Prof. Carole Hodge: Both the High Representative and the Croatian Government Had an Interest in the Kovacevic Case Failing

(Patria) - Prof. Dr. Carole Hodge from the University of Glasgow believes that the decision in the 'Kovacevic case' condemns Bosnian citizens to live in a discriminatory system for an indefinite future with little or no chance of joining Euro-Atlantic integrations.

Had this case before the European Court been resolved positively, it would have brought enormous changes to Bosnia and Herzegovina and encouraged the return of Bosnians and Herzegovinians who are now scattered around the world.

"I have met many who wanted to do that. It would galvanise the economy and give Bosnia a much better chance of joining the European Union and NATO. The decision is a parody of justice," said Hodge, among other things, as an introductory speaker at today's session of the independent association of intellectuals "Krug 99" in Sarajevo on the topic "The Kovacevic Case before the European Court of Human Rights: Legal and Political Considerations".

Hodge stated that she listened to the appeal hearing held on 20 November last year and noted several anomalies.

"On the one hand, the hearing was directed against Slaven Kovacevic because there were two so-called 'third parties' that should have been impartial. One of the third parties was the Croatian government; the other was the High Representative. They were allowed an additional half hour to present their argument. Both the High Representative and the Croatian government had an interest in the Kovacevic case failing because the current system of ethno-nationalist discrimination, along with the changes to the Election Law introduced by the High Representative just one hour after the end of the general elections in Bosnia in October 2022, was further strengthened. These electoral changes made it easier to control high ministerial positions by the Croatian ethno-nationalist party HDZ in the Federation of BiH. Their argument was that they were underrepresented in the Dayton Constitution. In the last census, Bosnian Croats made up about 15 percent of the population, but certainly not all Bosnian Croats are ethno-nationalists or supporters of the HDZ. Through the electoral changes introduced by the High Representative, their share in the Federation government significantly exceeds their numbers. And interestingly, the Croatian government donated one hundred thousand euros to the European Court of Human Rights just before the November appeal hearing," said Carole Hodge.

The High Representative was represented by a very prominent British lawyer, also the British representative on the Venice Commission, which, like the European Court of Human Rights, is part of the Council of Europe, which, as Hodge points out, could call into question his suitability due to a conflict of interest.

The High Representative's argument is that changing the Constitution at this time would lead to increased political unrest in a fragile security moment in Bosnia. But that is ironic, Hodge believes, since unrest has exponentially increased since this High Representative arrived. So, BiH's appeal in this case effectively had the support of two 'third parties' that were supposedly impartial.

There is also the issue of the composition of the Bosnian government delegation. One of the judges asked about the ethnic composition of the delegation. Representative Mijic replied that they were completely impartial, that three members of the Bosnian judiciary were present in court.

- What she did not explain is that two ministers were either members of the HDZ or associated with it, and the third was a member of the SNSD. In other words, there was no Bosniak representative. Nor was there a representative of Jews, Roma, or Others, those who did not wish to identify with a particular ethnic group. This fact was actually not noted in the appeal proceedings, so some judges may not have been aware that the officials present did not represent the majority of the Bosnian population when they made their decisions - these are the words of Carole Hodge.

Had the first-instance verdict from August 2023 been upheld and implemented, citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina would be able to freely vote for a candidate of their choice, without ethnic restrictions, she concluded, among other things.