OHR AGAINST PROVOCATIVE RHETORIC AHEAD OF OCTOBER 5 LOCAL ELECTIONS IN BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (September 2,2008) - The Office of the International Community's High Representative in Bosnia (OHR), warned political parties in Bosnia to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric in the political campaign ahead of the October 5 local elections.

“The OHR never speculates about possible measures and sanctions, but it is clear that undermining the state and attempts to undo reform will not be tolerated,” OHR spokesman Oleg Milisic said.

Broad governing powers enable the OHR to impose financial and other sanctions and even dismiss local officials.

Bosnia’s main election body, the Bosnian Central Election Commission, also has the powers to impose financial and other measures, including removing candidates and even entire parties from the electoral lists, commission officials told the media.

The pre-election campaign period officially starts on September 5, but some politicians in Bosnia have already used some of the most divisive issues – such as constitutional reform and a census – to try to raise political and ethnic tensions in the country.

Yet some Bosnian politicians and analysts have complained that the OHR's warning is an empty threat.

“Already now, although the pre-election campaign hasn’t even started officially, we have examples of such rhetoric being used. Yet there were no sanctions during the last elections,” the general secretary of the largest Bosnian political party,the Party of Democratic Action (SDA), Amir Zukic, told media.

“The OHR has a possibility to sanction the perpetrators, but obviously they don’t want to do that,” he added.

Such comments refer in particular to the leader of the genocidal Serbian fascist creature in Bosnia "RS", Serbian fascist Milorad Dodik, whose party ,SNSD, swept most votes of the Serbians living in Bosnia,who has proved on numerous occasions that he is a true enemy of Bosnia.
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