Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlić Radman said on Sunday that Croatia will not give up its commitment to the equality of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, stressing that it is regrettable that the issue of electoral reform was not raised at last week’s conference in Sarajevo.
On the sidelines of the musical and humanitarian event “Blatničke note dobrote” near Mostar, Grlić Radman commented on the conference organized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Elmedin Konaković, in response to the Resolution of the Croatian Parliament on the position of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At that conference, Konaković warned about, as he claims, the underrepresentation of Bosniaks in state institutions, especially in leadership positions, while he believes that Croats are represented above the level they deserve.
Grlić Radman, however, believes that the conference in Sarajevo, despite the international sign attached to it, did not have the character of a truly international gathering. As he said, it was organized by Konaković and his party Narod i pravda, while there were no representatives of other constituent peoples.
“It is a pity that this opportunity was missed because during all these years, work should have been done to change the Election Law, which would have eliminated all discrimination in the electoral process,” said Grlić Radman.
He also referred to the request for the establishment of a special electoral unit from which the Croat member of the Presidency of BiH would be elected, emphasizing that such a proposal should not be presented as a threat to the survival of the state.
“Any mention of a Croat electoral unit should not be perceived as something unacceptable that could eventually lead to the disintegration of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” he emphasized.
Grlić Radman recalled that the Dayton Peace Agreement set a framework for ensuring the equality of the three constituent peoples in BiH. In its resolution, the Croatian Parliament called for changes to the political and electoral system that would enable each of the constituent peoples to elect its legitimate representatives, while condemning electoral engineering and the outvoting of Croats.
In this context, among the proposed solutions is a special electoral unit for the election of the Croat member of the Presidency of BiH, while the Croatian Government is asked to continue political, legal and diplomatic activities to protect the equality of Croats, while at the same time respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of BiH.
Grlić Radman also commented on the announced candidacy of Slaven Kovačević for the Croat member of the Presidency of BiH. Kovačević is a member of Željko Komšić’s Democratic Front, which in the previous four election cycles was elected as the Croat member of the Presidency of BiH by the votes of predominantly Bosniak voters.
“Mr. Kovačević promotes the unitarist goals of Željko Komšić’s political party, restructuring the constitutional framework of BiH and eliminating the principle of constituent peoples, which threatens peace in BiH,” said Grlić Radman.
The Croatian minister announced that Zagreb would continue talks with international partners, especially within the European Union and the United States, on the position of Croats in BiH and the need to change the electoral and constitutional framework.
“We will continue to talk with stakeholders in the European Union and the United States about the need for limited constitutional changes, and of course, changes to the Election Law, so that Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina can exercise their rights. Rest assured that we will not tire,” concluded Grlić Radman, BHRT writes.
