BOSNIA: LITTLE PROGRESS IN POST-SANCTION TREBINJE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 SARAJEVO 001075 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR D (SMITH),P (BAME),EUR (DICARLO),EUR/SCE (ENGLISH, FOOKS, MITCHELL, SAINZ),EUR/ACE (VISOCAN, ADAMS),NSC FOR BRAUN, OSD FOR FLORY, USNIC FOR WEBER AND GREGORIAN E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/16/2016 TAGS: ECON KCRM PGOV PHUM PREL BK SUBJECT: BOSNIA: LITTLE PROGRESS IN POST-SANCTION TREBINJE Classified By: Ambassador McElhaney for reasons 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: One year after Lautenberg sanctions on the municipality were lifted, the eastern Republika Srpska (RS) municipality of Trebinje shows very little progress in a number of critical areas. The working relationship between Mayor Dobroslav Cuk (a member of the opposition Alliance for Independent Social Democrats (SNSD)) and the municipal assembly has broken down almost completely, with both sides hurling insults and bringing municipal decision-making to a standstill. Organized crime elements have a stranglehold on the town's economy, and have recently escalated their campaign of orchestrated violence (including car bombings and shootings) against the local police and judiciary. Meanwhile, a simmering dispute over the possible reconstruction of local historic landmark Begova Kuca has flared up, causing conflict between Trebinje's Serb Orthodox and Bosniak communities. The Embassy will continue to monitor Trebinje closely; during a recent visit by the Ambassador, he warned the mayor that considerably more progress would be needed to keep Trebinje off the Lautenberg sanctions list. End summary. PROMISES, PROMISES ¶2. (C) Trebinje Mayor Dobroslav Cuk, representing the opposition SNSD party, was elected in October 2004, breaking a long chain of SDS mayors. Trebinje's SNSD leadership, along with its coalition partners, had pledged to work cooperatively on a wide range of issues targeted at normalizing life and inter-ethnic relations, including refugee returns, access to employment, replacement of SDS hard-liners running publicly-owned companies, return of property to the religious communities, and better cooperation with the search for war crimes indictees. Unfortunately, more than a year after the lifting of Lautenberg sanctions, the situation in Trebinje has deteriorated in several respects. THE GOOD NEWS ¶3. (C) As promised, Cuk did return a commercial building to the Islamic community, which is now collecting rent from its tenants. Through USAID's Governance Accountability Program (GAP),Trebinje now has a municipal one-stop shop, with the goal of providing better and more efficient service to citizens. The leader of the local Islamic community said he was "reasonably satisfied" with the municipality's actions. Cuk recently told us that the reconstruction of the historic Begova Kuca remains a top priority. (Note: Begova Kuca is a Bosniak cultural monument with historic value, although not a religious monument.) Cuk added that an Orthodox religious foundation established by Vladika Grigorije, the Serb Orthodox bishop for the region, has raised $630,000 (1 million KM) to date for the reconstruction of Begova Kuca. THEN, THE BAD NEWS ¶4. (C) However, there has been little progress on a number of key issues. Normalizing relations with Dubrovnik, Croatia's "jewel" on the Adriatic coast, which is only 20 miles (30 km) from Trebinje, had been high on Cuk's list. Despite much Embassy prodding, Cuk still does not accept that apologizing for Trebinje's wartime shelling of Dubrovnik is a prerequisite for future cooperation, at least from the Croatian point of view. When interviewed by the Croatian press about his wartime past (Cuk was a colonel in the RS Army),Cuk expressed regret only that he had not been a general. Trebinje would clearly benefit from an improved relationship with Dubrovnik, which could provide a much-needed economic boost. Cuk's stubborn refusal to acknowledge the past is costing his municipality dearly. ¶5. (C) During his campaign to have U.S. sanctions lifted, Cuk made a number of commitments to employ more non-Serbs in municipal government. (Note: According to the 1991 census, the population of Trebinje municipality was 80 percent Serb, 17 percent Bosniak and 3 percent Croat.) In addition to the Deputy Speaker of the Municipal Assembly (who is directly elected),Cuk acknowledged to us that he could point to only one new Bosniak employee in the city administration, bringing the total number of Bosniaks to 6 out of 135 positions. Although he pledged to downsize the city administration by cutting about 60 jobs, Cuk instead hired an additional 15 employees, all of whom are members of his party. ¶6. (C) Cuk had previously stated his commitment to removing a SARAJEVO 00001075 002 OF 003 number of SDS-affiliated directors and members of steering boards of publicly-owned companies. However, no removals have taken place. Cuk has defended this by arguing that a number of the SDS directors are actually well-qualified for their jobs and should be allowed to stay. As for the rest, local rumor has it that they remain in place as part of Cuk's strategy to continue his (relatively) good relationship with local SDS officials. ¶7. (C) Worse, in recent weeks, a violent terror campaign against police officials and judges has escalated significantly. In the last six months, there have been nine car bombings in Trebinje. Because of its location near borders with both Montenegro and Croatia, Trebinje is ideally situated for smuggling activities. Organized crime elements have long been a powerful influence in the municipality; efforts to target crime and corruption have provoked an organized campaign of car bombings and other incidents designed to intimidate law enforcement officials. On April 9, one local police inspector's car was completely destroyed by a car bomb; police have also been the targets of shootings. On April 10, a car bomb damaged the car of a Basic Court judge. THE FIGHT OVER BEGOVA KUCA ¶8. (C) Begova Kuca (the Bey's House),constructed in 1774, was a cultural and historic landmark built in the traditional Ottoman style. This style of architecture is strongly associated with Bosniak culture. The prominent Bosniak family who owned the house sold it to the then government-owned Hotel Leotar in 1964; before the war, the house hosted a cafe, restaurant, exhibition space and local cultural events. During the war, Begova Kuca was completely destroyed. A charitable religious foundation headed by Serb Orthodox Bishop Grigorije claims to have raised about $600,000 (1 million KM) for the reconstruction of Begova Kuca, which Grigorije has said he wants to do as a symbol of inter-ethnic reconciliation in Trebinje. However, plans approved by the municipal authorities to construct a sports complex on land adjacent to the Begova Kuca site (also owned by the religious foundation) have raised Bosniak suspicions about Grigorije's intentions. If the construction is executed according to the building permits, it would cut off all access to the site except by boat (the site backs on to the Trebisnica River). Trebinje Imam Husein Hodzic, meanwhile, has linked the issue of the preservation of Begova Kuca to his quest for the municipality to return all property formerly owned by the Islamic community and nationalized by the former government of Yugoslavia--as it returned the Serb Orthodox Church's properties in 1996. The reconstruction of Begova Kuca has therefore become embroiled in the complex web of property return issues, raising tensions rather than fostering tolerance. MUTINY BREWING ¶9. (C) The Municipal Assembly recently acted to remove the Deputy Mayor, a member of Cuk's party. The Speaker of the Assembly, Nikola Sekulovic, said the removal was necessary because the Deputy Mayor was "falling-down drunk" at assembly meetings. Although Sekulovic is not an SDS member, Cuk accused him of plotting with SDS to take back control of city government. For their part, Sekulovic and Deputy Speaker Ervin Pobric called the Mayor "a Bolshevik," complaining that he is so arrogant, rigid and controlling that his working relationship with the Assembly has become hostile and unproductive. The hostility of the assembly members toward the Mayor is reportedly so pervasive that it has led the non-SDS members to turn to their SDS colleagues in order to garner support for their efforts to oust Cuk. COMMENT ¶10. (C) We had hoped that Cuk's election in October 2004 would mark the beginning of a brighter era in troubled Trebinje. Not only has he not delivered on his promises, but his approach has alienated even the non-SDS municipal assembly members who once supported him. Naturally, this pleases the SDS hard-liners in Trebinje, as it paves the way for them to reclaim near-total control over local politics. Cuk's primary concern appears to be handing out jobs and other perks to his party faithful; clearly, the control he craves is slipping from his grasp. During a recent visit, the Ambassador emphasized to Cuk that we are watching Trebinje SARAJEVO 00001075 003 OF 003 closely and expect to see improvements soon. We will continue working with Trebinje officials to encourage a more constructive approach and progress on key human rights issues, and will report on options for addressing Trebinje's critical issues septel, including through a dialogue with RS Prime Minister and SNSD President Milorad Dodik, whose own aspirations for the October national elections will be damaged by this kind of local SNSD record. MCELHANEY