BiH prime minister steps down

02/11/2007

The political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina deepened on Thursday following Nikola Spiric's decision to resign as chairman of the country's council of ministers.

(AP, FT, Independent, Blic - 02/11/07; AP, Reuters, AFP, DPA, BBC, UPI, AKI, Fena, Beta, B92, BIRN, Office of the High Representative - 01/11/07)

Bosnia and Herzegovina's Prime Minister Nikola Spiric addresses reporters as he announces his resignation in Sarajevo on Thursday (November 1st). [Getty Images]

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) Prime Minister Nikola Spiric resigned on Thursday (November 1st) in protest of internationally-endorsed measures aimed at improving the functionality of state institutions, including his cabinet.

"I have submitted my resignation to Bosnia's presidency," Spiric, a member of Republika Srpska (RS) Prime Minister Milorad Dodik's Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), told reporters.

He stepped down a day after the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) Steering Board voiced its support for reforms High Representative Miroslav Lajcak proposed last month, in a bid to streamline the decision-making process in BiH's central government and parliament.

The plan the Slovak diplomat announced on October 19th called for changes to the quorum rules in the two institutions, making it more difficult for ministers and lawmakers to block the adoption of decisions and legislation by simply boycotting sessions.

Bosnian Serb politicians, who have often resorted to this tactic, reacted angrily to Lajcak's move. Claiming that the proposed reforms were anti-constitutional and in violation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the 1992-1995 conflict in BiH, they threatened to leave their posts at the state-level institutions.

Lajcak has warned that unless the measures are implemented by December 1st, he will use his powers as the top international administrator in BiH to impose them.

The major powers sitting on the PIC Steering Board and overseeing BiH's postwar recovery said on Wednesday that the High Representative's decisions "are fully in line with his mandate and the constitution of BiH" and called for their prompt implementation.

"The only objective of these measures is to streamline the decision-making process in the council of ministers and the parliament, and they are necessary for speeding up the reform process," the international officials said in a declaration, issued at the end of their two-day meeting in Sarajevo.

As he announced the measures last month, Lajcak noted that only three reform laws had been adopted in the past 12 months. Out of these, one was related to EU integration.

Apparently angered by the international community's backing for the High Representative, Spiric claimed its interference had made his job impossible.

"Twelve years after Dayton, Bosnia and Herzegovina is unfortunately not a sovereign state," he told reporters. "Twelve years after Dayton, foreigners have exclusive rule over this country and I believe this isn't good for this country or its citizens."

Spiric's resignation means that the BiH government is now in a technical mandate, Lajcak said on Thursday, explaining that the cabinet remains responsible for ensuring that the administration continues to function.

"Nikola Spiric's decision to resign is his right and his choice, but it is not a responsible action," he said. "It will not calm the current political situation but I expect the Council of Ministers to exercise their technical mandate in full."

The current political crisis is the worst the country has faced since the end of the 1992-1995 conflict.

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica weighed in on Thursday, urging Lajcak to step down. "Lajcak is responsible for the crisis in Bosnia," the Serbian leader told state news agency Tanjug. "It would be natural for him to resign, instead of further fuelling the crisis."

Last week, Kostunica offered Bosnian Serbs his country's full support for their campaign against the "open threat" to their interests. Claiming that Lajcak's measures were aimed at abolishing Republika Srpska, he also implied that the policies were part of an anti-Serb conspiracy, aimed at granting Kosovo independence.

In response, five Belgrade-based Western ambassadors filed official protests with the Serbian foreign ministry over the country's position in the Bosnian political crisis, warning also against attempts to link the Kosovo status process with BiH's future.