Izetbegović and Moore on the Denial of the Bosnian Language and Increasing Attacks on Returnees in the RS

Member of the BiH Presidency Bakir Izetbegović spoke today with the Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH, Jonathan Moore, about the current situation in BiH, as well as the issue of education in the RS for children of Bosniak nationality who are not attending classes due to the denial of the Bosnian language, writes the Bosnian news agency Patria.

Ambassador Moore informed Izetbegović about the efforts the OSCE is making to resolve the issue of the language in which classes are conducted for children of Bosniak nationality in the educational system of the Republika Srpska.

The interlocutors agreed that the issue of the language in which classes are conducted for Bosniak children in schools in the RS must be resolved, and that additional efforts must be made to overcome this situation, and in particular, measures and activities must be taken to enable Bosniaks to call their language Bosnian, in accordance with previous practice.

Izetbegović also expressed concern over the increasingly frequent attacks on Bosniak returnees in the RS, and called on the OSCE mission to make additional efforts to stop this violence.

Speaking about the state of the justice sector, the interlocutors agreed that they support the reform of the justice sector, which will be aimed at creating an efficient, well-managed and coordinated justice system in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is accountable to all citizens, fully aligned with EU standards, and guarantees equality of all citizens before the law and the rule of law in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Izetbegović also expressed disagreement with the pressures coming from the RS to establish a national balance in the processing of war crimes cases. There was no national balance in the crimes committed, so there can be none in the sentences handed down.