Stjepan Mesić: By voting for Komšić, Bosniaks showed a civilisational step forward

SARAJEVO, (Patria) – Commenting on pressures from the Republic of Croatia, whose political leadership demands amendments to the Election Law in Bosnia and Herzegovina, accusing Bosniaks of electing the Croatian member of the BiH Presidency, former Croatian President Stjepan Mesić said that if Croats in BiH had wanted Dragan Čović in the BiH Presidency, they would have turned out en masse in the October elections and elected him.

"It is obvious that they did not want him," Mesić said on Thursday evening on the Dnevnik D programme of Federal Television, as reported by Patria.

Former Croatian President Mesić believes that the fact that some Bosniaks voted for Komšić should have been praised, because, he said, "a civilisational step forward occurred within the Bosniak corps."

"That is a civilisational step forward showing that Bosnia has a future," Mesić said.

Asked whether the Democratic Front, whose president and founder is Željko Komšić, should have entered government after the elections in BiH, Mesić said that this should have happened "for the sake of democratic health in Bosnia and Herzegovina."

The former Croatian President does not believe that the current political leadership of that country is pursuing a good policy towards BiH. He said there is no difference between the official policies of Belgrade and Zagreb towards Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Clearly, there is something in the rhetoric, but in the policy itself there is not," Mesić said, adding that Belgrade also says it is for a unified Bosnia and Herzegovina, but then supports Milorad Dodik in everything, who does not recognise Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"Croatian policy is for a whole Bosnia and Herzegovina, but they support Dragan Čović in everything, and his policy, and Dragan Čović follows the path of Milorad Dodik, only in different terminology," Mesić said.