LJUBLJANA, May 20 (Hina) - The situation in Bosnia is much better than three years ago, when I came on duty. Europe's goal is the Europeisation of the entire region, the High Representative to Bosnia, Wolfgang Petritsch, told Monday's
issue of Ljubljana's daily "Delo".
LJUBLJANA, May 20 (Hina) - The situation in Bosnia is much better
than three years ago, when I came on duty. Europe's goal is the
Europeisation of the entire region, the High Representative to
Bosnia, Wolfgang Petritsch, told Monday's issue of Ljubljana's
daily "Delo". #L#
Europe is intensifying its presence in Bosnia, and the
international community is decreasing its, but there are no
conflicts of interest between the EU and the United States, the US
are simply becoming more globally involved.
When he came to Sarajevo, Petritsch says, Bosnia was not a country
in the right sense of the word. After three years, Petritsch says he
can comfortably say he placed several important pieces in the
mosaic of the new Bosnian state, resulting in Bosnia's accession
into the Council of Europe, the completion of party negotiations on
constitutional amendments, which, he says, guarantee equal
constitutional rights in all parts of the country for all three
peoples, a new government structure, and an ever increasing trust
among the three peoples.
He defined the return of refugees as his special achievement.
Refugees are returning and that is great success. Petritsch says
that when he arrived, he was told it would take 20 to 30 years for all
of them to return, but, he changed the system and his advisors are
today saying that all refugees could return to Bosnia within three
to four years.
Petritsch says he hopes that the stabilisation of the situation in
the region will make it possible for 270,000 Bosnian Serbs who are
still living in Serbia to return to Bosnia, and Krajina Serbs to
Croatia.
Bosnia's future is only within European associations where borders
will not be so important. Europe is a multiethnic state itself,
which is why Europe and Bosnia are in a certain way compatible in
various aspects, the high representative says.
Bosnia should not move backward in integration processes, into some
third Yugoslavia. It should look forward, into the European
framework of the Balkans, Petritsch says.
Tanovic's film "No-man's Land", which was presented with an Oscar
at this year's Academy Awards, is an excellent movie, Petritsch
says, admitting that it made a great impact on him.
On the one hand, he says one can laugh at the absurdity of life in
this part of the Balkans, and on the other, he was fascinated by the
scene with the soldier helplessly laying on a mine.
It is, of course, a very pessimistic movie. However, Petritsch says
he hopes that this unfortunate country could finally be rid of all
mines, both the real ones and political ones, with the help of the
international community.
(hina) lml