MOSTAR, Nov 16 (Hina) - The Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia-Herzegovina (HDZ BiH) on Thursday condemned the decision by the OSCE Mission's Electoral Appeals Sub-Commission to penalise the party as "the most direct form of
violation of the democratic will of BH voters and the most direct form of electoral rigging." The OSCE Mission said in Sarajevo on Thursday two HDZ candidates who in the last elections had won most votes were removed from HDZ electoral lists for the election of the new composition of five cantonal assemblies in Bosnia's Croat-Muslim entity, called the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The penalty was imposed due to the violation of electoral regulations, i.e. the organisation of a referendum among the Bosnian Croat people on the day of the general election. The HDZ BiH accused the OSCE of annulling almost "half the Croat votes in the general election, wishing to change the concept of authority
MOSTAR, Nov 16 (Hina) - The Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia-
Herzegovina (HDZ BiH) on Thursday condemned the decision by the
OSCE Mission's Electoral Appeals Sub-Commission to penalise the
party as "the most direct form of violation of the democratic will
of BH voters and the most direct form of electoral rigging."
The OSCE Mission said in Sarajevo on Thursday two HDZ candidates who
in the last elections had won most votes were removed from HDZ
electoral lists for the election of the new composition of five
cantonal assemblies in Bosnia's Croat-Muslim entity, called the
Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The penalty was imposed due to
the violation of electoral regulations, i.e. the organisation of a
referendum among the Bosnian Croat people on the day of the general
election.
The HDZ BiH accused the OSCE of annulling almost "half the Croat
votes in the general election, wishing to change the concept of
authority in Bosnia-Herzegovina in an undemocratic way."
The party threatened to boycott the organisation of bodies of
authority on all levels if the decision by the OSCE Mission's
Provisional Election Commission on the election of deputies to the
BH Federation House of Peoples (representatives to the entity's
House of Peoples are elected by all parties in cantonal assemblies,
and not according to ethnic criteria) and the decision of the
Appeals Sub-Commission to punish the HDZ are not withdrawn and the
Croat people treated as equal in all bodies of authority.
The party believes the OSCE Mission "has completely lost
credibility and the reason for operating in Bosnia-Herzegovina."
(hina) rml