After almost three decades, on the agenda of BiH the issue of state property also entered the political scene. As expected, it divided politicians. In the Federation, the position is clear, state property belongs to the state and can be used at lower levels. In Republika Srpska, state property is registered with the entity, and entity president Milorad Dodik threatens separation, if the state becomes the holder.
BiH has not been able to solve the issue of state property for more than 15 years. The Office of the High Representative also tried this in 2005, but without success. The issue of state property turned out to be the Gordian knot of the Dayton Peace Agreement, says constitutional law professor Kasim Trnka.
“The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in those five decisions related to the issue of state property gave a more precise definition of what is included in the concept of state property, and here, first of all, we must distinguish between those goods, those facilities that serve all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Trnka points out.
In addition to the general good, state property also includes everything that serves state bodies in the performance of their public functions, and what was transferred to the state of BiH according to the international agreement on the succession of the former Yugoslavia, says the profession.
“Together with state property, the set of Concession Laws should be amended, because the existing set did not include the state as the owner of the property and that the state can have original revenues,” states expert on state property Muharem Cero.
Politics also interprets this issue differently. The position of politicians in the Federation entity is clear, the state is the owner of state property. In another entity, Republika Srpska, state property is registered to the entity and threatened with secession if the state becomes the holder. The last attempt of Republika Srpska to appropriate state property by passing the Law on Immovable Property was suspended by the high representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“The forces that love BiH will not accept another solution that may deviate from the solution we have in the region of the European Union”, says the chairman of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH Denis Zvizdić (NIP).
“We are absolutely not opposed to those in the Federation registering property with the Federation because that is a right guaranteed by the Constitution, just as the right of the Republika Srpska is guaranteed by the Constitution to have property registered, as it is registered with the Republika Srpska, and there is no compromise,” says the deputy of the SNSD in PD PSBiH Milorad Kojić.
“Only by the will of the state government, the policy of devolution and decentralization can they be the users of these resources. It is quite clear that the right of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina to be the sovereign owner of its property has been violated,” says Elvis Fejzić, UNSA professor.
The US Embassy in BiH also gave its opinion on this matter. State property of Bosnia and Herzegovina belongs to the state, and its regulation requires a law at the state level. They emphasize that this is not a matter of opinion, but a constitutional and legal fact. In April, the Office of the High Representative formed a working group of experts as part of the process of technical consultations on state property.
“A group of the best foreign and domestic experts has been gathered and are now working together until the summer. They will prepare a report and send it to the PSBiH, where this issue will be discussed and resolved,” said the head of the EU Delegation in BiH, Johan Sattler.
The judgments of the Constitutional Court of BiH regarding state property will be the starting point for solving this important issue that will soon be on the table of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
