Part of the Bosniak Club of the House of Peoples of the Federal Parliament tells Schmidt: Apologize!

(Patria) - The majority of delegates of the Bosniak People's Club in the House of Peoples of the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina condemn the statement of High Representative Christian Schmidt, which stated that the photos of Ratko Mladić and Alija Izetbegović in school textbooks are an equal problem.

"We remind Mr. Schmidt that Ratko Mladić is a criminal, finally convicted of genocide before the highest international court, as well as other forms of the most severe war crimes. On the other hand, Alija Izetbegović was the first president of the internationally recognized state of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a man who received numerous international prestigious awards and recognitions for his contribution to democracy and human rights," the statement reads.

It adds: "We particularly emphasize that the late Alija Izetbegović was one of the most prominent Bosniaks in our history, so we see your statement as an insult directed at all Bosniaks, which is why we, as delegates from the Bosniak people, feel called upon and obliged to react in this way".

"We point out that we are not particularly surprised by this act, given that all this is happening at a time when Bosniaks are being outvoted in the houses of peoples of the state and federal parliaments, and when they are excluded from the process of forming federal government through the institution of the Vice-President of the Federation, which is a direct consequence of imposing constitutional amendments in one day precisely by the High Representative," the statement says and concludes:

"We demand a public apology from you for the aforementioned statement, and a change in the narrative of equating criminals with those who were at the head of institutions that defended the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina!".