Council of Europe Resolute: BiH Authorities Must Eliminate Discrimination and Implement Court Rulings

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe has called on the authorities and political leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina to reach a consensus on the necessary amendments to the country's Constitution and electoral legislation so that the General Elections scheduled for October next year can be held in full compliance with the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights, the Council of Europe announced today.

"Supervising the execution of the Court's judgments in the group 'Sejdić and Finci group of five cases', the Committee adopted an Interim Resolution this week reiterating that it is of crucial importance for Bosnia and Herzegovina to fully comply with the Court's judgments.

The Committee noted with great concern that, if the state takes no measures, 12 years after the Sejdić and Finci judgment and despite repeated calls for progress, the fourth election will be held under the current discriminatory system, thereby clearly violating the European Convention on Human Rights.

Noting that the Inter-Ministerial Working Group tasked with preparing amendments to the electoral legislation has not met since 23 July 2021, the Committee once again called on all actors involved in the electoral reform process to ensure that the group resumes its work as a priority.

At the same time, the Committee of Ministers noted the efforts in the area of electoral reform and the commitment of the authorities and political leaders to implement the Court's judgments fully and effectively during the recent visit of members of the Council of Europe Secretariat to Bosnia and Herzegovina (9-10 November 2021).

The Committee noted that the Council of Europe is ready to assist the authorities in the country, calling on them to use all the expertise of the Council of Europe – particularly that of the Venice Commission – to quickly reach a consensus on electoral reform.

The Committee of Ministers will review these cases in March 2022. If no concrete progress is achieved by then, the Committee confirmed its readiness to take further action to ensure that Bosnia and Herzegovina fully and effectively complies with its obligations arising from the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights", the announcement stated.