Čović: At this moment we are negotiating with the US administration on the Election Law

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Dragan Čović, president of the HDZ BiH, said at today's press conference that negotiations with the US administration regarding the BiH Election Law are underway in Mostar today. The next broader meeting of the parties should be held in ten to 15 days. 

“Now they are polishing those things that we have more or less roughly agreed among ourselves. Depending on whether the Presidency is directly or indirectly elected, nuances are at stake, we have prepared amendments to the constitution so that every inhabitant, every citizen of BiH can be elected to both the House of Peoples and the Presidency through amendments to the Constitution, but also ensured through the method of election legitimate representation in the clubs in the Federation, and in the House of Peoples of BiH, and also when it comes to the three members of the Presidency. That will become constitutional categories, at one point we thought about having a constitutional law, however, it seems to me that it would be difficult to do all that together, so we are going with the key elements of the Constitution, amendments to the Constitution, everything else to be the election law because it is changed by a simple majority”, said Čović.

Speaking about the sanctions imposed by the US on Milorad Dodik, Čović stated that he does not see anything different compared to those previously imposed on him.

„Tell me, have the sanctions against Mr. Dodik, if we are talking about him, affected his behavior so far? Tell me, is there anything new written in the sanctions that Mr. Dodik received, compared to those he had before? I think he received identical sanctions that already exist, if someone can correct me, let them correct me.”, said Čović.

„In the Republika Srpska, a part of BiH, you have to sit down and talk to those people, whether they are under sanctions or not. I would separate two things here, one is crime and corruption, for which there are institutions of BiH, so if there is evidence, let everyone be held accountable, and the other is a story based on some general principles. The fact is that the rule of law does not function here, that you have crime at every step of various kinds, those are facts. But I would not support talking about crime on general principles, for that there are institutions”, said Čović.

Čović denied a boycott of the elections as long as solutions are being sought.

"Because, if we are looking for solutions, it would be superfluous to add those, as we say, strategy B, strategy C, which someone always has somewhere in reserve. I hope that the current political and security situation is such that we have no alternative regarding the Election Law and constitutional corrections. Neither Croats, nor Bosniaks, nor Serbs, nor any inhabitant of BiH have that. My focus is on negotiations with the US administration right here in Mostar on the details, and those are the houses of peoples, the Presidency, because now we are polishing those things that we roughly agreed on, nuances are at stake", explained Čović.

He also said that within the HNS there are those who would like to boycott the elections, that is, there are different opinions.

"The negotiating team received unanimous support today to continue the talks. Of course, it is legitimate for certain political options to have different views. Some think that we should leave power immediately, we think that we should preserve BiH, that there must be no war in BiH, that everything must be done through a peaceful solution, that no one has the right to sacrifice a single life in BiH. Period. For all those who would today radicalize relations further and that through negotiations of the three peoples in BiH, through political representatives, maybe that will anger someone, when I say three peoples, with international partners it can be done", he pointed out.