SILAJDŽIĆ: NEW BOSNIAN CONSTITUTION ONLY THROUGH TRANSPARENT AND DEMOCRATIC PROCESS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (December 15,2007) - Any plans and attempts to adopt the new Bosnian Constitution hastily, behind the closed doors, are against the state interests of Bosnia and threaten to slow down or completely stop the already commenced reform processes necessary for signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA),press release from the Cabinet of Bosnian Presidency Member Dr Haris Silajdžić said.

"Two years ago, Bosnia was pulled into the nontransparent negotiations on constitutional solutions, without a public debate and without the expert, media or nongovernmental sector participation. That approach resulted in the constitutional amendments package threatening Bosnia to be reduced to a two-entity union, whose state institutions could be extinguished with the less then 22% Bosnian State Parliament members’ will, from one people and one entity," Bosnian Presidency Member Dr Haris Silajdžić said.

"The Council of Europe, the European Parliament and the Venice Commission assessed that the approach is completely inadequate considering the volume and the importance of the necessary changes. These institutions stated precisely that the new Bosnian Constitution must be reached only trough a democratic and a transparent process, that would include a wide range of society and the series of domestic and foreign experts, in which the quality of the solution should have an advantage over the speed of their adoption," Dr Silajdžić said.

"The need for a more thorough and a more careful approach to drafting the new Bosnian Constitution was particularly emphasized with the fact that the entire region has been going trough a political turmoil phase due to the Kosovo status, and Bosnia’s interests must not and will no be subjected to any “situation in the region”. The Constitution Bosnia will receive now will designate its future and the future of its citizens over the next few decades, and we can take up the negotiations on the substance of the Constitution only when all factors that directly or indirectly pressure in course of accepting the solutions that endanger the strategic interests of Bosnia are removed," Bosnian Presidency Member Dr Haris Silajdžić said.

"We have not received any invitation for the talks on the Bosnian Constitution. An informal invitation for a meeting in Brussels was sent, but only in regard to meeting the additional requirements for signing SAA, like PBS reform and public administration reform. Additionally, Dr Silajdžić, as a SBiH President, at the meeting of six political parties representatives two days ago, stressed out that it was necessary at this moment to talk exclusively about establishing the framework process for drafting the new Bosnian Constitution, not about the substance of the Constitution, and without any prejudice or conditioning in regard to the final solution," press release from the Cabinet of Bosnian Presidency Member Dr Haris Silajdžić said.