SARAJEVO, Apr 14 (Hina) - The High Representative for Bosnia-Herzegovina (BH), Carlos Westendorp, on Wednesday passed a decision on the abolishment of all permanent tenancy rights given in BH during and after the war earlier this
decade. Pursuant to the decision, permanent tenancy rights granted in accordance with laws in Bosnia's two entities will become temporary, while the right of priority of pre-war tenancy rights bearers to claim the flats will be recognised. According to a statement from Westendorp's Office, the decision will resolve the biggest injustice extant in BH in the field of property rights. Numerous international organisations and the ombudsman of Bosnia's Croat-Muslim Federation took part in consultations in and supported the reaching of the decision. Further explaining the decision, the statement said tens of thousands of socially-owned flats in both Bosnian
SARAJEVO, Apr 14 (Hina) - The High Representative for Bosnia-
Herzegovina (BH), Carlos Westendorp, on Wednesday passed a
decision on the abolishment of all permanent tenancy rights given
in BH during and after the war earlier this decade.
Pursuant to the decision, permanent tenancy rights granted in
accordance with laws in Bosnia's two entities will become
temporary, while the right of priority of pre-war tenancy rights
bearers to claim the flats will be recognised.
According to a statement from Westendorp's Office, the decision
will resolve the biggest injustice extant in BH in the field of
property rights. Numerous international organisations and the
ombudsman of Bosnia's Croat-Muslim Federation took part in
consultations in and supported the reaching of the decision.
Further explaining the decision, the statement said tens of
thousands of socially-owned flats in both Bosnian entities were
taken from the bearers of the tenancy rights. After the war, the
Federation set an unfeasible deadline of a fortnight for all who
wished to return to the flats after the peace agreement was signed.
Those socially-owned flats were allocated to new tenants according
to arbitrary decisions of local authorities. Flats were often given
to persons who were not refugees but were in the process of
exchanging their flats for bigger ones.
According to Westendorp, the permanent allocation of flats
violated the rights of a large number of people. It represented an
attempt of legalising war profiteering, the statement said, and
reminded that the Dayton peace agreement guarantees the
unconditional right to return to all who left their homes during the
war.
(hina) ha jn