US secretary of state tells students they should press leaders to embrace multi-ethnic society
Associated Press in Sarajevo
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 12 October 2010 16.22 BST
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 12 October 2010 16.22 BST
The US secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, today challenged all sides in Bosnia to embrace the political reform needed for EU and Nato membership.
Speaking in Sarajevo, Clinton told university students they should urge their leaders to embrace a multi-ethnic society and pledged continued US support towards that aim.
Earlier, she told Bosnian leaders to make EU membership a priority and implement the necessary constitutional reforms.
"These reforms are needed for their own sake," she said. "But they are also needed if your country is to fulfil the goal of becoming part of the European Union and Nato.
"Your neighbours have taken strides in that direction because they know there is no better way to achieve sustained economic growth and long-term political stability than by integrating with Europe."
She told students from Sarajevo – at the centre of the civil war between 1992 and 1995 – that "now is the time to strengthen democratic institutions, deepen peace between neighbours and create the conditions for long-term political, economic, and social progress".
"You have come too far ... you have too much to lose if you do not overcome these differences," she said.
US officials have said a key element of reform is changing a constitutional provision that prohibits anyone other than Bosniaks, Serbs or Croats from being president – a limitation excluding Jews, Roma or other minorities from elected leadership positions.
"No one will create a stable and prosperous future for this country by stoking the animosities of the past," Clinton said. "The only way forward lies in working together towards shared aspirations."
Fifteen years after the US-brokered Dayton peace accords ended the civil war, Bosnia's three main ethnic groups still disagree over the future of the country.
Bosniaks – Bosnian Muslims – and Croats want reforms to make the weak central government stronger, while Bosnia's Serb community fears that measure would rob them of their autonomy.
Clinton stressed she was not trying to impose reform, adding: "You have to do it for yourselves, but the United States will be with you every step of the way."
Several students spoken to by Clinton at Sarajevo's historic National Theatre questioned Washington's resolve.
"I came to see how the Americans are viewing us now," said Aleksandra Vejnovic, 20, a law student. "They have started this project, they wrote our constitution and it doesn't work.
"Then they neglected us and left us alone. I came to see if they are willing to finish what they have started, because we can't do it ourselves."
At the office of the presidency – shared by a Serb, a Croat and a Muslim – Clinton said she had encouraged the country's leadership, one-third of which will change on the basis of recent elections, to come together for the sake of the country's prosperity.
"I was very clear that there have to be actions taken that move the country towards greater stability," she said.
However, hopes that will happen remain slim. While some faces changed in the October 3 vote, most Bosnians voted along ethnic lines again, reinforcing deadlock over the country's future.
Although most Bosniaks and many Croats want a unified state, Bosnia's Serbs overwhelmingly support leaders who want to break away from the rest of Bosnia.
Asked about Bosnian Serb aspirations to secede and create their own ethnic state, Clinton said the US only supported a united Bosnia within the EU.
"A united nation ... can be an incredibly powerful presence in Europe," she said. "Your diversity will be your strength. Your pluralism will be your ticket to greater opportunities."
"If you can overcome the reminiscence of divisiveness, there is no limit to your future. If you cannot, then I fear you will find yourself in a state of paralysis and any attempt to be a separate country will fall as there will be no recognition, there will be no willingness to work with that entity."
After dedicating a new US embassy in Sarajevo, Clinton met the secessionist-leaning Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, who later told reporters he still did not favour a revamped constitution strengthening central government powers. Instead, he said, any changes should "give ethnic groups the right to self-determination."
From Bosnia, Clinton goes to Serbia to push leaders for a speedy start to talks with Kosovo, which declared independence from Belgrade in 2008.
The Serbian president, Boris Tadic, said he was ready to participate in the talks but would never recognise Kosovo's secession.
Speaking in Sarajevo, Clinton told university students they should urge their leaders to embrace a multi-ethnic society and pledged continued US support towards that aim.
Earlier, she told Bosnian leaders to make EU membership a priority and implement the necessary constitutional reforms.
"These reforms are needed for their own sake," she said. "But they are also needed if your country is to fulfil the goal of becoming part of the European Union and Nato.
"Your neighbours have taken strides in that direction because they know there is no better way to achieve sustained economic growth and long-term political stability than by integrating with Europe."
She told students from Sarajevo – at the centre of the civil war between 1992 and 1995 – that "now is the time to strengthen democratic institutions, deepen peace between neighbours and create the conditions for long-term political, economic, and social progress".
"You have come too far ... you have too much to lose if you do not overcome these differences," she said.
US officials have said a key element of reform is changing a constitutional provision that prohibits anyone other than Bosniaks, Serbs or Croats from being president – a limitation excluding Jews, Roma or other minorities from elected leadership positions.
"No one will create a stable and prosperous future for this country by stoking the animosities of the past," Clinton said. "The only way forward lies in working together towards shared aspirations."
Fifteen years after the US-brokered Dayton peace accords ended the civil war, Bosnia's three main ethnic groups still disagree over the future of the country.
Bosniaks – Bosnian Muslims – and Croats want reforms to make the weak central government stronger, while Bosnia's Serb community fears that measure would rob them of their autonomy.
Clinton stressed she was not trying to impose reform, adding: "You have to do it for yourselves, but the United States will be with you every step of the way."
Several students spoken to by Clinton at Sarajevo's historic National Theatre questioned Washington's resolve.
"I came to see how the Americans are viewing us now," said Aleksandra Vejnovic, 20, a law student. "They have started this project, they wrote our constitution and it doesn't work.
"Then they neglected us and left us alone. I came to see if they are willing to finish what they have started, because we can't do it ourselves."
At the office of the presidency – shared by a Serb, a Croat and a Muslim – Clinton said she had encouraged the country's leadership, one-third of which will change on the basis of recent elections, to come together for the sake of the country's prosperity.
"I was very clear that there have to be actions taken that move the country towards greater stability," she said.
However, hopes that will happen remain slim. While some faces changed in the October 3 vote, most Bosnians voted along ethnic lines again, reinforcing deadlock over the country's future.
Although most Bosniaks and many Croats want a unified state, Bosnia's Serbs overwhelmingly support leaders who want to break away from the rest of Bosnia.
Asked about Bosnian Serb aspirations to secede and create their own ethnic state, Clinton said the US only supported a united Bosnia within the EU.
"A united nation ... can be an incredibly powerful presence in Europe," she said. "Your diversity will be your strength. Your pluralism will be your ticket to greater opportunities."
"If you can overcome the reminiscence of divisiveness, there is no limit to your future. If you cannot, then I fear you will find yourself in a state of paralysis and any attempt to be a separate country will fall as there will be no recognition, there will be no willingness to work with that entity."
After dedicating a new US embassy in Sarajevo, Clinton met the secessionist-leaning Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, who later told reporters he still did not favour a revamped constitution strengthening central government powers. Instead, he said, any changes should "give ethnic groups the right to self-determination."
From Bosnia, Clinton goes to Serbia to push leaders for a speedy start to talks with Kosovo, which declared independence from Belgrade in 2008.
The Serbian president, Boris Tadic, said he was ready to participate in the talks but would never recognise Kosovo's secession.
guardian
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