Bosnia`s Main Parties Back Decentralisation Plan (a new administrative division into four parts)

The leaders of Bosnia's main Muslim, Croat and Serb parties gave their support on Monday to a decentralisation plan for the ethnically divided country that fought a civil war from 1992-95.

Details of the plan, which would be enacted as a revision to the constitution, remained sketchy, but it calls for a division of the country into four administrative units, officials said.

It was unclear how this would fit with Bosnia's efforts to join the European Union (EU), which wants the Balkan country to strengthen its central state before it joins the 27-member bloc.

"We agreed that Bosnia should be a decentralised state with three layers of government of which the second one is divided into four territorial units each with their own legislative, executive and judicial powers," the party leaders said in a joint statement.

The leaders did not elaborate but said a concrete plan for the new organisation will be presented at the meeting of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA), Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) and Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) next month.

The office of the international community's top peace overseer in Bosnia declined to comment on the agreement.

Efforts to revamp Bosnia's constitution, enshrined in the Dayton peace treaty that ended the bloodiest conflict in Europe since World War Two, and seen as a key condition for joining the European Union, have been in the works for two years.

Inter-ethnic squabbling has hampered progress to reform the charter to take away power from Bosnia's autonomous entities, the Serb Republic and the Muslim-Croat federation, which have coexisted in an uneasy alliance since the end of the war.

Officials say revising the constitution is likely to be a lengthy process. Lawmakers must first debate and accept the request by the SDA, SNSD and HDZ before a constitutional commission can be formed to draft a new charter.

The second largest Bosnian Muslim faction, the Party for Bosnia-Herzegovina (SBIH), said it would back a split of the country into four administrative units only if they are based on multi-ethnic, economic, geographic or similar criteria.

"However, if the initiative goes in favour of the creation of the predominantly Croat entity and the Sarajevo district, it would only serve as a disguise for the division of the country on territorial and ethnic principles," SBIH said in a statement.

The Bosnian capital Sarajevo was under siege from Serb forces for 43 months during the civil war.

Bosnia signed a pact with the EU last June, a first step towards eventual membership nearly 13 years after the war's end.

Well well--- they're talking about 4 states? How does that fit into the Bosniak terrorists' plan to consolidate with the parastate of Turkey, the master genocidaires...

The grand poobah bosniak muslim mufti says:

“I propose we all call ourselves Turks. And we are Turks -- by our historical memory, by our historical disposition, by the identity of Islam that Turks brought to us. However, we are also Bosniaks.”

and more crap here:

"The grand mufti of Bosnia also told Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during his visit to Sarajevo on March 25, 2008, “Please convey to your people the following: Turkey is our mother; it has been so and it will remain so.”

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=158350

The main scuttlebutt from the Prud agreement is the following:

A four way split in which the Serbs keep Republika Srpska and the Federation is split between a Croat portion, a Muslim portion, and an enlarged Sarajevo region that would be multiethnic but most likely end up Muslim dominated.

However, the age old map question comes out again. Dodik has stated (as has Tihic) that no maps were produced and Dodik has been adamant that the current RS administrative border will stay intact.

However, word is spreading that the map may not stay as is with trade-offs happening. Some trade-offs that have been mentioned will see Srebrenica given to the Muslims with Brcko going to the Serbs. Another trade-off is a couple of counties in Bosanska Posavina (most likely Bosanski Brod, Samac, and Derventa) going to the Croatians in return for Bosansko Grahovo, Drvar, and possibly Bosanski Petrovac (Glamoc seems to be out of the question). The other trade off is the pockets of Croats in central Bosnia to the Muslims in return for the whole of Mostar to go to the Croats.

All of this is mere speculation and leaves out the fate of the Bihac pocket.

The only leak of any note is the suggestion by a Bosnian Croat deputy that three Croatian counties in Central Bosnia (Busovaca, Kiseljak, and Kresevo) would go to an enlarged Sarajevo. Who knows?

The SDS, Karadzic's old party, has already cried "traitor" to Dodik for engaging in these talks. Silajdzic and the SDP (two opposition Muslim parties) have accused Tihic of much the same thing. The smaller Croat parties have held their fire re: Covic as the Bosnian Croat leader confers with church figures and the Croatian gov't as they hope to resurrect Herceg-Bosna, the Croatian entity in BiH.

The next meeting is scheduled in a few weeks in Mostar...more fireworks to be expected.

There is so much irony here because the entire war could have been avoided had the Lisbon agreements remained in tact which proposed a similar division along ethnic lines (of course not exactly the same implementation).

There was also the matter of the proposed split of Bosnia into two entities as discussed by Milosevic and Tudjman. I still can't believe that Tudmjan wouldn't give us Sarajevo (bastard!)

The greater irony here I think is being that the great powers have once again failed in this latest attempt at the Bosnian experiment. Tito must be turning in his grave.

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