In a statement carried by the Mostar-based Radio Herceg-Bosna, Barisa Colak said the declaration of Croat self-governance in 2001 was justified because Croats were in a subordinate position in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The head of the Bosnian Prosecutor's Office department for corruption, organised and white-collar crime, John McNair, yesterday urged the state court to confirm an indictment the Sarajevo Cantonal Court issued after Croat self-governance in Croat-dominated parts of Bosnia's Croat-Muslim entity was declared in the southern city of Mostar on 3 March 2001. Jelavic and another six Bosnian Croat officials are charged with threatening the constitutional order and attempted disbanding of the federal army.
McNair said yesterday the indictment referred to former Bosnian Presidency member Jelavic, former president of the Bosnian Croat-Muslim entity Ivo Andric Luzanski, former entity defence minister Miroslav Prce, former senior HDZ officials Marko Tokic and Zdravko Batinic, Petar Milic of the Croatian Christian Democrats, and retired General Dragan Curcic, former deputy commander of the entity army.
The self-governance indictment was issued only 10 days before Jelavic, Prce, Miroslav Rupcic, Ivica Karlovic and father Ivan Sevo are due to go on trial for abuse of office and mismanagement of funds in the case of Hercegovacka Banka from Mostar.
The project of Croat self-governance was launched after national parties lost the general elections in Bosnia in 2000 and the Social Democratic Party-led opposition formed a wide coalition which took over authority.
Ministerial posts belonging to Croats, including the post of defence minister of the Croat-Muslim entity, were allocated mostly to members of the New Croatian Initiative led by Kresimir Zubak.
Claiming that they were the only ones with the right to represent the Bosnian Croat people, HDZ officials called on Croats to demonstrate disobedience to entity and state authorities, which included the instruction to Croat members of the federal army to abandon their units.
In an extremely tense atmosphere, direct conflicts between HDZ supporters in the army and army members loyal to the newly-elected authorities were narrowly avoided.
The project of Croat self-governance was thwarted by a decisive action of international representatives and Jelavic was removed from his post in the state presidency.