PRESS RELEASE
Abuse of Children and Attack Against Free
Elections
Within the monitoring of
pre-election campaign for the upcoming general
elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Helsinki
Committee for Human Rights in BH and the
Coalition of Non-Governmental Organisations in BH
“IZBORI 2000” (ELECTIONS 2000) have been
monitoring with a great concern several-day
demonstrations of high-school students in Brcko.
It is obvious that some political parties are
behind these demonstrations, wishing to use them
for their nationalistic purposes.
On the basis of the information we have at our
disposal, these demonstrations are supported by
the extreme nationalists from the SDS, party that
is taking part in the general elections.
These demonstrations, in which violence and
destruction could be seen, slogans full of
nationalistic charge could be heard, with hatred
towards the members of other peoples living in
BH, as well as messages that unmasked call for
change of the borders of BH, are directed against
the stipulations of the Dayton Peace Accord. In
addition, these demonstrations are contrary to
the stipulations of the Copenhagen Document on
Fair and Free Elections which foresees holding of
a pre-election campaign in “correct and free
atmosphere. Moreover, these demonstrations
present direct violation of the stipulations of
the Convention on the Rights of Children, because
they present crude manipulation with children in
political purposes.
Condemning the events in Brcko and estimating
that they do not contribute to the normalisation
of the state in Bosnia and Herzegovina and that
they warm up national intolerance, we are
expecting from the Provisional Election
Commission of the OSCE as well as from the
Election Appellate Sub-Commission to undertake
measures for establishing the responsibility of
the political parties that are taking part at the
general elections for the above mentioned events
and to undertake concrete measures against the
organisers of the events that bring into question
a democratic character of the forthcoming
elections.
Nedjo Milicevic
President of the Coalition of NGOs in BH
“IZBORI 2000”
AND Vice President of Helsinki Committee in BH
No:
22A-10/2000
Sarajevo, 19 October 2000
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