BOSNIAN STATE PARLIAMENT TO CONSIDER CHANGES TO ELECTION LAW

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) – The Ambassadors of the Peace Implementation Council’s Steering Board welcomed the initiative by parties in the Bosnian State Parliament to give all residents of Srebrenica the opportunity to vote in this municipality in the autumn 2008 elections, regardless of where they are residing now on the condition that they register in the voters’ list of the Srebrenica municipality,the Office of the International community's High Representative in Bosnia (OHR) stated.

Both houses of the Bosnian State Parliament will consider these changes in the Bosnian Election Law today.

Adoption of such an amendment would take into account the human tragedy of Srebrenica and should be seen as a gesture of good will. Srebrenica can turn from a symbol of tragedy into a symbol of political wisdom, responsibility and economic progress,the OHR said.

The PIC Ambassadors strongly encouraged all political parties in Bosnia to work together in support of this initiative.
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GERMANY AND CROATIA ARE BOSNIA'S MAIN TRADE PARTNERS

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) – According to information available from the Bosnian Indirect Taxation Administration , the leading exporters in Bosnia in the first three months of 2008 were Aluminij Mostar, Mittal Steel Zenica, Global Ispat koksna industrija, Prevent Cutting Visoko, TMD AI, Elektroprivreda BiH, Unis – fabrika cijevi and Borac Export-Import. Ranking was almost identical the year before.

The countries that imported the most from Bosnia during this period were Croatia (exports worth 270,140,956 Bosnian Marks) and Germany (227,132,001 Bosnian Marks). Bosnia’s total exports in the first three months were worth 2,114,126,101 Bosnian Marks.

In terms of individual value of items, Bosnia's main export products were nuclear reactors, boilers and aluminium.
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BOSNIA,CROATIA AND MONTENEGRO TO COOPERATE IN THE CASES OF NATURAL DISASTERS

DUBROVNIK, Croatia (May 7,2008) – Bosnia,Croatia and Montenegro signed in Dubrovnik,Croatia, a statement on cross-state border cooperation in the case of natural and other disasters, as well as about natural resources’ management.

The Bosnian Foreign Affairs Minister Sven Alkalaj addressed the participants and emphasized that the cross-state border cooperation and regional development of the three friendly countries, as well as cooperation in joint projects, are aimed to promote and further stabilize the situation in the region.

This is the first time that all the three countries agreed on the areas of joint activities, which is important keeping in mind the catastrophic consequences the area of Dubrovnik suffered because of fires from the neighbouring states.

The agreement is the result of meetings on cooperation between municipalities at the borders between Bosnia,Croatia and Montenegro. The Bosnian Foreign Affairs Minister Sven Alkalaj,the Croatian Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integraitons Gordan Jandrokovic and the Montenegrin Foreign Affairs Minister Milan Rocen, as well as representatives of the cities and municipalities from the border areas between the three countries participated at the meetings.

A similar meeting was held in Neum,Bosnia, last year. It was marked as a “political frame expressed through the support of the governments”. This meting in Dubrovnik has been characterized as “a frame for perspective forms of cooperation”. The next meeting which will take place in Herceg Novi,Montenegro, should result in “already realized concrete results of the program cooperation”. .

NO EU ASSISTANCE FUNDS FOR BOSNIAN AGRICULTURE BEFORE 2010

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) - It will be three years before Bosnia is able to draw EU assistance funds for agriculture, because the national authorities have just started working on the system requirements, the Bosnian Foreign Trade and Economic Relations Assistant Minister announced.

According to him, the adoption procedure for the Bosnian national regulations on agriculture and rural development should be over very soon.

In a transitional period, Bosnia will first introduce an office for the harmonization of the payment system.
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SUPERVISOR RAFFI GREGORIAN AMENDS STATUTE OF BRCKO DISTRICT

BRCKO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) - The Brcko District Supervisor Raffi Gregorian issued yesterday a Supervisory Order amending the Statute of the Brcko District aimed at improving the effectiveness and functionality of the Brcko District Assembly, with special emphasis on encouraging inter-ethnic cooperation.

Through the same Order, the Supervisor also enacted new Rules of Procedure for the District Assembly as well as a new Election Law of Brcko District harmonized with the Statute and the recently amended Bosnian Election Law.

Yesterday’s measures update the legal framework for the Assembly from one originally designed for an appointed body to one appropriate for an elected body that will be able to function effectively after Supervision. As such they complement steps taken in February 2007 to improve the functionality of the government.

The amended Statute institutes a mechanism that prevents outvoting of a constituent people in the Assembly, establishes a more efficient system of voting in the Assembly, and provides for representation of national minorities by the addition of two seats to the Assembly.

In order to prevent outvoting of a constituent people in the Assembly, decisions on certain specified subjects will require an affirmative vote of at least one-third of Councilors from each constituent people present and voting. These subjects are listed in the Statute and include issues of religion, culture, education, language, budget, spatial planning, national holidays, and monuments.

To promote more efficient decision-making, from now on voting on many issues will be determined on the basis of Councilors present and voting, with only justified absences being able to delay decision-making on issues subject to outvoting protection. These provisions will serve to encourage Councilors to attend sessions while minimizing prospects for blockages of decision-making by non-attendance or improper use of abstentions.

The measures introduced today have been under consideration ever since the government reform measures were introduced last year. The Supervisor and his staff carefully analyzed and considered all possible options based upon their consultations with the Assembly Speaker, Deputy Speaker, Assembly Heads of Caucuses, as well as with the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor.

Since there was general consensus on the need for these actions, the Supervisor decided to act now in order to ensure a comprehensive solution would be in place by the time elections are officially announced on May 8, so that candidates would have absolute clarity about the roles and responsibilities they would have if elected to the Assembly in October. He also wanted to give as much time as possible for representatives of national minorities to organize themselves to run for the two new Assembly seats.
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SERBIAN WAR CRIMINAL GOJKO KLICKOVIC REFUSED TO LEAVE HIS CELL AND APPEAR BEFORE BOSNIAN STATE COURT

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) - Serbian war criminal Gojko Klickovic boycotted his trial yesterday on charges of crimes against humanity, the Bosnian State Court said.

Serbian war criminal Gojko Klickovic, who is charged with war crimes against Croat and Muslim civilians and prisoners of war during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war, refused to leave his cell and appear before the Bosnian
State Court.

"I refuse to take part in this trial. My presence is not necessary for this formality, Klickovic said in a statement that was read to the court.
His trial had been scheduled to begin yesterday. Judge Zoran Bozic adjourned the trial until Thursday.

Bozic said the trial will resume "one way or another, as long as Klickovic's lawyer is there to represent him".

Serbian war criminal Gojko Klickovic headed the genocidal Serbian creature in Bosnia "RS"and was arrested in 2006 .The criminal charges against him _ related both to war crimes during the 1992-95 Serbian aggression against Bosnia and to "misuse of office".

The indictment alleges that Klickovic "planned, initiated, ordered and perpetrated" the attack on the territory of Bosanska Krupa, Bosanska Otoka and Ostruznica, when a large number of Bosnian civilians were murdered by the genocidal Serbian aggressor, while their houses were pillaged and set on fire.

According to the indictment, Serbian war criminal Gojko Klickovic was also responsible for criminal offences committed by his subordinates, whose acts he "could control in reality", and for having failed to undertake the necessary measures in order to punish the perpetrators of those crimes.

He is also charged with the detention of many Bosnian civilians who were held, in inhumane conditions, in "Jasenica" elementary school, "Petar Kocic" school and the concentration camp in Kamenica, in Drvar municipality, from April to November 1992.
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FBIH ENTITY DEVELOPMENT BANK ACT ADOPTED

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) – The FBIH Entity’s House of Representatives adopted yesterday the FBIH Entity Development Bank Act, which should in future manage the capital of the present FBIH Entity Investment Bank.

Its capital will be increased by 400 million Bosnian Marks, provided by the FBIH entity’s government.

The new bank’s Assembly will consist of members of the government, who will appoint the supervisory board, on the recommendation of the finance ministry.
This board will then appoint a CEO and executive directors, after inviting applications.
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SEMINAR FOR REGIONAL PARLIAMENTARIANS WITHIN IPALMO PROJECT BEGINS IN SARAJEVO

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (May 7,2008) – With the introductory speech of the deputy chair of the Bosnian State Parliament’s House of Representatives Beriz Belkic and Italian Ambassador to Bosnia Alessandro Fallavolta a seminar for parliamentarians within the IPALMO project realization began in Sarajevo.

The goal of this project is modernization and democratization of parliaments in Albania, Bosnia, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro and Kosovo.

The program contains a set of lectures by eminent professors and parliamentary officials from Italy and experts from Bosnia in order to underline the role of the state parliament in the modernization and democratization processes as well as the importance of transparency of their work.

In next four days, sessions will be dedicated to government’s responsibility to parliament,organization and administrative autonomy of parliaments and public relations of parliaments.

IPALMO project is realized in cooperation with the Italian Foreign Ministry and General Direction for EU Integrations.
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