Zornić to Europe: After years of silence, the first response arrives while a member of a party supporting discrimination leads reforms

(Patria) - As time for electoral reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina is irreversibly running out, and the 2026 elections threaten to be held again under discriminatory rules, the applicant in the historic case "Zornić v. Bosnia and Herzegovina", Azra Zornić, has sent another sharp appeal to the European Committee of Ministers (C0MCoE).

"Her request of February 4, however, carries with it one important, albeit bitter, detail: this is the first time that, after years of regular six-month appeals, she has received any formal response from the Committee.

This fragile sign of communication comes at a time when, behind the formal reports on the work of the "Working Group" for electoral reforms, led by the Minister of Justice Davor Bunoza, a more burning question arises: how can a personally involved member of a party ideologically tied to the concept of "constituent peoples" sincerely lead the process of their abolition?

Ritual of Inaction Before Europe's Eyes

In his latest report to the Committee of Ministers, Minister Bunoza (HDZ BiH) states that the Working Group, which was supposed to resolve the years-long blockade, has only received three proposals for constitutional amendments, but has not even considered them.

The next meeting is scheduled for February 18, which means that, just a few months before the elections are called, the core of the problem has still not been addressed.

Such "progress" comes after 16 years of ignoring the "Sejdić and Finci" judgment and after a series of futile promises, including those from the last coalition agreement in 2022.

In her request to Europe, Zornić implicitly criticizes this delaying strategy, demanding urgent action to prevent citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina from facing discriminatory elections for the seventh time. The fact that her persistent work has so far gone unanswered, and that a response is only now emerging as the deadline approaches, only confirms the perception that action is taken only under the greatest pressure.

Conflict of Interest at the Head of the Reform Process

The biggest problem, according to analysts, is not just the slow procedure, but also the person appointed to lead it. Davor Bunoza, as a long-time member and official of the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ BiH), belongs to a party whose fundamental ideology is the protection of the interests of the "constituent Croatian people" through the mechanism of consociation.

It is precisely this mechanism, which divides Bosnia and Herzegovina into ethnic categories, that the European Court has declared discriminatory.

The question of conflict of interest arises: can a politician whose party lives by and for ethnic division sincerely work towards its abolition? Can the Minister of Justice, whose party insists on "constituent status", lead a process that is precisely meant to remove it from the Constitution?

Time for a Political, Not Just Procedural Decision

Azra Zornić's request is not just a personal fight for the right to run for the Presidency of BiH. It is a symbol of the struggle of tens of thousands of citizens – the "Others" – who are excluded from key political processes. It is also a test of credibility for European institutions that have been pressuring Sarajevo for years but are facing a wall of domestic political resistance.

As the deadline for the Committee of Ministers meeting approaches, where a decision will be made on potential new measures against Bosnia and Herzegovina, the message is clear: it is time for results, not for new meetings.

And as long as politicians whose interests are in direct conflict with the goals of these reforms are at the head of the reform process, the doubt about the sincerity of the entire process, confirmed by the Committee itself through years of silence and now slow responses, remains more than justified.