EUROPEAN UNION TO SIGN PRE-ACCESSION ACCORD WITH BOSNIA NEXT MONTH

LUXEMBOURG CITY, Luxembourg (April 30,2008) - The European Union (EU) will sign the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) with Bosnia in May, which is the first step towards EU membership.

At a meeting in Luxembourg , EU foreign ministers decided yesterday that Bosnia has made the necessary progress in meeting the conditions set by the EU and agreed to sign a SAA with it as soon as possible, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said at a press conference.

The EU and the genocidal Serbia signed an SAA at the same meeting yesterday, though with the proviso that it won't come into force until Belgrade cooperates fully with the international war crimes court in the Hague.

In Sarajevo, the Bosnian President Haris Silajdzic criticized the European Union for moving toward closer ties with the genocidal Serbia even as many Serbian war criminals,charged with genocide, remain at large.

"Today's event shows that Serbia enjoys privileges as no other country," as it failed to strictly fulfill EU-required conditions, the Bosnian President said, citing the European Union for "double standards."

The Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said the EU was in fact ready to sign the agreement with Bosnia yesterday, but the signature was postponed for technical reasons.

"We need to make sure that everything is right, including the translation of the text into different languages, legal checking and so on. There is a lot of work to do," he said.

The agreement is to be signed on 26 or 27 May at the next meeting of EU's foreign ministers after it is translated, Rupel said in Luxembourg, according to the Slovenian EU Presidency.

Bosnia met the requirements for signing by passing two key acts to reform its police force, one of the four EU requirements. The other three were reforming public administration, the public broadcaster and cooperation with the Hague Tribunal.

The SAA is designed to boost trade and economic ties between Bosnia and the 27-nation bloc and put Bosnia on path towards full EU membership.
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BOSNIA JAILS SERBIAN WAR CRIMINALS MIRKO TODOROVIC AND MILOS RADIC AND CROATIAN WAR CRIMINAL PASKO LJUBICIC

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 30,2008) – The Bosnian State Court jailed yesterday two Serbian war criminals for 17 years each and a Croatian war criminal for 10 years for war crimes committed against Bosnian civilians during the 1992-95 Serbian,Montenegrin and Croatian aggressions against Bosnia.

Serbian war criminals Mirko Todorovic and Milos Radic were found guilty of taking part, along with other members of the genocidal Serbian aggressor's formations, in murdering eight Bosnian civilians in eastern Bosnia in May 1992.

"The group ... took the civilians to a nearby creek, where seven of them were killed," the Bosnian State Court said in a statement, adding that the eighth Bosnian civilian was murdered by the genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor earlier.

The Bosnian State Court also sentenced Croatian war criminal Pasko Ljubicic,former member of the fascist Croatian aggressor's formations, to 10 years in prison over the mass-murder of the Bosnian civilians in the village of Ahmici in April 1993,during the Croatian aggression against Bosnia, after he pleaded guilty.

The Bosnian State Court said Croatian war criminal Pasko Ljubicic was found guilty of obeying an order to organise an attack on the Bosnian village of Ahmici on April 15-16, when more than 100 Bosnian civilians were murdered and their houses burned down by the fascist Croatian aggressor.

"Ljubicic ... aided and abetted the planning and execution of this attack," the Bosnian State Court said.

The sentence came after Croatian war criminal Pasko Ljubicic struck a plea-bargain agreement with the Bosnian State Court. He was last year transferred for trial in Bosnia from the International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia in The Hague.
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AGREEMENT ON REALIZATION OF THE SECOND PHASE OF CONSTRUCTION OF THE GAZI HUSREF-BEG'S LIBRARY SIGNED

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 30,2008) – Emir of Qatar Hamed bin Khalifa Al-Thani donated 2.336.374 USD for realization of the second phase of the project of construction of Gazi Husref-Beg’s Library. This donation made Qatar’s participation in the project to reach the sum of almost 4,4 million USD.

On that occasion, Agreement on the Second Stage of the Construction Activities was signed in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo by the leader of the Bosnian Islamic Community Reis-Ul-Ulema Mustafa Ef. Ceric , Director of the “Unigradnja Company” from Sarajevo Vehid Adilovic and Acting Director of the Hidrogradnja Company from Sarajevo Semir Masic.

The signing ceremony was attended by Ambassador of Qatar to Bosnia Mubarak K. Al-Hajri and construction project coordinator for the Gazi Husref-Beg’s Library Bakir Izetbegovic, as well as representatives of public, political and cultural life of Bosnia, diplomats and other officials.

Readiness of Emir of Qatar Al-Thani to support the construction of the Library was emphasized. That Library is a kind of a memories’ archive and is a testimony of continuity and richness of cultural and historical heritage of Sarajevo and Bosnia.

According to the new project, the library building located near the Kursumli Medresa in Bascarsija will have the capacity of storing 500.000 books and will contain reading rooms, archives, reconstruction rooms, printing press and other follow-up facilities.

For the first time after 140 years, the library which was established in 1537 will have the facilities of its own. So far, the library has been situated in the Kursumli Medresa.

The Gazi Husref-Beg’s Library contains valuable manuscripts written in Bosnian,Arabic, Persian and in other languages. There are some unique documents, over 800 years old. They are considered priceless.

Founder of the Library is Gazi Husref-Beg, grandson of Sultan Bayezid the Second. The Library contains 80.000 books and documents, including 10.000 of old documents and codexes, as well as about 5.000 documents from the period of Bosnia within the Ottoman Caliphate.

Gazi Husref-Beg’s Library was built in 1537 and is one of the most important libraries in Europe.

Gazi Husref-Beg (1480–1541),was a Beg in the the Ottoman Caliphate during the first half of the 16th century. He was an effective military strategist, and the greatest donor and builder of Sarajevo.

He was born in Serres, Greece, to a Bosnian father and a Turkish mother, who was the daughter of the Sultan. Thus, Gazi Husref-Beg was Sultan Beyazid II's grandson. A brilliant strategist and politician, in 1521 he became the governor of the Ottoman province of Bosnia.

Today it is difficult to imagine Sarajevo, or even Bosnia, as we know it without the contributions of Gazi Husref-Beg. He is remembered chiefly as the greatest donor and builder of Sarajevo, and as a Bosnian national hero. Thousands visit his tomb and give a prayer every year.
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STUDENTS OF PAKISTAN'S NATIONAL UNIVERSITY FOR DEFENCE VISIT BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 30,2008) – Students of the National University for Defence of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan are in a several-days’ visit to Bosnia.

Marina Pendes, the Bosnian Deputy Minister of Defence and Major General Slavko Pujic,the Deputy Commander of the Bosnian Army welcomed the guests.

They presented the guests from Pakistan to the past results achieved in the sector of the Bosnian defence reform, as well as to the activities and plans of the Bosnian Defence Ministry and the Bosnian Armed Forces aimed to improve the NATO association processes.

Bosnian officials expressed gratitude to the Pakistani guests for assistance offered to the Bosnian Armed Forces in the process of personnel training.

A briefing was organized on defence and security policy, as well as a briefing on the Bosnian defence system structure.

The Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to Bosnia Jauhar Saleem attended the presentation.In the days to come, the Pakistan guests will visit other Bosnian state ministries and institutions.
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VATICAN AWARDS BOSNIAN STATE PRESIDENCY MEMBERS WITH MEDALS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 30,2008) – The Vatican's Secretary for Relations with States Archbishop Dominique Mamberti presented in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo yesterday high medals of the Vatican to members of the Bosnian State Presidency Haris Silajdzic, Zeljko Komsic and Nebojsa Radmanovic, as well as to the Bosnian State Presidency members from the previous mandate Sulejman Tihic, Ivo Miro Jovic and Borislav Paravac.

They have been awarded by Pope Benedikt 16th for achievements in the process of ratification of the Base Agreement between the Vatican and Bosnia.

This meeting was not attended by the President of The Bosnian State Presidency Haris Silajdzic, who is on an official trip and Sulejman Tihic, because of the illness.

A member of the Bosnian Presidency Nebojsa Radmanovic stated that the present and former Presidency members talked at the meeting with Mamberti about relations between Bosnia and the Vatican and about the big steps Bosnia is making on the way to the EU.

Mamberti has also been presented to the way in which Bosnia will implement the Base Agreement with the Vatican, which is the first agreement of the kind in Bosnia.

Archbishop Mamberti recalled the world of late Pope John Paul the Second during his visit to the Bosnian State Presidency in 1997, that the South Slavic peoples live together in Bosnia.

”In Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia, a Catholic cathedral, an Orthodox cathedral, a Muslim mosque and a Jewish synagogue rise up to the sky. These four structures are not only a place where the believers in one God practice their faith. They are also a clear warning for the citizens to build a peaceful society here – a society of peace. In that society, citizens will recognize God as the Lord and Father of all”, Memberti cited Pope John Paul the Second.

These words are important today and they express the same attitudes accepted by Mamberti. He hopes that a space will be made in a concrete hope for dignity and future of all peoples living in this area together.

Former member of BiH Presidency Ivo Miro Jovic thanked for the medals on behalf of the present and former Bosnian Presidency members. He said that they all see those medals as a recognition for guidance of Bosnia the way of future and modern civilization achievements.
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SDP WARNS INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY ABOUT GENOCIDAL SERBIA'S TROJAN HORSE IN BOSNIA MILORAD DODIK

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (April 30,2008) - The President of the Bosnian Social Democratic Party (SDP BIH) Zlatko Lagumdzija has sent a letter to the Office of the International Community's High Representative in Bosnia (OHR) and Ambassadors from member countries of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC), and urged them to take action against activities opposing the Dayton Agreement.

He was referring to a letter that the SNSD president and the prime minister of the genocidal Serbian creature in Bosnia "RS", Milorad Dodik.sent a few days earlier, asserting how the Bosnian State Radio and Television (BHRT) "is bound to vanish under the current mode of operation, but so is Bosnia as a country".

As Lagumdzija wrote, he has been waiting for a response from the OHR in vain. In the letter, he compared Dodik’s ambition to have ethnically-oriented broadcasting services to a similar demand that Serbian war criminal Radovan Karadzic (who is wanted for genocide) made 17 years ago just before the beginning of the 1992-1995 Serbian aggression against Bosnia.

"Whatever you do, I can only tell you that Dodik’s threats will not come to life. The progressive part of the international community, as well as this country’s citizens will not let that happen.That is why I call you to be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem which will be solved anyways. It is better to be with you on time than without you and late," the President of the Bosnian Social Democratic Party said in his letter.
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