Legalization of systemic corruption and the division of BiH

(Patria) - The estimable resources of Bosnia and Herzegovina are worth hundreds of billions of dollars, while no one knows what lies beneath the ground, so a true and final assessment of wealth cannot be made.

Definition of systemic corruption

Systemic corruption is defined as "a product of the peculiarities of a certain system that, in order to maintain itself or for other existential reasons, does not shy away from any methods and means of autonomous functioning." Or, presented as an equation: C=M+D-R (corruption = monopoly of decision-making + discretionary powers – responsibility)" (Derenčinović, 2001:15).

Current political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The political crisis that Bosnia and Herzegovina has been facing in recent months consists of a series of intertwined elements that have created fear of the outbreak of war conflicts. From the perspective of international officials, the main problem of Bosnia and Herzegovina is corruption, while in the domestic political discourse, there are different views on why the current crisis has occurred. Croatian representatives, as members of the HDZ call themselves, are demanding changes to the election law with an attempt to impose a new value on the European Union in the form of "collective democracy". The ruling coalition from the smaller BiH entity is seeking the annulment of the imposed amendments to the Criminal Code, which prohibit the denial of genocide, as well as the confiscation of state property and its transfer to lower levels of government. Pro-Bosnian policies are being blackmailed with open threats of the dissolution of Bosnia and Herzegovina if the imposed ultimatums, which are contrary to international and domestic law as well as proclaimed European values, are not accepted.

The institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina are blocked by representatives of the ruling parties from the BiH entity of RS, while the FBiH entity has not implemented the election results from 2018 due to the blockade by Croatian deputies in the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament. In such an atmosphere of general blockade, the engagement of international representatives trying to persuade the parties to find a solution has intensified. Neighboring countries Croatia and Serbia, as signatories to the Dayton Agreement who committed in Dayton not to interfere in the internal affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, are openly contributing to the destabilization of the situation. This time they are doing it diplomatically, by supporting separatist policies in BiH that aim to weaken the central state institutions, seize its property, and ultimately divide the country.

Theft worth hundreds of billions of KM

Every state, according to a simple definition, is a political community of people organized in a territory under sovereign rule. Therefore, the three main elements of a state are a permanent population, territory, and sovereign rule over that territory. Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is the sole owner of its property, has all three elements! State property of BiH constitutes 53.26% of the total territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina (5,119,683 hectares), of which 34.95% of BiH's territory is forest (1,789,307 hectares), while 11.19% of BiH's territory is pasture (572,856).

State property includes state land, public goods, mines, oil fields, mountains, rivers, road, rail, sea, and air transport, etc. (Republic Administration for Geodetic and Property Affairs Sarajevo, 1992). The estimable resources of Bosnia and Herzegovina are worth hundreds of billions of dollars, while no one knows what lies beneath the ground, so a true and final assessment of wealth cannot be made.

State property also includes nationalized property, i.e., property of religious communities, economic entities, and individuals. According to the conditions that BiH must fulfill to become a member of the European Union, restitution of that property and its return to the original owners must be carried out. It is important to emphasize that according to the European Charter of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which is an integral part of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, private property is guaranteed.

The subject of restitution (Latin restitutio – repair, return to the old state, editor's note) in Bosnia and Herzegovina was supposed to be about a million hectares of land and about three million square meters of commercial and residential space. The value of that property, as estimated by the Commission for Restitution of the Council of Ministers of BiH, is around 55 billion marks. The law stipulated that in this country, by the end of 2028, property nationalized from January 1, 1945, to March 3, 2005, should be returned. (Deutsche Welle).

In addition to its own territory, i.e., state property, in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other countries formed by the breakup of Yugoslavia, certain property of Yugoslavia remained, such as Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) barracks, state residences, etc. According to the Agreement on Succession Issues of the Property of Former Yugoslavia, Annex A, Article 2 states: "Immovable state property located on the territory of the SFRY shall be transferred to the successor state on whose territory such property was located."

Property is used to guarantee loans

In the analysis by the portal Žurnal in the article THE SALE OF THE REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA: Did Dodik pledge natural resources for a billion marks in loans? the reasons for Dodik's attack on state property are stated: "In the last ten years, the Constitutional Court of BiH has prevented the Republika Srpska from registering military property, then agricultural land, and finally forest resources as property of this entity with three decisions. It can be interpreted that by registering the said state property 'in the land registry' of the entity, certain legal facilitations would be created in the efforts for the secession of Republika Srpska. These decisions not only prevented RS from disposing of or selling state property and resources such as hydroelectric power plants on the Drina or the Trebinje airport without the consent of the State Parliament. There is something else that can realistically be the reason for Dodik's ever-increasing nervousness and imprudent policy. It is entirely possible, and due to the complete lack of transparency of the entity authorities, that natural resources, water, forests, have been given as collateral, i.e., a guarantee for the repayment of numerous loans and debts that are realized from time to time to maintain the financial stability of this entity." (Žurnal)

The legalization of corruption of the mentioned scale can only happen in favorable international and domestic crisis circumstances. Political forces that openly threaten the disappearance of Bosnia and Herzegovina believe that such momentum has been created, so they have started a destabilization with two real goals: Seizing state property (territory of BiH) and re-registering it to lower levels of government, and finally the formal division of Bosnia and Herzegovina! It is important to keep in mind that if state property were to be divided, it would not only be divided among entities, but also among cantons, some of which have aspirations to unite and create the territory of a future third entity. At this stage, the goal is to establish ethnic electoral unit boundaries that would guarantee the election of the desired member of the BiH Presidency. After that, political space opens up for the creation of a third entity within the outlined electoral boundaries, which would complete the territory and administrative management of that territory. There has not been enough discussion about this in public, as the focus has been on amending the Election Law to divert attention.

Finally, it is important to reiterate what is stated in the official documents of the Republic Administration for Geodetic and Property Affairs Sarajevo from 1992: "Regarding state property, i.e., ownership, it is clear that it encompasses the entire state territory, i.e., state land, public goods, mines, oil fields, mountains, rivers, road, rail, sea, and air transport, etc. The legal owner of all this state property, i.e., territory, is the state, and municipalities are only holders of the right of use. According to international law, the state territory, i.e., state property, including that of Bosnia and Herzegovina, belongs to the total number of its citizens, regardless of their national, religious, racial, social, or other affiliation. Therefore, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is no individual national property of anyone, and consequently, no individual national state territory of anyone."

(IGES)