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OSCE condemns threat of withdrawl from parliamentary bodies in Bosnia and Herzegovina
SARAJEVO 30 March 2001
SARAJEVO, 30 March 2001 - The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe condemns the threat made by SDA Vice-President Sulejman Tihic on Thursday that the SDA would consider withdrawing from the BiH and Federation parliamentary bodies if its demands for a share of leadership positions in those bodies was not met.
New elections for the leadership posts in the legislatures, as called for by Mr. Tihic yesterday, are unnecessary and would only serve to disrupt the work of the parliaments, to the detriment of the people of BiH.
"The SDA seems to believe that when it wins it wins, and when it loses it wins too," said OSCE Spokesperson Luke Zahner. "The fact is, when the SDA and its partners were in control of the legislative bodies at the BiH and Federation level, they felt in no way obligated to share leadership positions with the opposition. This sudden embrace of proportionality inthe distribution of these positions is ironic, to say the least."
The OSCE urges the SDA and other opposition parties to make their voices heard by exercising their rights in the parliamentary bodies of this country, rather than by threatening to boycott those institutions. The program of the government, modelled on the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) declarations, deserves the support of all the parties in these assemblies. Furthermore, the OSCE calls on the SDA and the rest of the opposition to provide constructive input to the state and entity governments as they go about the serious business of discussing the harmonization of the entity constitutions with the Constitutional Court decision on constituent peoples, as well as the permanent election law.
The OSCE established its present Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 18 December 1995. In accordance with the General Framework Agreement for Peace (GFAP), the OSCE Mission activities are to: promote Democratization and the building of a vibrant civil society, foster the development of professional journalism and monitor the rights of journalists, monitor and advance the Human Rights situation, supervise the conduct of Elections, and encourage Regional Stabilization through arms control and confidence and security-building measures. The OSCE Mission continues to work closely with other international organizations and local institutions to implement the Dayton Peace Accords.For further information, please contact OSCE Spokesperson Luke Zahner at ++387/(0)33 292-449.
New elections for the leadership posts in the legislatures, as called for by Mr. Tihic yesterday, are unnecessary and would only serve to disrupt the work of the parliaments, to the detriment of the people of BiH.
"The SDA seems to believe that when it wins it wins, and when it loses it wins too," said OSCE Spokesperson Luke Zahner. "The fact is, when the SDA and its partners were in control of the legislative bodies at the BiH and Federation level, they felt in no way obligated to share leadership positions with the opposition. This sudden embrace of proportionality inthe distribution of these positions is ironic, to say the least."
The OSCE urges the SDA and other opposition parties to make their voices heard by exercising their rights in the parliamentary bodies of this country, rather than by threatening to boycott those institutions. The program of the government, modelled on the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) declarations, deserves the support of all the parties in these assemblies. Furthermore, the OSCE calls on the SDA and the rest of the opposition to provide constructive input to the state and entity governments as they go about the serious business of discussing the harmonization of the entity constitutions with the Constitutional Court decision on constituent peoples, as well as the permanent election law.
The OSCE established its present Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina on 18 December 1995. In accordance with the General Framework Agreement for Peace (GFAP), the OSCE Mission activities are to: promote Democratization and the building of a vibrant civil society, foster the development of professional journalism and monitor the rights of journalists, monitor and advance the Human Rights situation, supervise the conduct of Elections, and encourage Regional Stabilization through arms control and confidence and security-building measures. The OSCE Mission continues to work closely with other international organizations and local institutions to implement the Dayton Peace Accords.For further information, please contact OSCE Spokesperson Luke Zahner at ++387/(0)33 292-449.