11/04/2006 Monitoring
The Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly
(PACE), meeting in Strasbourg this morning, adopted the following declaration:
"Since Bosnia-Herzegovina's accession to the Council of Europe, major progress has been achieved in building a stable, functional and efficient state. Examples are the setting up of a court at State level and the transfer or assumption of responsibilities in the fields of defence, intelligence, the judiciary, indirect taxation and the forthcoming police reform. It should be acknowledged however that these transfers of responsibilities from the Entities to the State level are unlikely to have happened without the High Representative having taken the lead.
The opening of SAA negotiations with the European Union just before the 10 anniversary of the Dayton Peace agreement in November 2005 made it even more imperative to take measures to address the generally recognized need to strengthen State institutions that are currently too weak to allow for Bosnia-Herzegovina's further integration into Europe.
Different options for a comprehensive constitutional reform were submitted by the Venice Commission, upon request by the Parliamentary Assembly, already in March 2005. Consultations between the leaders of the main political parties in BiH, facilitated by the USA, and with the constant advice of the Venice Commission, resulted in a political agreement which was finally reached on 18 March by 7 political parties. Only three parties (the Party for BiH, BOSS and the Social Democratic Union) are opposed for various reasons to this constitutional reform and the Catholic Bishop's Conference has also voiced objections.
On 24 April, the House of Representatives of Bosnia-Herzegovina will have to vote on constitutional amendments designed to strengthen the State institutions. The Co-Rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee, Mr Kimmo SASI (Finland, EPP) and Mr Mevlüt ÇAVUSOGLU (Turkey, EOG) have had extensive discussions with representatives of all the main parties involved (except the SNSD, currently in government in Republika Srpska, who cancelled the meeting at the last moment) during their recent visit to the country from 2 to 5 April.
The reform package provides, inter alia, for an increase of the number of MP's in the House of Representatives (from 42 to 87, with 3 seats reserved for the first time to members of non-constituent peoples). The upper house, the House of Peoples, will have 21 instead of 15 members and will have competence to decide only on the vital national interests' veto that can be invoked by any of the three constituent peoples. The reform also foresees the indirect election of the a President and two vice-presidents whose powers will be reduced, with a rotation of the three members only every 16 months instead of 8 at present, the creation of two additional ministries at state level, and a reinforcement of the competences of the Council of Ministers.
For the constitutional amendments to pass, a majority of two-thirds of the members of the House of Representatives present is required. The Monitoring Committee urges all parties represented in Parliament to vote in favour of these constitutional amendments. Although some may consider them as being mainly cosmetic and not addressing the real needs of the country, they represent a first attempt of the citizens of Bosnia-Herzegovina to take their future in their own hands and should be welcomed as such even if the division existing within the country between the various ethnic groups remains a major concern. While a lack of interethnic trust following a bloody war is not surprising, the various ethnic groups have to live and work together, and not just side-by-side. The continued existence for example of a largely segregated education system remains a major stumbling block on the way towards a better future.