort shows the biggest differences from the attitudes of the young adults in 2005. Far fewer young Bosnian Serbs of that age agree that ethnic separation is a good strategy than did 10 years ago, with a drop from 60 percent to 28, for a total of 32 percentage points. More Bosniaks in all three age groups disapprove of ethnic separation than did in 2005. However, as Bosnian Serbs and Croats get older, they grow more supportive of separating by ethnicity.

What does all this mean for Bosnian ethnic relations?

Overall, Bosnians are becoming less ethnoterritorial. Only 10 years ago, more than half the population believed that ethnic separation was the way to prevent conflict. And that drop isn’t just because a new generation is growing up in a less ethnically violent world. Why then? Perhaps tolerance has increased as people have gotten used to dealing with other ethnic groups, especially those who have returned to the homes they were driven from during the war. After all, Bosnians have been traveling back and forth between the political entities without significant friction or dramas. Or perhaps ethnoterritorialism is already so widespread that, ironically enough, respondents feel it’s less urgent to say they want it. After all, it’s already the norm in most places. To answer our question: Bosnia’s “Dayton generation” is the cohort least likely to support ethnic separation. Here’s the most optimistic interpretation of this data: Attitudes in Bosnia are changing for the better — but institutions remain stuck in Dayton’s straitjacket, now two decades old. Yet here’s the reality: Bosnia’s youths are very disengaged from politics. Seventy percent want to leave the country and only 15 percent think that they have any influence on governments. Bosnia will apply for European Union membership next month. The prospect of E.U. membership, like the prospect of Bosnia again becoming a land of multiethnic tolerance, is far in the distance.

Gerard Toal (Gearóid Ó Tuathail) is co-author of “Bosnia Remade” (Oxford, 2011) and a professor at Virginia Tech’s campus in Alexandria, Va. John O’Loughlin is college professor of distinction and professor of geography at the University of Colorado at Boulder.