National Minorities in BiH Dissatisfied with Their Status: We Are Not in Institutions, Not in Executive or Legislative Power

(Patria) - Members of the Council of National Minorities of BiH discussed at the 33rd session the Draft
Minutes of the 2nd Thematic Session of the Council of National Minorities of BiH, held on June 30, 2025, on Jahorina, which discussed the role of representatives of national minorities in institutions of legislative and executive power at all levels in BiH. In connection with this topic, members of the Council of National Minorities of BiH adopted the following conclusions:

1. The Council of National Minorities of BiH notes with regret that at all levels of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the provisions of the Law on the Protection of Rights of Members of National Minorities are neither respected nor applied, which guarantees representatives of national minorities in BiH the right to be represented in government bodies and other public services at all levels, proportionally to their percentage of the population according to the last census in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In this regard, the Council of National Minorities of BiH appeals to all leading political parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina to urgently undertake amendments to the Constitution of BiH and the Election Law of BiH so that representatives of national minorities, in accordance with international documents and judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, can be elected and represented in legislative and executive bodies at all levels of government in BiH.

2. The Council of National Minorities of BiH emphasizes the fact that representatives of national minorities are increasingly less represented in local assemblies, where in the last local elections only 23 members of national minorities were elected in 21 local assemblies throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina.

They also warned that in several municipalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where more than three percent of members of national minorities and others live, the legal right to representation of national minority representatives in the assemblies of those local communities has not been ensured. The Council will send an initiative requesting that all municipalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina where more than three percent of national minority representatives live change their statutes as soon as possible and ensure the legally guaranteed representation of national minority representatives in municipal assemblies.

It was also agreed that the 2nd Conference of National Minorities of BiH on the topic “The Role of National Minorities in BiH and Participation in Legislative and Executive Power” will be held on October 29.

Representatives of councils/committees of national minorities from BiH, as well as representatives of relevant domestic and international institutions, will be invited to the session.