The Association of Independent Intellectuals “Krug 99” addressed the domestic and international public, the Central Election Commission (CEC), judiciary institutions, OHR, OSCE Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the EU Delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, firmly protesting the decision of the CEC regarding the design of the ballots for electing the members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Krug 99 claims that the majority in the CEC continued with its unconstitutional and illegal practice of ethnic division and falsification of the constitutional structure of the state; therefore, they are seeking an urgent decision change and consistent adaptation of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
They especially emphasized that the decision is the result of a political turnaround within the CEC. They state that the Collegium of the CEC unanimously concluded on June 8th that constitutional terminology “Bosniak,” “Croat”, and “Serb” should be used in communication with the printing house. However, according to their claims, the majority of CEC members changed the previous stance and adopted a different form during sessions held on July 20 and 23.
Krug 99 states that CIK members, Jovan Kalaba, Irena Hadžiabdić, Ahmet Šantić, and Vlado Rogić, supported the decision, while Suad Arnautović and Željko Bakalar opposed it.
According to the adopted decision, the ballots will feature formulations such as “Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Bosniak member,” Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Croat member, and Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Serb member.
Krug 99 believes that such formulation is directly opposite to the Article V of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Article 8.1 of the Election Law in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which prescribe that the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina consists of one Bosniak, one Croat, and one Serb, and that Bosniak and Croat are elected from the territory of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and a Serb from the territory of Republika Srpska.
They claim that the Constitution and Election Law are not familiar with the terms “Bosniak member,” “Croat member,” and “Serb member,” and that decades-long practice cannot be used as an excuse for breaking the highest legal act of the country.
The statement also reflects on the linguistic aspect of the decision, which says that the nouns “Bosniak”, “Croat”, and “Serb” denote the person elected to the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Adjectives “Bosniak member”, “Croat member”, and “Serb member” suggest affiliation with a specific collective entity.
According to them, such formulation sends voters a message that representatives of ethnic groups are being elected and not the state officials who represent Bosnia and Herzegovina and all its citizens.
That is why they consider that the only constitutionally correct formulation on the ballot should be: “Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Bosniak,” Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Croat,” and “Member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Serb”.
Krug 99 recalled the decision of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the case U-5/98, stating that the Court determined that a strict identification of the territory with ethnically defined members of the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina is not in accordance with the constitutional provisions on the composition of the Presidency.
Furthermore, they also warn of the controversial organization of the CEC Election Information System. They claim that two numerical codes were introduced for a single constituency – 701 and 702. But the Election Law predicts only two constituencies for electing the members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska.
They also state that when electing the president and vice president of Republika Srpska, only one numerical code is used, which is why they believe that implementing two codes for the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is not a technical matter, but a step towards an ethnic division of constituency.
Krug 99 demands from CEC an urgent change in the decision and text on ballots in accordance with the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, alignment of numerical codes of constituencies in the information system, and a review of the CEC’s action.
At the same time, they call on the Prosecutor’s Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the OHR, and international election observation missions to prevent the unconstitutional action of the majority in the CEC and ensure the electoral process is fully aligned with the Constitution, Election Law, and decisions of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
photo: archive
