"Legitimate" Representatives: HNS Wants the Same BiH Division Advocated by Jelavić!

The Croatian National Assembly of BiH at its VI session in Mostar today adopted a declaration proposing a new international conference in BiH and changes to the Constitution which, as stated, will create a symmetrical federal state in relation to the three constituent peoples, reports Prvi.tv, as relayed by Patria.

The declaration, in some parts, resembles the Declaration of Ante Jelavić and the so-called "Croatian self-government" of Herceg-Bosna. Below are excerpts from the declaration adopted today by the HNS, which clearly states a desire for the division of BiH, all through the alleged endangerment of the Croatian people. The declaration has now been skillfully repackaged thanks to the cunning Dragan Čović, and you can see how below.

Emphasizing that the legitimate political representatives of the Croatian people are determined to defend their right to their homeland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, by all legitimate means, the HNS states in the declaration that Bosnia and Herzegovina, as constituted in Dayton, especially due to imposed constitutional revisions, has not satisfied the aspirations of the Croatian people who voted for its independence.

The declaration states, among other things, that the Dayton constitution of BiH has legalized injustice, inflicted through wartime conquests and population displacement, which has had the greatest consequences for the position of Croats as one of its three constituent peoples, and that due to the irrational territorial organization and incoherent state structure of BiH, it has proven to be irrational, dysfunctional, and unmanageable.

"The apparent stability of the system is owed solely to the permanent interventions of the international community, inappropriate for sovereign states, which seriously calls into question the self-sustainability of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The increasingly unstable security environment makes it extremely vulnerable, thereby potentially endangering stability in the wider region and Europe," the HNS declaration states, emphasizing that the current structure of the state of BiH is unacceptable from the perspective of the Croatian people because, among other things, it denies them the right to be represented by their legitimate representatives in government based on the "unjust" Constitution and Election Law.

The current structure of BiH denies the right to freely dispose of the results of their labor through the transfer of financial resources generated by people and companies in predominantly Croatian municipalities and cantons; it denies the right to freely dispose of natural resources in areas where they have lived for centuries, through unjust imposed laws, passed by outvoting, or political violence; it does not allow the Croatian people to develop in their national and cultural identity, denying them the right to establish public electronic media; it exposes them to disproportionate risks of politically and ethnically motivated judicial repression because representatives of the other two peoples, or Croats largely elected by them, play a decisive role in the repressive apparatus and highest judicial bodies – the declaration states, warning that due to all of the above, Croats, especially the vital and fertile population, are leaving Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Therefore, it is necessary to undertake a fundamental constitutional reform, including a new, more rational territorial organization of the country, which will equally respect its three national entities through the consistent operationalization of the principles from the preamble of the Dayton Constitution regarding the constitutiveness of peoples," the HNS states in the adopted Declaration.

The HNS BiH believes that internal consensus on such constitutional reform is difficult to expect given past attempts at constitutional reform, and therefore proposes a new international conference on BiH and a new constitution that will create a symmetrical federal state in relation to the three constituent peoples.

The Croatian National Assembly believes that injustices, illogicalities, and irrationalities that have so far caused national frustrations and blockades in the functioning of the system must be urgently corrected. The declaration states that it is necessary to immediately amend the Constitution and the Election Law regarding the election of members of the Presidency, and the Election Law in the part concerning the election of delegates to the House of Peoples of the Federation of BiH and the Council of Peoples of Republika Srpska. Furthermore, it is necessary to adopt the necessary amendments that will equalize the powers of the Houses of Representatives and the Houses of Peoples in confirming the executive government and ensure that decisions in the Houses of Peoples require, in addition to a general majority, a majority of the constituent peoples' caucuses.

The HNS believes that it is necessary to immediately change the laws on entity governments in such a way that the support of one-third of the representatives of each constituent people is necessary for decision-making in entity governments, and that it is necessary to immediately implement the decision of the Constitutional Court of BiH concerning the city of Mostar with the aim of equalizing Mostar with other units of local self-government.

A new Law on the Public Broadcasting System must be adopted immediately, in which the three national entities and identities in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be clearly recognized, and the tax system must be reformed with the aim of fair collection and distribution of public revenues, the declaration states.

The Euro-Atlantic path of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the opinion of the HNS BiH, along with constitutional changes, is the most important strategic priority and contribution to peace and stability. Therefore, the HNS believes that it is necessary to immediately proceed with fulfilling the conditions for launching the Membership Action Plan (MAP) as the first step towards NATO membership, then to make appropriate decisions and fulfill the conditions for the ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement, and to adopt an effective coordination mechanism so that Bosnia and Herzegovina can "speak with a common voice" towards the EU and obtain candidate status for EU membership in the next three-year period.

In the declaration, the Croatian National Assembly touched upon the relationship towards the participants of the Homeland War, emphasizing that they give the Homeland War the dignity it deserves as one of the greatest sacred values of the Croatian people.

"Therefore, we will strongly and decisively oppose any distortion of historical facts and truths about the Homeland War, and the endangerment of the reputation and dignity of Croatian defenders," the declaration states, emphasizing that they will decisively oppose the frequent attempts to criminalize the Homeland War, by declaring the legitimate armed forces of the Croatian people (HVO) as aggressor forces, and through indiscriminate and tendentious indictments, usually based on command responsibility towards HVO commanders.

"On this occasion as well, we reject the qualification of the Hague Tribunal regarding a joint criminal enterprise, which is groundlessly and unjustifiably attributed to the Croatian Republic of Herceg-Bosna and the HVO, because it is a dangerous political manipulation and not in the service of justice, but of the projected war aims of those who, first through war and then through an unjust Constitution and its violent revisions, intended to eliminate the Croatian people from Bosnia and Herzegovina as a constitutional constituent and political subject.

It is a historical truth that the HZ and HR H-B, as well as its armed force, the Croatian Defence Council, decisively contributed to the preservation and defense of BiH, and that it is incorporated into the foundations of the Washington and Dayton Peace Agreements," the declaration states.

The HNS BiH noted in the declaration that legal uncertainty and corruption represent a major obstacle to the development of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the establishment of a competitive economy and social justice, and attracting foreign investment, and therefore believes that the broadest political and social consensus should be reached for an effective fight against corruption.

Furthermore, it is necessary to make the necessary legal changes that will improve the system of appointments to key prosecutorial and judicial positions with the aim of independence and accountability, and to initiate the reform and upgrade of the system of law enforcement agencies in terms of better interconnection and coherence of the entire system, the HNS states.

The declaration also mentions education, culture, and economy as means of social development. The HNS believes that quality education in line with the highest world standards, and the institutional preservation and development of cultural identity, also have the potential to be the main means of overall social development for the Croatian people in BiH. Regarding the economy, they believe that it is necessary to abandon the current quasi-socialist philosophy, still practiced by certain policies in BiH, which is characterized by the general socialization of failures in transformation, privatization, and management of the remnants of pre-war "economic giants," early retirement, or shifting the burden to budgets, health, and social funds through new borrowing, shifting the burden to those citizens and parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina that have long abandoned such a social philosophy and opted for a market-oriented and socially responsible economy.

"Instead, it is necessary, through necessary reforms, including constitutional and economic programs, to create a stable political and institutional environment attractive to investors from home and abroad, improve the capacity to utilize European funds, and by putting all natural and human capacities into function, contribute to economic development and social well-being," the declaration states.