Arnaut responds to Plenković: Nothing in the Pilav case was fabricated

(Patria) - BiH Ambassador to Germany and attorney for Ilijaz Pilav before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, Damir Arnaut, commented on Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković's claims that "the Sejdić-Finci ruling and all other rulings in that direction," which includes the Pilav ruling, are "a legal path to achieving political goals" and that they are "fabricated".

Arnaut pointed to the reactions of German officials when they learn about the extent of discrimination that these rulings address.

Srebrenica surgeon Dr. Ilijaz Pilav ran for a member of the BiH Presidency in the 2006 General Elections. His primary motivation was to continue serving his community, after having survived the hell of Srebrenica by operating on the most severe cases without anesthesia and other basic supplies.

His candidacy was rejected with the explanation: "Ilijaz Pilav declared himself as Bosniak, ... so his candidacy was not certified by the Central Election Commission of BiH".

"That was my motivation to represent him before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. To accept such an explanation, to try to justify it, or to belittle the fight against this apartheid by calling it fabricated is not in line with the fundamental principles on which the EU and the European legal order are based.

On the contrary, it is a political obligation of Bosnia and Herzegovina on its European path to eliminate this discrimination, and a moral obligation of all well-intentioned people to help in that.

Furthermore, the Pilav, Sejdić-Finci, and "all other rulings in that direction" rulings have created a legal obligation for BiH institutions to do so, and for other signatories of the Dayton Agreement not to obstruct these efforts.

Because, the BiH Constitution, which is an integral part of that agreement, stipulates in Article II the direct application and primacy of the European Convention on Human Rights and its protocols in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This is also the only provision of that Constitution which "cannot eliminate or diminish any of the rights and freedoms" it guarantees through amendments.

I repeat these facts at all meetings in Germany, where a significant number of officials are still surprised that there is still a place in Europe where someone cannot be a candidate in elections solely because of their ethnic affiliation.

Then, these officials usually express their astonishment that the primacy in the discussion about electoral law amendments is not given to such individuals, but to candidates where discrimination does not exist.

For winning the Pilav case, among other things, I received the Haas Award from my university - UC Berkeley - which is awarded annually to a graduate "who has made outstanding achievements in serving their home country".

That award, and a complete, not fabricated, commitment to European values and the rule of law, motivate me to continue these efforts," Ambassador Arnaut announced.