The President of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted the draft Law on State Property. The bill was included in the session’s agenda at the request of Speaker Denis Becilovic and Zeljko Komsic, who voted in favor. Serbian President Želica Cvijanović opposed this. The bill will now be sent to the House of Commons for further proceedings. Attempts to resolve issues of national property have been fraught with political disagreements for many years, just as they are today.
The bill regarding national property was adopted by a majority vote, with two votes in favor and one vote against. Serbian President Želica Cvijanovic said that overvoting has never solved anything in Bosnia and Herzegovina and never will. He also pointed out that the Office of the President cannot be an authorized proponent of laws on state property because, according to the Constitution, it can only propose laws within its jurisdiction. In any case, the law will not be passed, Cvijanovic said.
Želika Vižanovic, Member of the BiH Presidency:
“Exactly one year ago, we were in the same situation. It concerns the gas law. This decision was also taken by a majority vote. This law was sent to the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was rejected by Congress, and I suspect the same fate awaits this law.
For politicians in Republika Srpska, both those in power and the opposition, state property is a red line that must not be crossed.
PSBiH MP Sanja Burić:
“The topic of property in any institution is completely unnecessary, bearing in mind that property is clearly defined by the Dayton Peace Agreement, namely the General Framework Agreement for Peace in BiH.Property belongs to substance It is clearly and conclusively stated.”
PSBiH MP Mladen Bosic:
“Parliament will block it, the law will fail, and like many laws that are proposed only to enter the process at the expense of some populist point, it is doomed to fail. Everybody knows in advance that it will not pass.”
Meanwhile, politicians in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, both the opposition and the government, have welcomed the adoption of the state property law. They know that it will be impossible for this law to pass in the state legislature.
Mr. Elmedine Konakovic, Chairman of NIP:
“With bicameral decision-making in the Duma, it is possible to form a parliamentary majority. Unfortunately in the Duma, due to the blockade and the position of all representatives of the BiH organization RS, it is difficult to see how the HDZ will be positioned. I don’t know, but it’s hard to expect an epilogue that would mean the adoption of a bill. Dayton BiH is a very high-quality document because it can be used even by those who do not support such a solution.
PSBiH MP Serif Shupago:
“It’s hard to expect it to pass, but what I’m saying here is that there is probably a document that experts in the field have worked on that could be used for further discussion and negotiation of a solution down the road. ” Pass parliamentary-owned national legislation that benefits everyone, including both the state institutions and, of course, the lower government of Bosnia and Herzegovina. ”
Like politicians and lawyers, when it comes to state property, people have completely different views and interpretations of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, depending on their group of origin.
Professor of Constitutional Law Shukriya Bakshichi said:
“It is clear that everywhere in the world public ownership of property, primarily real estate, belongs to the state. Therefore, all the questions that arise here are purely political questions. From a theoretical point of view, there are no controversial issues.”
Professor of Constitutional Law Miles Domicic:
“Under the guise of a more efficient functioning of the state, the powers of bodies are being reduced by being transferred to the state level, and we are discussing areas of fundamental interest for the status of bodies.”
For almost three decades, the issue of state property has been a source of heightened political tension.
Political representatives of Republika Srpska oppose the adoption of the law on state property. Four times they tried to pass a corporate law, but it was invalidated by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or OHR.
The High Representative has announced several times that if state legislators do not adopt the National Property Law, he will use his Bonn powers to do so.
According to BHRT, Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik said that if the OHR implements the law, he will convene a parliament session where he will declare Republika Srpska’s withdrawal from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
