Who is Čović's Sarajevo partner for the funeral of BiH and democracy under the Dayton anniversary?

By: Rasim Belko

"We do not want to accept even the minimal possibility that the Bosniak people will again elect two Bosniak members of the BiH Presidency." This is the message of HDZ president Dragan Čović, which he hurled in the face of the members of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council.

This was in the first days of June this year. Twenty days later, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg announced its conclusions, which de facto annulled the first-instance judgment in the Kovačević vs. BiH case.

Did Čović know about the outcome of the Strasbourg proceedings during his address to the PIC Steering Board? Given the tone of his message, it is very likely, and considering the donations and broad diplomatic offensive to stop the decision that could change the fate of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its political system, it is not impossible that those who dictated the ECtHR conclusions were in coordination with the Prime Minister of Croatia, Andrej Plenković. And Plenković is there for Čović, and it is a two-way relationship aimed at destroying Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Where collective rights are protected in Bosnia and Herzegovina, these are the Houses of Peoples and the members of the BiH Presidency, you should count on us fighting to have legitimate representatives of the Croatian people, no matter what anyone thinks about it. Representatives of the policies that I and my colleagues in this House represent, among others, will fight for that equality and legitimate representation of the Croatian people, both in the Houses of Peoples and for the members of the Presidency. When the time comes and when the political environment is created, it will be on the agenda by urgent procedure, AND WE WILL VOTE FOR IT, OF COURSE".

This was Čović's address in the House of Peoples about 12 days ago. From everything we have quoted in this text and from the fact that Croatia, at least for now, has succeeded in its mission against the decision in the Kovačević case, it is clear that there is a scheme, a strategy, and that a diplomatic storm has begun to realize the goals for which Čović confidently says, "when the moment comes, we will vote here (in the BiH Parliament).

In this context, his recent visit to Budapest, where he discussed the issue of the election law with the head of Hungarian diplomacy, Peter Szijjarto, should be viewed. The media reported that Čović, in light of the upcoming 30th anniversary of the General Framework Agreement for Peace, which will be marked at the end of the year, informed the minister about current efforts to achieve the necessary changes to the election legislation in order to protect the constitutionally defined rights of Croats and to achieve legitimate representation.

From other sources, we learn that the marking of three decades of Dayton at the end of the year is being considered as a ceremonial cover for the preparation and implementation of plans to change the Election Law and the Constitution of BiH.

Therefore, Čović's confidence with which he tells everyone else that they will get an Election Law tailored to the HDZ is not a political bluff, but a product of the reality that is being prepared for us.

In diplomatic circles, as we have already written, serious discussions are already underway about the constitutional and political organization of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is only a question of who, where, when, and with whom is preparing the ground for the formalization of these discussions.

Čović's trip to Budapest should therefore be seen as seeking support for the realization of what is already being planned and charted somewhere. The role of the head of Croatian diplomacy, Gordan Grlić Radman, who, for example, informed his interlocutors in China about the need to resolve the election legislation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is also very important in this story.

China is not so involved in political processes in BiH, but its influence is not small, so it is clear by what matrix Čović and Grlić Radman, as well as official Zagreb, are moving.

The loudness and tone of Dragan Čović, which can be read even from the transcripts of his speeches and messages, suggest that there is a partner in Sarajevo with whom, as he said, they will "by urgent procedure VOTE for the Election Law with built-in legitimate representation".

Detecting these partners is of key interest for the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The political project Trojka has been in Dragan Čović's pocket since the first moment of the current state and Federation-level government.

All moves from 2022 to the present clearly show that this Trojka is pursuing a condescending, subservient policy towards the HDZ and Čović personally. It has long been clear that the political ideals, principles, and policies of the Trojka parties are not important when Čović sets tasks for them. Almost as in the saying, where Dragan winks, they jump.

Are they then the partner for the final demise of the possibility that Bosnia and Herzegovina will one day be a democratic state? That question is entirely relevant, especially knowing that the head of BiH diplomacy, who comes from Trojka, Elmedin Konaković, has remained silent on the question of Croatian aggression against BiH, and has repeatedly stated that "Bosniaks should not elect representatives of Croats", which is in absolute accordance with the HDZ matrix.

Therefore, from Trojka, from SDP as the dominant party of social democratic provenance in that group, we expect a clear answer as to whether they are the partner who, with the international community and Čović, under the banner of Dayton, will direct both the present and the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina towards medieval values. In translation, towards disappearance!