PRESS RELEASE
The International Community Helped Nationalists

The Co-ordinating Board of the Coalition of the Non-governmental Organisations in BH “IZBORI 2000” (Elections 2000) has concluded that the international community made a series of failures on the eve of the past general elections, thus, devaluating to a large extent the efforts of the civilian society invested towards the crucial changes in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The statements of the American Ambassador to the United Nations, Richard Holbrooke, made the greatest harm. Holbrooke’s request to ban the work of the Serb Democratic Party and instisting on the publishment of the report of the International Crisis Group on war criminals in Republika Srpska before elections contributed to the homogenisation of the voting body of the SDS and consequently to the electoral results of this party. The position of the HDZ was strengthened by the proposal to proclaim Mostar the Capital of the BH Federation while his unreasonable statements in respect of Alija Izetbegovic as a “saver of Bosnia and Herzegovina” strengthened the Party of Democratic Action and exerted influence on the voting of the Bosniak voting body. No doubt, Richard Holbrooke through all these cases helped all the three ultra-nationalistic parties in BH and thus reduced the success of pro-European oriented political forces pleading for democratic values and respect for human rights.
The Coalition of NGOs in BH “IZBORI 2000” deems that unjustified delay on passing a decision on banning the posters and television spot of HDZ helped this party. Besides, absence of corresponding reaction against the anti-Dayton speeches of Haris Silajdzic, leader of the Party for BH, in which he brought into question the existence of the Republika Srpska additionally contributed to the success of SDS, is considered as unacceptable.
Some decisions of the Election Appeal Sub-Commission on removing some candidates from the lists can be interpreted as step to help the nationalistic parties. In the same way we can interpret the problematic timing for decision on change of the manner for election of members of the House of People’s of the Parliament of the BH Federation.
The standpoint of the Coalition “IZBORI 2000” is that these failures should have not happened having in mind the fact that the international community had organised the elections in BH in 1996 and could have been aware of the fact, on the basis of previous experience, that ultranationalistic parties use any occasion to make homogenisation of the peoples to which they belong to, on which they build their electoral results.
Finally, we deem that there was no appropriate support of the OSCE to the civic initiatives in BH, including also here the lack of needed support to the Coalition of NGOs in BH “IZBORI 2000” which made impossible to express aspirations towards changes being dominant in the non-governmental sector. The OSCE failed to support more strongly BH civil society thus slowing down the process of its maturing.

Sarajevo, 29 November 2000
No: 25 A - 11/2000.

Co-ordinating Board of the Coalition
of NGOs in BH “IZBORI 2000”