How the authorities in Sarajevo destroyed education, healthcare and the security sector

Written by: Amra Varatanović

The current authorities in Sarajevo Canton, at the end of their mandate, have left numerous unresolved problems, and have themselves created three key ones. It seems that the situation has never been worse in the three most important areas of any society: healthcare, education, and security, including the police sector. Equally responsible are the Prime Ministers of Sarajevo Canton, Elmedin Konaković and Adem Zolj, all ministers in the Cantonal Government, as well as the majority in the Cantonal Assembly, composed of SDA-SBB-BPS.

Pompous announcements of reforms, weak implementation, and even worse results have produced consequences that the next cantonal government will have to address. If that is even possible.

The announced protests by the Sarajevo police, education workers, and the dissatisfaction of healthcare workers are a clear signal that something is wrong.

Nevertheless, what should most concern the leaders of Sarajevo Canton are certainly the police protests. The Police Union of Sarajevo Canton has announced a protest for September 6, on the day when the Cantonal Assembly is in session, which should consider the Draft Law on Police Officers of Sarajevo Canton, but without a single adopted amendment because the Government rejected them.

The Police Union of Sarajevo Canton believes that the Draft Law does not respect their basic rights, such as salary, conditions for advancement, disciplinary violations of official duties, and the like. The Union openly asks who are the individuals in charge of making important decisions who lightly play with human destinies and the profession of a police officer. The Independent Board also warned of possible consequences if such a law is adopted, having previously submitted its proposals for amendments to the law, but never received a response.

- The proposed amendments to the Law on Police Officers of Sarajevo Canton, although they claim to align with Federal regulations, do not include a provision on the most favorable 5 years of service as the basis for calculating police officers' pensions, which is contained in the Federal regulation they claim to align with - state from the Independent Board.

They further warn that the proposed law favors the retention of high-ranking police officers in their positions, including those who, under the existing Law on Police Officers, would have qualified for retirement. These amendments would allow them to remain in the Police Administration for an additional period of 4 years, even though they should have already retired.

The Police Union also states that this law undermines and minimizes the status and profession of a police officer.

Another question that arises is whether the police sector in Sarajevo Canton is being deliberately undermined and for whose interests.

Another burning problem in Sarajevo is education. The adoption of laws on primary, secondary, and higher education has only caused additional problems. The most responsible for this chaotic state is the Minister of Education of Sarajevo Canton, Elvir Kazazović, along with his associates, but also the Cantonal Government and the Assembly, which adopted laws without considering the damage they would cause. Appeals from unions, professionals, and the academic community have yielded no results. Nothing could stop this government from acting on the principle - the more damage and chaos, the better.

Dissatisfaction among educators is growing, and new protests are scheduled for September 12. The first were held on May 8, with hundreds demanding the abolition of unnecessary bureaucratization, an end to quasi-reforms, and higher salaries. They demanded an end to experiments in education.

The situation is no better in higher education, and the new law is essentially unenforceable, leaving deep consequences that are already being felt. The voice of the academic community has never been quieter, and the fight for the autonomy of the University of Sarajevo is rarely spoken of. Political control over the University of Sarajevo is in full force. Due to the ambitions of individuals, faculties are losing top-tier staff, and students are suffering the damage. Ultimately, the entire Bosnian society loses.

Instead of the academic community being the generator of all processes in Bosnian society, it is burdened by the struggle of a few individuals for complete control over higher education. Whether the real goals of this struggle will soon become apparent, or whether the new government will succeed in mitigating the damage done and preventing further ruin of the University of Sarajevo, will be shown next month after the results of the General Elections.

When the current government and some of its prominent satellites announced healthcare reform, no one could have imagined that such immense material and personnel damage would occur in such a short period. At the dictate of the General Director of the Clinical Center of the University of Sarajevo (KCUS), Sebija Izetbegović, other institutions in the healthcare system have been additionally burdened, such as the General Hospital "Prim.dr. Abdulah Nakaš", Emergency Medical Services, and Health Centers, all with the aim of achieving savings at the Clinical Center of the University of Sarajevo.

In just a few months of Izetbegović's directorship, dozens of doctors, top professors, surgeons, and academics have left KCUS, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina. Some of them have said they will return, but only when better times come. This loss of personnel cannot be compensated for even in the next ten years. The Medical Chamber of Sarajevo Canton, which Izetbegović was among the first to bring under control, remains silent about all this. No one knows how many doctors we have lost in these two years. The government's attempt to mitigate the damage by hiring around 70 new doctors failed from the start. Who will train these new doctors? Those who taught them are no longer in Bosnia and Herzegovina or are prevented from working in the public sector.

When you destroy these three key areas in a society, that society can declare complete capitulation. The only question is whether the residents of Sarajevo are ready for that.