UNSUCCESSFUL RECONCILIATION OF FEDERAL PARTNERS

LOCAL POWER WIELDERS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE WORLD

AIM Sarajevo, 30 January, 1997

German diplomat, Christian Schwartz Schiling, who was assigned the ungratifying role of a go-between, or more precisely a mediator - in resolving controversial issues between partners in the Federation - seems to have once again left Bosnia & Herzegovina disappointed. Not even in his latest mission last week did he succeed to persuade the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) and the Croat Democratic Community (HDZ) to give their concent to establishment of municipal authorities in Bugojno.

After his successless mission in Bugojno and Jajce, towns where the federal partners failed to establish legal authorities, at a press conference in Sarajevo, Schiling threatened that he would give up on everything. For the failure he accused national power wielders, Bozo Rajic, President of the HDZ, Edhem Bicakcic, Vice-President of the SDA, and Dzevad Mlaca, current unquestioned ruler of Bugojno, who came into power after having banished the Croat Defence Council (HVO) and along with them numerous Croats from "his jurisdiction".

Schiling's compatriot, Michael Steiner, deputy of high representative for B&H, commenting on the situation in Bugojno, wondered who the current mayor Mlaco represented. "I wish we had new people, even if they were from the same party. The question is whether political will to do that exists", Steiner stated.

According to testimonies of eye-witnesses of the unsuccessful session at which the Transitional Municipal Council should have been constituted, when it became obvious that there would be no agreement, Schiling wondered: "What does that Mlaco want anyway!?". He was surprised by the fact that Mlaco was persistently refusing offers for a new job made by his party leader Bicakcic and insisted on remaining in Bugojno. If Mlaco would leave, it would be possible to change many things for the better, this is the allegation which prevailed in mediator's statements.

Whether one man, even if it were the powerful Dzevad Mlaco, can really be a spike in the wheel of the Federation which does not permit it to go forward. In simple terms, maybe he can. But, the problem is that Mlaco is not the only local power wielder who should be overthrown. Others, for example, Andejlko Markovic in Stolac or Pero Markovic in Capljina, and even Mijo Brajkovic in Mostar, are not at all more flexible. There are of course, more than one "Mlaco" among the Bosniacs, too. There is Mervana Hadzimurtezic in Vares who is on the alert to prevent any non-Muslim from coming to their native town without her knowledge, there is also the Travnik mufti who is accused by the Croats for not allowing them to return...

It is, therefore, very easy to extend the list. And as a rule, the greatest problem is in towns in which the Croat or the Bosniac party had won power by arms to whom return to the situation from 1991 would automatically be a threat to their present strong-arm tactics.

What it in fact means can be illustrated on the example of Bugojno. At the session of the Transitional Municipal Council, the HDZ came with its proposal for the new mayor. Mlaco, however, prevented such undisputable transfer of authorities. Ante Mustapic, President of the HDZ of Bugojno (seated in Livno) warned that the relations in the Federation must move either in the direction of return of all refugees to their homes or another war would break out. Mustapic, to the surprise of the HDZ, did not have in mind only Bugojno, but also Stolac, Capljina, Vares...

As one of the people who share the destiny of banished people, Mustapic probably personally believes that the solution is in fact in return of all refugees to their homes. In Jajce, where there are also problems concerning return of Bosniacs, during the latest mission, Christian Scwartz Schiling almost succeeded in convincing local national leaders to set out on the job of return of refugees without any conditioning. Jajce was convenient for the beginning of the job because there had never been conflicts between the Croats and the Bosniacs there. On the contrary, both the ones and the others were forced to flee from this town in 1993 in front of he Serb army. But, Schiling's intention was quickly frustrated by Bozo Rajic, President of the HDZ B&H. In a statement given to Croatian Radio-Television, he declared the agreement reached in Jajce null and void and stated "that it was not in accordance with the latest agreement of leaderships of the SDA and the HDZ". Rajic also referred to extra-institutional agreement of leaders of the ruling national parties on return of national representatives to towns in which they had been elected to the authorities.

Without doubt, Rajic believed that return of all citizens of Jajce to their homes was the germ which could spread to other towns. That is why he pulled Schiling's undoubtedly tactical intention up by the root. Because, the Bosniacs could have soon after that entered Stolac and Capljina. And just the opposite - their further removal away from the seaside and Neum, according to the assessment of many analysts, was one of the main objectives of the policy of the HDZ.

Therefore, simplification of the situation in Bugojno and bringing causes of all the disagreements down to the personality of the obnoxious Dzevad Mlaca, is not at all an all-inclusive approach. Local leaders who emerged during the war in B&H just consistently carry out tasks assigned to them by party headquarters of the totalitarian ruling parties. Who can guarantee Bugojno Croats that Mlaca's successor, even if there will be one, will be more flexible. After all, Ivan Bender has left Neum, enviably promoted in party hierarchy of the HDZ, and the Bosniacs still do not dare show up in this town. The true question is which party and with which tasks is assigning loyal men to leading posts, and not what their names are.

Last week, leaders of the SDA and the HDZ in Sarajevo reached only one in a row of their agreements by means of which they should overcome present disagreements. However, none of the eleven adopted conclusions of the agreement refers to return of refugees. On the contrary, attention is directed to the top of the federal pyramid where authorities are formed solely by application of the national "quota" system and autonomy of national representatives. Such division normally from the very top of the Federation reflects on everyday life, and on Bugojno, of course. This means that Mlaco is doing in Bugojno only what he is told to do. Christian Swartz Schiling says that in municipalities it can best be seen whether readiness for cooperation among federal partners really exists. After all, that is where the bloody war was waged, and not in offices of politicians.

SEJAD LUCKIN