KRAJISNIK ACTS AS IF HE RESIGNED FROM BOSNIAN PRESIDENCY

SARAJEVO, Sept 5 (Hina) - In the legal opinion published by the Office of the international High Representative to Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Bosnian collective Presidency's Serb member, Momcilo Krajisnik cannot declare that decisions, made by two other Presidency's members without him, are harmful to the Serb people, as he himself does not want to come to sessions. The High Representative's Office legal department has expressed the above mentioned opinion responding to a question of other two members of the Presidency, Alija Izetbegovic and Kresimir Zubak, whether the Presidency could work and take decisions if one of its members is absent for some time and also refuses to name his deputy to represent him at Presidency meetings. According to the Office, a member of the Presidency absent of his own free will at several consecutive sessions when he has been invited four days prior to a session and who does not offer a convincing explanation for his failure to appear, violates his obligations under the Constitution and the rule book. Such member cannot describe a decision taken by other member of the Presidency when he is absent as harmful to vital interests of a people that he represents, because he has decided not to participate in the decision-making process. It can be regarded that such a member has resigned of his own free will from the post of the member of the Bosnian Presidency. A vacancy that is the result of such situation has to be occupied from a Bosnian entity that this former member has represented under law which is to be passed by the Parliament of Bosnia-Herzegovina. As such law has not yet adopted, elections like those organised last year, can be conducted, according to Friday's statement issued by the Office of the High Representative. (hina) jn mš 051851 MET sep 97