BOSNIA - THE LONG, SAD SAGA OF BOSNIA'S HUMAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001231 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SCE(FOOKS/STINCHCOMB) AND DRL E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PINR PHUM KDEM EAID BK SUBJECT: BOSNIA - THE LONG, SAD SAGA OF BOSNIA'S HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN ¶1. (U) SUMMARY: The appointment of a single state-level Ombudsman for human rights, a Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) and Council of Europe post-accession requirement, remains incomplete almost two years after the Bosnian parliament adopted legislation mandating it. The initial attempt to appoint the Ombudsman and his/her two deputies collapsed in 2007 after the Republika Srpska government insisted on an unsuitable Serb candidate. The most recent effort unraveled in July 2008 when the House of Representatives (HoR) and House of Peoples (HoP) abandoned the merit-based selection process selection process in favor of nominating what many in the human rights community perceive as political cronies. The two legislative bodies proposed different candidate slates for the three top slots in the Office of the Ombudsman and because they have been unable to resolve their differences no appointments have been confirmed. Most experts predict the issue will remain unresolved through the October municipal elections, and it is possible the selection process will have to be repeated again, delaying the Ombudsman's appointment into 2009. END SUMMARY Origins of the State-level Ombudsman -------------- ¶2. (U) In March 2006, Bosnia's parliament adopted an amendment to the Law on Ombudsman for Human Rights in BiH, which envisaged the full merger of the state and entity Ombudsmen institutions by December 31, 2006. The creation of a State Ombudsman was a Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) requirement as well as a Council of Europe (CoE) post-accession requirement for Bosnia. The EU and CoE, with support from the OHR and others in the international community, argued that a single state-level Ombudsman was of crucial importance for a national system to protect human rights of every individual, to promote the rule of law, and to ensure proper conduct of public administration at all levels of government in Bosnia. Though the merger of the state and entity Ombudsmen Institutions was supposed to occur in January 2007, it has still not taken place. RS Backs an Unsuitable Candidate -------------- ¶3. (U) The first attempt to appoint the Ombudsman and his/her two deputies -- in the fall of 2007 -- failed because the Republika Srpska (RS) government, including RS PM Dodik, backed a candidate widely criticized as unsuitable for the role of state-level human rights watchdog. The RS-backed candidate, Vitomir Popovic, had close links to the wartime RS government and had publicly threatened to kill a Federation TV journalist, whose reporting had made him unhappy. (Note: The Ombudsman and his/her two deputies, once confirmed, would serve six-year terms, with the position of Ombudsman rotating among the three every two years. The three positions are to be filled by a Bosniak, a Croat and a Serb. By law, all three candidates must be appointed simultaneously. End Note) This RS intransigence forced the government to repeat the selection process in 2008. If At First You Don't Succeed, Fail Again -------------- ¶4. (U) The second attempt to select the Ombudsmen went off track on July 14 when the House of Representatives (HoR) refused to accept the recommendations of an ad hoc commission that had rank ordered the Bosniak, Croat and Serb candidates based on their competence, experience, and moral integrity. The wheels came off on July 23 when the House of Peoples (HoP) refused to confirm the Bosniak and Croat candidates selected by the HoR. -- Bosniaks: The HoR nominated the sixth-ranked Bosniak candidate Emina Halilovic, who is close to Bosniak member of the Tri-Presidency Haris Silajdzic's Party for BiH (SBiH). The Party for Democratic Action (SDA) dominated Bosniak Caucus in the HoP rejected Halilovic, and instead nominated the top-ranked Bosniak candidate, Jasminka Dzumhur. (Note: We have heard that SDA's support for Dzumhur is merely tactical, and that SDA would be prepared to abandon her if an SDA rather than an SBIH candidate was appointed to another government position. End Note) -- Croats: The HoR nominated the fourth-ranked Croat candidate, Mariofil Ljubic, the brother of HDZ-1990 leader Bozo Ljubic. Unsurprisingly, the Croat Caucus in the HoP, which is dominated by Bozo Ljubic's rivals, HDZ-BiH, rejected Mariofil Ljubic and supported second-ranked Ivo Bradvica. SARAJEVO 00001231 002 OF 002 (Note: The top-ranked Croat candidate, rejected by both HDZ-BiH and HDZ-1990, is the current Federation Ombudsman, Branka Raguz. End Note) -- Serbs: Only with the Serb candidate was their agreement between the HoR and HoP, which supported the second-ranked Serb candidate, Ljubomir Sandic. Sandic is a close associate of RS PM Dodik and member of Dodik's Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD). The top-ranked Serb candidate, Rada Kasedzic, was rejected because she lives in the Federation. (Note: Only after OHR intervention did Dodik and the RS agree not to back Popovic for a second time. End Note) Collegium Meets to Strike a Deal, and Fails -------------- ¶5. (U) As a result of the deadlock, the Collegiums of the two houses met on Wednesday, July 30 to try and harmonize the positions of two houses, but were unable to do so. During the session state-level PM Nikola Spiric appealed to all parties to resolve their differences, arguing that the merger of the Ombudsmen offices and the appointment of a state-level Ombudsman was both a domestic legal and an EU/CoE requirement. With the August holidays set to begin, Spiric and members of parliament reportedly agreed to return to the issue in September. If they fail to resolve the issue in the Fall, the entire selection process will need to begin again. Comment -------------- ¶6. (U) The ruling political parties handling of the Ombudsman selection process thus far does not inspire confidence in their commitment to it or its mission. Several close contacts in the human rights community have commented to us that the entire process is a "farce." The merger of the state- and entity-level Ombudsmen remains incomplete almost two years after the passage of the law mandating it. More disconcertingly, the parties have blatantly abandoned the merit-based selection process that was supposed to ensure the new Ombudsman had the proper qualifications for the job, most notably a strong, clear commitment to human rights. The parties' preference for political allies suggests that the new Ombudsman might be more concerned with protecting their patrons than addressing legitimate human rights violations. At a minimum, we suspect that this is how the Bosnian public is likely to perceive the office in light of delays in and nature of the selection process. ENGLISH