Izetbegović: At the end of the third decade, we are proud of SDA

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - A formal session of the Main Board of the Party of Democratic Action was held tonight in the Sarajevo City Hall on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the party's founding. In addition to members of the inner party leadership and the Main Board, some of the founders of SDA also attended the session. Before the official part of the program, tribute was paid to the first president of SDA, Alija Izetbegović, as well as the second president, Sulejman Tihić. 

In his address to the attendees, SDA president Bakir Izetbegović emphasized that at the end of the third decade of SDA's operation, they should be proud of the path they have taken, of the leadership they have realized. 

"Our chronic diseases are nationalisms, separatisms, territorial pretensions, and attempts to dominate the Balkans. Under military and political pressure from Western powers, these retrograde forces retreated, quieted down, renounced crimes and criminals, accepted superior civilizational and integration trends, and wrapped themselves in a democratic guise. Then, as soon as the pressure weakened, they strengthened again, showed their old face, defied, denied crimes and celebrated criminals, militarized, invoked divisions, and redrew maps. Serbia is arming itself. They claim that they are preserving peace in this way, that they want to deter and discourage any aggressor. The only thing that is unclear is - which aggressors are they thinking of? Who could possibly attack Serbia, and with what goal? And who among the neighbors has ever attacked Serbia?", said Izetbegović. 

He stated that the statements of the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, are mostly correct and that he never questions the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"He does not mention sovereignty and does not distance himself from the increasingly open separatist statements of Milorad Dodik. On the contrary, they are often together, smiling and hugging. So what should we believe - verbal support for the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or non-verbal and concrete support for a man who questions that integrity every day? Milorad Dodik was once a social democrat, he had normal and promising views on Bosnia and Herzegovina and the coexistence of its peoples. With his rise to power, he gradually turned into an aggressive nationalist. For a decade, he has been persistently obstructing vital processes for the country and its citizens - the process of reconciliation, integration into the EU, integration into NATO, driving away foreign investors and entrepreneurs with his inflammatory rhetoric, and due to such policies, among other reasons, young people are leaving Bosnia and Herzegovina en masse and going to European countries... His SNSD was expelled from the Socialist International, he and his associates were placed on the State Department's blacklist, the economy of Republika Srpska lags behind the Federation and is the worst in the region, the entity of Republika Srpska is heavily indebted, a pensioner in Republika Srpska is the poorest pensioner in Europe. The inevitable question arises - where are the limits of Dodik's games? Will Dodik one day move from words to deeds, and really try to finish what Karadžić started 27 years ago? And what should be our answer to all of this?", asked Izetbegović. 

He stated that the territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina is guaranteed by the Dayton Peace Agreement, which is backed by superpowers, guaranteed by the Constitution, courts, security services, and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"A nation that has experienced three massacres in one century, and which is again threatened by the bloody Drina, must be prepared to respond to all possible challenges. Therefore, it is necessary to achieve unity, coordination of political and all other actions, strengthen the economy - especially the IT sector, increase lobbying for the interests of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the world, introduce subjects into schools that can replace paramilitary training so that, in combination with sports and other activities, we have a psycho-physically prepared and strong youth, strengthen and equip the police, strengthen the defense industry, etc. Of course, all within the framework of the Constitution and laws.

Speaking about the attitude of Croatian politics towards Bosnia and Herzegovina, he pointed out that both the one coming from Zagreb and the one coming from Herzegovina are more correct. Dragan Čović himself raised the topic of a third entity, saying that Croats have no such intentions, nor do they mention them anymore. 

"What the HNS advocates for is institutional autonomy, which would be achieved through changes to the Election Law. It would guarantee parity, regardless of population trends, and even election results, meaning a third of important positions for the winning Croatian party at the state level of government, primarily in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. HDZ poses this demand as a condition for forming the federal level of government. Our condition is that all expectations of the Croatian side must be resolved through the implementation of the Sejdić-Finci ruling, or in combination with the right of every citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina in every part of this country to run for any position in the government structure. Therefore, also in the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina. These two conditions are difficult to reconcile, but not impossible - the April package of constitutional reforms and Fuelle's model resolved them, but they were rejected, among others, by the current presidents of HNS and HDZ," said Izetbegović, adding that all rulings of domestic and European courts concerning electoral legislation must be resolved. The realistic deadline for this is the end of 2019, while the deadline for forming the government is immediate.

Izetbegović also spoke about the NATO path of Bosnia and Herzegovina, stating that it will not be stopped.

"Once, the late Alija told me - those who try to destroy Bosnia will not succeed, and when they come to terms with that fact, they will try to rule it. It seems we have reached that stage - the attack on the independent judiciary has turned into an attempt to rule the judicial system; unfortunately, quite successfully, especially in prosecuting war crimes where, through a multitude of trials against the defenders of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an artificial balance is being attempted and the truth about the aggression is being relativized; the rejection of a single economic space has turned into the transfer of funds from the Federation to Republika Srpska, estimates are that the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina loses over half a billion KM annually in the distribution of VAT and excise tax revenues to the benefit of Republika Srpska; in Republika Srpska, for example, about 25% of the fuel imported into Bosnia and Herzegovina is consumed, but Republika Srpska receives 40% of the collected excise taxes! We will have to stop these trends, especially the attack by prosecutors on our defenders. We must defend them as they defended Bosnia and Herzegovina. Politically, expertly, financially," said Izetbegović. 

He emphasized that the Party of Democratic Action is undeniably the fundamental and strongest patriotic political force in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He said that SDA has overcome all insults and disqualifications and called for the creation of a strong patriotic bloc.

"We will share the positions that could only belong to SDA with DF and SBB. But we will also share the responsibility and the burden of the decisions ahead of us. We will share power to prevent the division of the country. We know what the priorities are and we know what we are fighting for. We are fighting for people, for the nation. Everything is in function of that. Both faith and culture, which are the soul of that nation. And the state, which is the home of that nation. And the party, which is a service to that state. The political struggle for Bosnia and Herzegovina is a difficult game, the system is complicated, the formula by which political life unfolds is complex, with many unknowns and negative factors. There are many obstructions, a lot of populism and spin. We are forced to build the state with those who do not love this country, and especially do not love this party. They are relaxed in negotiations - they ask for more than they are entitled to, they set conditions and ultimatums, and they benefit from the crisis and stagnation that follows when we do not agree to those ultimatums."

He reiterated his earlier stance that SDA needs to change, rejuvenate, and adapt. 

"The SDA structure has aged, it has become cumbersome, inert, we have allowed the accumulation of functions. Our influence is limited only to Bosniaks, we must resemble this country, be more Bosnian, expand our influence into the Croatian and Serb corps. The Bosnian lock is opened with a three-pronged key. We only have one, the Bosniak one, and no matter how big it is, two more are missing. This time, we must also organize rigorous control of the electoral process to guarantee a fair fight and eliminate all grounds for objections like those that culminated at the last Congress."