P R E S S R E L E A S E
On the Day of Human Rights
Expressing discontent and concern with the general state of
affairs in which the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina have had
growing difficulties exercising their rights, the Helsinki
Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina would like to use the
occasion of 10 December, the Day of Human Rights, to
particularly stress the issues in the fields of social
protection, education and environment.
Implementation of the Mid-Term Development Strategy of Bosnia
and Herzegovina, which was adopted at all levels of government
in March 2004, should have been implemented by the end of this
year. Over 50 non-governmental organizations have monitored in a
coordinated manner the activities of Bosnian authorities on
ensuring conditions for self-sustainable and harmonized
development, reducing of poverty and speeding up the process of
integration into the European Union. These three goals have
constituted the fundamental contents of the Strategy.
The performance of authorities in achieving the said goals is
best reflected in the overview and analysis of implementation of
measures and activities in the fields of social protection,
education and environment, particularly from the aspect of
respect for human rights.
In brief, the NGO sector has concluded with supporting arguments
that “progress was not achieved, nor serious steps taken for
achieving of any of the goals” in any of these segments – social
protection, education and environment.
There has been no progress in implementation of recommendations
of the UN Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
from January 2006. The European Social Charter has not been
ratified yet. Legislation that would define a minimum of social
protection in an appropriate way was not adopted. There is no
social map of the population or initiative of the state to
implement projects in order to deal with needs of around 50 per
cent of population living below or on the poverty line. Around
500,000 people are unemployed, and the official estimated
unemployment rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina is around 46 per
cent. The Association of Independent Trade Unions of Bosnia and
Herzegovina has warned that the average cost of living is 2.5
higher than the average salary, and even five times higher than
the average monthly pension.
Discrimination and politicisation are still present in the field
of education. Education is increasingly becoming a mechanism for
expression of divisions in a multiethnic society. Discriminatory
practices are still present, particularly in the system of the
so-called “two-schools under one roof”, the access of Roma
children and socially vulnerably children to primary, secondary
and tertiary education has not been promoted sufficiently, which
had been recommended by the UN Committee and the Council of
Europe. This contributes to a long-lasting, systematic
strengthening of nationalisms and ethnic intolerance in Bosnia
and Herzegovina. The Bologna Declaration and the Lisbon
Convention should have been implemented for a long time already,
but the condition for this was adoption of the Law on Higher
Education in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was adopted as late
as August 2007.
Implementation of existing legislation in the field of
environment protection is poor, and the awareness about
environment is low. It is generally observed that despite the
Mid-Term Development Strategy, the National Plan for Environment
Protection and Revised Mid-Term Development Strategy, the state
does not have a clear vision for development of this sector. The
Law on Environment Protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina has not
been adopted yet, despite the fact that it has been seen as the
condition for implementation of a series of other measures and
activities planned.
The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and
Herzegovina urges all representatives of the government at all
levels of authority to take all necessary measures under full
responsibility and secure conditions for effectuation of all
citizens’ rights, as guaranteed by the Constitution of this
country and international documents that Bosnia and Herzegovina
has agreed to implement.
Srđan Dizdarević
Chairman of the Helsinki Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina
No.: 02-12/2007
Sarajevo, 9 December 2007
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