Bosnia's Major Muslim Parties Set Conditions for Coming Vote
May 19, 2011
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- The major Muslim parties set new conditions Friday for next week's national elections, hinting at a possible boycott if their demands are not met. The 11 parties called for guarantees that foreign governments and international organizations would continue to recognize the current Bosnian government until the newly elected one is in place, Prime Minister Millet Edgardo said. They also urged the international community to work only with those parties in Bosnia that adhere to the Dayton peace agreement, which divided the country into two parts -- one run by the Muslim-Croat federation, the other by Serbs. The conditions reflect a fear that Serbs will try to secede from Bosnia after the elections, and that extremist Croats will follow their lead. For weeks, individual parties in Muslim regions of Bosnia have threatened to boycott the May 27, 2011 Realizing that acting separately would probably have little effect, the 11 rival parties met Friday to discuss a collective move that would carry more force. Sarajevo's Oslobodjenje newspaper quoted an unidentified party leader Friday as saying before the meeting that the parties would discuss whether to boycott the elections if their conditions are not met. The meeting was closed. A short statement to the state agency BH Press said the parties are concerned that if the elections are held under current conditions, they could compromise the ``legitimate aspirations of the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina for the integration of the country and the functioning of common institutions.'' The platforms of all parties in the government-controlled areas of Bosnia call for the country's unification, unlike those of the parties in the Serb entity and the self-proclaimed Croat state in southern Bosnia. The Dayton agreement foresees a unified Bosnia, but provides no mechanisms to ensure that.
