The Bishops’ Conference of Bosnia and Herzegovina has once again pointed to the need to reform the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina and, as they stated, to fully and consistently protect the rights of the Croatian people as a constituent, including legitimate representation and real equality in all institutions and at all levels of government.
The President of the Bishops’ Conference of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Archbishop of Vrhbosna, Metropolitan Tomo Vukšić, said on Friday after the end of the 96th regular session in Banja Luka, that this is a position that the Catholic Church in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been advocating for years, and which stems from the social doctrine of the church.
“This is not only the position of the Bishops’ Conference, but the basic position of the entire Catholic social doctrine. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the issue of collective rights is particularly important, because it is a complex society in which disrespect for human and collective rights in the past was one of the causes of serious misunderstandings,” said Vukšić.
He emphasized that the bishops at this session did not particularly deal with the current political situation, but, bearing in mind that the general elections are scheduled for October, they reiterated the basic principles of the Church’s social teaching on justice, morality, respect for human dignity and the rights of all peoples and citizens.
Speaking about the reform of the Electoral Law, Vukšić said that the position of the Catholic Church has been known for three decades and that a large number of documents and statements have been published about it.
“The application of these principles depends on those who make political decisions. It is the moral obligation of the church to warn about the need to respect human rights, justice and dignity of every person and every people,” said Vukšić.
In the statement adopted at the end of the session, the bishops stated that Bosnia and Herzegovina, in accordance with the Dayton Peace Agreement, is a state of three constituent nations and all its citizens, assessing that “any attempt to relativize, limit or practically make impossible the rights of any nation is a great injustice and immoral”.
At the session, the bishops also considered the report on the work of Caritas BiH for 2025, adopted the new statute of the humanitarian organization and appointed Msgr. Luka Tunjić as the new director.
Vukšić said that Caritas is one of the most important topics of the regular July sessions, emphasizing that the goal is not to replace the state, but to help people who need help the most.
“The goal of Caritas is to one day not be needed, that is, for society and institutions to find solutions to human problems on their own. As long as there are people in need, Caritas will help everyone, without asking who they are or where they come from,” said Vukšić.
Banja Luka Bishop Željko Majić warned that the number of Caritas beneficiaries is increasing, primarily due to the emigration of the population, the aging of the population and increasingly pronounced social needs.
“Unfortunately, the number of Caritas beneficiaries is not decreasing but increasing, and therefore we must look for new ways to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable,” said Majić.
During the two-day session, the bishops, among other things, considered the implementation of the conclusions from the previous session, the report on the Deacon Pastoral Year, and issues related to the work of Catholic school centers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are attended by around 15,000 students, of which approximately 1,700 students are in two centers in the Banja Luka Diocese – in Banja Luka and Bihać, Fena writes.
