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The high representative for Bosnia still runs it like a feudal fiefdom
Bosnia's political crisis is the result of EU intervention, not action by
Russia or the Serbs, says David Chandler
David Chandler
Tuesday November 20 2007
The Guardian
Simon Tisdall suggests that Serbia and Russia are creating a crisis in
Bosnia in order to strengthen their hand in the delicate negotiations over
Kosovo's future status (World Briefing: Bosnian nightmare returns to haunt
EU, November 13). According to Tisdall, "Belgrade has opened a dangerous new
front" and "egged on" Bosnian Serb troublemakers. More ominously, he implies
that Russia is calling the shots.
In fact, the political crisis in Bosnia could be seen as the product of
foreign machinations, but not the actions of the Serbs and Russians.
Widespread protests, the resignation of prime minister Nikola Spiric earlier
this month and the threat of further ministerial resignations have been a
response to arbitrary and high-handed interventions in the political process
by the EU and international high representative, Miroslav Lajcak.
Last month I gave a presentation to the Bosnian parliament, with the UK
ambassador Matthew Rycroft, on the path to the EU; the clear response from
parliamentarians was a frustration with the lack of respect and autonomy
accorded to elected representatives by the international community. Twelve
years after the Bosnian conflict was apparently resolved with the Dayton
agreement, the international high representative still runs Bosnia as if it
was a feudal fiefdom. He has the power to impose legislation and dismiss
elected politicians without any right of appeal.
Tisdall states merely that Lajcak "publicly fell out with Bosnian Serb
leaders over proposed reforms". He tells us that Serbian and Russian
political leaders are claiming that the international community is in danger
of destabilising Bosnia, and that the high representative is "in danger of
exceeding his powers" - the clear assumption is that these claims are not
true.
But the constitutional crisis was instigated by Lajcak's attempt to impose
major changes on Bosnian state institutions, radically altering the
framework of the Dayton peace agreement, without consulting either
politicians or the public. These new measures would mean that decisions made
by governing institutions no longer require support from all three of
Bosnia's segmented ethnic communities (Bosnian Muslims, Croats and Serbs).
Effectively, state institutions would no longer have to take into account
the opinions of Serb representatives of the Republika Srpska entity.
The high representative presented this controversial change as merely a
bureaucratic technicality, an administrative measure designed to facilitate
"good governance" in the tiny state, denouncing Bosnian Serb concerns as
"overemotional, irresponsible and insufficiently rational".
Lajcak has come under entirely legitimate criticism, both inside and outside
Bosnia, for his authoritarian stance. The Serbian government, a Dayton
signatory, is entirely within its rights to argue against the unilateral
imposition of major changes to the agreement, as is the Russian government.
There is no conspiracy to create problems for the EU; unfortunately the EU's
high-handed actions in Bosnia have been quite sufficient to create this
crisis.
David Chandler is professor of international relations at Westminster
University and editor of the Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding. His
latest book is Empire in Denial: The Politics of Statebuilding
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