TUZLA: ROUND TABLE OF DEMOCRATIC ALTERNATIVE OF B&H

Sarajevo Apr 3, 1996

Are Free and Fair Elections Possible?

AIM Tuzla, March 31, 1996

Elections in 1996 are one of the last chances for crushing totalitarian logic in B&H, pursuant to which the citizens and nations should be represented solely by three national parties and three leaders. Democratization in the entire B&H space is a condition for the existing interruption of the conflict to develop into stable peace - this is the first conclusion in the final Statement adopted by representatives of Democratic Alternative of B&H (DA B&H) at the gathering held in Tuzla on March 30 and 31.

Two discussions at the round table were held at the gathering: "Democratic and Free Elections - Precondition of Lasting and Stable Peace", and on the second day: "Role of Media in Reintegration of the Country". The host was the Forum of Citizens of Tuzla, and along with it, the organizers were the opposition parties in the Republic of Srpska and Federation of B&H, civic initiatives and representatives of independent media from both entities. Among about seventy participants were Milorad Dodik, President of Independent Social Democrats of the Republic of Srpska; Dr. Miodrag Zivanovic, President of the Social Liberal Party of Banja Luka; Sejfudin Tokic, President of the Executive Board of B&H Union of Social Democrats (IO UBSD); Vlatko Dolocek, President of the Association of Independent Intellectuals 'Circle 99'; Sead Fetahagic, writer from Sarajevo; Drazena Peranic, editor of the Alternative Information Network (AIM) in B&H Spasoje Perovic, journalist of journal "Novi Prelom" from Banja Luka; Slavko Santic, columnist of Sarajevo "Oslobodjenje"... This was the most numerous gathering of the democratic alternative so far, with about 25 representatives of foreign institutions who participated in it, from the British Ambassador, Brian Hopkinson, through associates of the OSCE, to representatives of the Office of Karl Bildt. From the space of Herzeg-Bosnia, however, there were no representatives of democratic alternative, in other words, there was nobody to hand the invitation to.

Participants at the Round Table qualified the Dayton Agreement as a necessary and painful compromise which was - under pressure exerted by the international community - adopted by the ruling structures in B&H. That is why they do not deserve the merit for cessation of the war and are not sincere advocates of peace, although that is how they wish to present themselves to the citizens, or their "sheep-folds", this is the comment of numerous speakers at the gathering. There is a number of examples which illustrate this, from the attempts to hinder the Federation, to limitations of the freedom of movement, return of banished persons, observing all political issue through the national and religious prism, and calls for homogenization against "them", instead of homogenizing around the project of development and integration of Bosnia & Herzegovina.

"The Dayton Agreement is a reality which must be taken as a starting-point. It brought cessation of the conflict, but not peace. The Agreement includes the right to return of the banished, punishment of war criminals, high level of human rights and freedoms. The mentioned and several other conditions from the Agreement, will remove national leaders from the scene. Ruling oligarchies are now acting as 'opposition to themselves'. They signed the Agreement, and now they are working against it. Indicators are - conflicts between the Croat Defence Council (HVO) and Bosnian police in Hadzici, conflicts between the Federal and the police of the RS in Vrace, attitude towards the Hague. I will mention only the text 'Konjic does not Trust the Hague', when Boshniaks from this town were accused of war crimes. I have visited all parts and I know that majority of ordinary people have great expectations from the Hague and have confidence in it, more than any other judiciary of the ruling oligarchies in B&H. The ruling parties may persist on their antagonism and with them there is no chance for stable peace and democratization", said Sejfudin Tokic, President of IO UBSD.

Dr. Miodrag Zivanovic from Banja Luka believes that Dayton just sanctioned the results of the war - ethnic division of B&H - but left the possibility of reintegration of the country open. However, he said that this could not be achieved by constructors of the war, but by architects of peace, who had never been in favour of the war option. Besides, he pointed out to the surroundings of B&H which are also insisting on divisions:

"The Agreement in Dayton could not precisely determine the obligations of the neighbours, because it is an agreement within the state of B&H. However, everybody must be aware that both the pro-fascist regime of Franjo Tudjman (Croatia) and police-party regime of Slobodan Milosevic (Serbia) have aspirations to B&H. National oligarchies in B&H are more concerned about their interests than interests of the nations and the state. They wish to conceive the elections in this direction and reduce them to the ethnic component. I wonder what legitimacy will a representative of a nation have in the Presidency of B&H, if only one nation votes for him. That is why conditions should be created for all the citizens in the entire space to vote for the members of the Presidency. The way the elections are conceived so far, an absurdity may happen to us - a morbid coalition of the SDA, SDS and HDZ, because this is the Balkans and various absurdities are possible", Dr Miodrag Zivanovic said.

Milorad Dodik was in favour of a pragmatic approach to Dayton. His opinion is that reality should be taken into consideration, and it is filled with fear of the Serbs of Alija Izetbegovic and his supporters, and fear of the Muslims of those from Krajina, Karadzic and the others, and mutual fear of all nations of national leaders of the other ethnic groups:

"Ethnic leaders will quarrel even over symbols, because all they need are reasons for antagonism, because they base their strategy and survive solely on these principles. We must start from the example of Tuzla which affirmed Dayton even before Dayton", Milorad Dodik said, adding that this is no time for apolitical acceptance of the destiny, but all citizens of B&H must think about their own and the future of their children, because they will be the ones who will decide what tomorrow will be like at the forthcoming elections.

Boro Bjelobrk, member of the SDP and parliament of B&H, proposed that the opposition and citizens' groups in the Assembly of the RS advocate recognition of Boshniaks and Croats in this entity as constituent nations, and at the same time that such an initiative be started for the Serbs in the Federation. This would be a long step towards reintegration. Dr. Nedjo Milicevic, judge in the Constitutional Court of B&H, spoke about intelligentsia: "Many have gone abroad and from there offer declarative support to reintegration and multiethnic Bosnia & Herzegovina. Their role is very important, but if national parties win the elections, then the few intellectuals who have remained here will also leave, and that would be disastrous for reintegration of the country".

Considering the policy of the ruling oligarchies, they are trying to bring the media down to the same level. "State media are completely in the service of the ruling structures, and the alternative ones are subjected to all kinds of pressures in order to be prevented to operate", said Drazena Peranic, editor of the AIM, the only uncontrolled and alternative medium which operates both on the territory of the Federation and the territory of the Republic of Srpska. Speaking on the role of the media in the preelection period in B&H, Ms. Peranic stressed that nowadays, double engagement of international institution active in B&H is imperative - technical and all other forms of aid for alternative media, and for the controlled, mostly powerful electronic media, strict rules of behavior and sanctions in case they violate them. In the debate about the media, it was stressed that in the space controlled by the HDZ, there were no alternative media at all. The situation is also disastrous in the Republic of Srpska where, according to the opinion of Miodrag Zivanovic, there are no informative state media, but only propagandist. Two magazines are published a month - "Novi Prelom" of the Social Liberal Party, and "Nezavisne novine" of the Independent Social Democrats. "However, colporteurs are not allowed to sell this alternative press in the street, and the publishers have a lot of financial problems" claims Zivanovic. Due to such a situation, that is, to domination of media which belong to the ruling oligarchies, according to the opinion of Spasoje Perovic from Banja Luka, nations and citizens are not sufficiently well-acquainted with the possibilities for establishing lasting peace which the Dayton Agreement offers.

That is the reason why an appeal was addressed to international institutions to assist projects of independent media, and transportation of the press to all parts of B&H. A project of journalists of AIM, Tuzla Radio "Kameleon" and Banja Luka "Novi Prelom" is planned for publication of a journal which would be edited by independent journalists from all parts of B&H and which would cover the entire space, and similar projects should be made for electronic media.

At this gathering, it was agreed that the next gathering of DA B&H would be held in Banja Luka, if the present authorities of the Republic of Srpska allowed it.

VEHID JAHIC

Entrefilet:

Statement of the Round Table of Democratic Alternative of B&H

  1. 1996 elections are one of the last chances for disrupting totalitarian logic that citizens of B&H and its nations can be represented solely by three national parties and three leaders. Only by democratization of the entire B&H space can conditions be created for the current cessation of conflicts to develop into stable peace.

  2. Election rules must ensure the constitutional right of the citizens of B&H to elect and be elected into central agencies of B&H. In this sense, participants of the round table of DA B&H request the Temporary Election Committee, international agencies of the OSCE to ensure the right to all the citizens of B&H to elect and be elected into the Presidency and Parliament of B&H

  3. Rules for financing the election campaign must prevent using of resources of national oligarchies acquired by abuse of national resources and using of state resources in the election campaign. Participants at the round table of DA B&H demand establishement of funds in which all registered candidates and political parties would have equal treatment.

  4. Democratic elections are not possible until the ruling political parties obstruct free flow of information, people, goods and capital on the entire territory of B&H. In this context, immediate establishment of PTT communications is demanded.

  5. Participants at the Round Table of DA B&H demand from the international institutions in charge of implementation of the Dayton Agreement that representatives of the alternative (political parties, civic initiatives and independent media) be included in the work of the Temporary Election Committee.

  6. Registration of political parties and independent candidates, and collecting of signatures in support of citizens for participation in the elections shall take place on the entire space of B&H where all the citizens, regardless of the territory they live on, have the right to support any political party or independent candidate.

  7. DA B&H insists on providing conditions for return of refugees and displaced persons to their places of residence of their choice and providing conditions for exercising their election right guaranteed by the Constitution.

  8. DA B&H insists on obeying the time limits determined by the Election Rules set up by the Temporary Election Committee.

  9. Participants at the Round Table of DA B&H demand from institutions of the international community which operate in B&H provision of the following:

a) constant communication between alternative journalists and media in the sense of exchange of information and texts, organization of meetings and gatherings, and distribution of the existing alternative media in all environments of B&H

b) unhindered and equal access to information for all media in B&H

c) formation of an alternative network and support for the existing alternative media, both electronic and written, in B&H

d) technical and all other assistance in starting a joint newspaper on the territory of B&H

e) prescription of strict rules of behavior for the media, both the controlled and alternative ones, during the pre-election period, in order to ensure free and fair presentation of all political parties and individuals nominated in the elections