The Steering Board for the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) held a special session in Sarajevo this morning. They discussed the problems in adopting a law on the unique master citizen number at the state level.
The High Representative to BiH Valentin Inzko confirmed to journalists that PIC decided that the competent national authorities have to urgently find a solution to this law at the state level.
This means that the High Representative will not use his Bonn powers now to impose a law.
PIC agrees that it is a democratic and constitutional right of citizens to express their dissatisfaction, attitudes and opinions in a peaceful and dignified way.
“Some politicians have said that this is not good for the state, but Ambassadors and PIC have the opposite opinion’’, added Inzko.
Another conclusion of PIC is that everyone has to respect Parliament and state institutions.
“In Germany, for example, they have a legally designated area around Parliament where people are not allowed to demonstrate and PIC thinks that it would be good to consider such and option and apply it to BiH”, explained Inzko.
He also added that the Dayton Peace Agreement is very clear in terms of the session of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly, and that the sessions have to be held in Sarajevo.
“The main message of today’s meeting is that local governments have a responsibility to adopt a law on JMB, especially now when many people are demanding it’’, concluded Inzko.
He recalled that protestors on Thursday night requested four things from him, and that he promised them that he would do two: schedule a special session of PIC, which he did, and that the problem of JMB would be solved at the state level.
“They asked me to establish a fund for sick children. I also said then that I am not able to establish one, but that I would contribute funds for sick children. They also asked for a reduction in salaries for representatives of the BiH Council of Ministers by 30 percent, but this is not something I decide, but rather Parliament’’, concluded Inzko.
