SPLIT IN THE ASSOCIATED LIST?

After Differences about Shadow Cabinet

AIM Sarajevo, 31 January, 1997

Representatives of the Union of B&H Social Democrats (UBSD), Croat Peasants' Party (HSS), Muslim Bosniac Organization (MBO), Party of Social Democrats of Republica Srpska, United Left of B&H, Forum of Citizens of Tuzla, Union of Intellectuals 99 and Democratic Initiative of Sarajevo Serbs coordinated standpoints about a political concensus of opposition parties of B&H and formation of the alternative council of ministers, or rather about the so-called shadow cabinet, said recently Sejfudin Tokic, President of the Executive Board of the UBSD.

However, two days later, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), member of the Associated List which was involved in formation of the shadow cabinet, issued a statement. The SDP believes that the newly established Council of Ministers chaired by Haris Silajdzic and Boro Bosic should be given a chance "to show what they are capable of doing in the next hundred days". Only after that, formation of a shadow cabinet, as an instrument of parliamentary democracy, would become justified.

The SDP, or rather one of its vice-presidents, Sead Avdic, claims "that sources of financing of this initiative are completely vague, which implies the possibility of existence of a foreign patron of this idea". In this way, Avdic believes, this alternative government would be liable to political influence which results from material support.

"This approach to formation of the shadow cabinet is the result of somebody's ambition to be a leader", said Sead Avdic, Vice-President of the SDP at a press conference, claiming that at the forthcoming local elections, the SDP would participate independently, and not as a member of the Associated List.

This leader of the SDP thinks that for participation of political parties from Republica Srpska in the alternative government it is previously "important that they declare their opinion about sovereignty of Bosnia & Herzegovina, in view of the fact that the opposition of Republica Srpska recently in Banja Luka advocated that this entity should be a state, questioning the claim of the Federation to Brcko". On the other hand, Avdic adds, through this project, parties from the Federation will localize their interest solely to the territory controlled by the Army of B&H, which does not correspond to conceptions of the SDP which sees its interest on the entire territory of this country.

However, Avdic stressed also that the "negative stance of the SDP to the idea of the alternative government established in this manner will not change relations within the Associated List", as well as that it is "disputable that such attempts are promoted at the expense of the Associated List".

President of the Social Liberal Party of Republica Srpska, Miodrag Zivanovic, however, stresses that the idea about a political concensus in B&H is broader than the idea about shadow cabinets. He says that these alternative institutions are just an instrument in the attempt of reconstruction of life on the territory of Bosnia & Herzegovina. According to his words, the opposition and the citizens are nowadays drawn into very dangerous games in Bosnia.

"Joint administration agencies of B&H have started to operate, and the session of the parliament showed that the coalition of the SDA, HDZ and SDS has in fact been legalized. This is very dangerous, just as it is dangerous that we have three private statelets in B&H. The essence of our initiative is to offer resistance to such developments", said Zivanovic.

At present it is evident that the SDP is against formation of the shadow cabinet, just as it is evident that the UBSD and the HSS support this idea. The Republicans are silent for the time being, and the idea on the alternative government caused a split in the Muslim Bosniac Organization.

While Vice-President of the MBO, Mujo Kafedzic whole-heartedly supports the initiated project, parts of the top echelons of this party (the President of which Adil Zulfikarpasic lives in Switzerland) hold a completely contrary view of participation of their party in formation of the shadow cabinet.

According to allegations of certain associates from the party, Mujo Kafedzic took part at the meetings of opposition parties from both entities who wish to establish the shadow cabinet of his own initiative. However, Kafedzic responds as follows: "The MBO considers the idea about this cabinet to be very interesting, and I shall personally remain in this project with the colleagues from other opposition parties and the Associated List". However, member of the Presidency and of the Main Board of MBO, Husein Hasibovic, claims the opposite: "The idea about the shadow cabinet is not interesting for MBO. We will not support this idea even in case it causes a split with the Associated List". After these public debates, Presidency of the MBO convened a session and addressed the public with a statement in which it was stated that "participation of their party in activities concerning formation of the shadow cabinet was just that of an observer and that the party will not get involved in implementation of this initiative against the stance of the Associated List".

Although after the statement of the Presidency of the MBO, Hasibovic claimed that all members of the Presidency of the MBO, apart from Vice-President Kafedzic, had signed a statement in which it was said that they would not support the idea about formation of the shadow cabinet, as well as allegedly the President of the party Adil Zulfikarpasic, the impression is that all members of the Presidency of the MBO are not against this idea. Indeed, some of them say that they were not against the idea but against the procedure in which Mujo Kafedzic took part at the meetings of initiators of the idea about the alternative government at his personal initiative.

After public controversies and condemnation of the idea about the alternative council of ministers by Sead Avdic (SDP), the press in Sarajevo has already started lamenting over dissolution of the Associated List. Nevertheless, after the just held session of the Political Council of the Associated List, leaders of five united parties (UBSD, SDP, HSS, MBO and the Republicans) had a joint press conference claiming that these were all just speculations and that the mentioned parties would remain together.

"We are lately reading ordered articles that the Associated List is falling apart. We are, however, standing firmly on our positions, and at the moment when we were uniting, we said that we had a longterm objective. After all, we are the only alternative to national programs", stressed Stjepan Kljuic, President of the Republican Party.

Karlo Filipovic, Secretary General of the SDP, started to mitigate the former allegations of his Vice-President Sead Avdic denying his statement about withdrawal of the SDP from the opposition coalition in local elections: "Our party believes that the supreme idea of the Associated List will demonstrate its true value in the forthcoming elections".

The mentioned Vice-President of the MBO, Mujo Kafedzic, confirmed in the name of his party persistence in the coalition with other opposition parties: "The Associated List is neither in a crisis, nor facing disintegration. This coalition has started in an offensive and will be constantly in an ascent. It is the only political force which has the courage to point out to the problems and their causes", claims Kafedzic.

But, at the mentioned press conference, leaders of parties of the Associated List, even Sejfudin Tokic (who is the grey eminence and initiator of the project of the shadow cabinet), did not declare their stance about it, although it is obvious that this was the stumbling block within the opposition coalition. As AIM learns, agreement about the alternative council of ministers has not been reached by the Associated List, but the project concerning the shadow cabinet is in its final phase.

Along with the opposition of Republica Srpska and the civil initiative, inside the Associated List, the UBSD and the HSS are whole-heartedly in favour of the project of the shadow cabinet. The other two parties, the SDP and the Republicans are resolutely against it, and the MBO is in danger to be split into two because of differences among its membership. In such circumstances, the question whether the Associated List is facing a split is still topical. Regardless of what their leaders publicly claimed - we shall remain together!

Eldar DIZDAREVIC