S/PV.5894
5894th meeting
Monday, 19 May 2008, 10 a.m.
New York
The situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mr. Ettalhi (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, I would like to welcome Mr. Nikola Špirić, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to thank him for his valuable statement. We would like also to thank Mr. Miroslav Lajčák, High Representative for the Implementation of the Peace Agreement in Bosnia and Herzegovina and European Union Special Representative, for his comprehensive briefing. We express our high regard for his efforts.
My country welcomes the progress that has been made by Bosnia and Herzegovina, referred to by the High Representative in his briefing, in particular the reforms undertaken with regard to integration into European institutions, as represented by the agreement among party leaders on a two-phase police reform. The first phase paved the way for the initialling of the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union in December 2007; this was followed by the adoption of the two police reform laws.
We share the concern of the Special Representative with regard to the tensions among parties. Paragraph 8 of his report (see S/2008/300) refers to inter-party tension due to the fact that 2008 is an election year. We also share his concern about unilateral actions to which he referred, and we support his affirmation that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, are guaranteed by the Dayton Peace Agreement. We call upon all parties to find common ground, which would allow them to bring stability to the country.
We would like to record our satisfaction at the agreement among members of the Steering Board on a transition strategy. This will help to sustain the unity of the international community on this issue. We believe that in the next phase, there should be a focus on constitutional reform, on reaching a unified position among the parties, and on consolidating the rule of law, as the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina set out this morning.
My country believes that it is important to consolidate long-term stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This must not be done on the basis of the horrible crimes that were perpetrated during the war in order to entrench the reality of the time. It is of ever greater importance that refugees and internally displaced persons return to their pre-war homes. They should be allowed and enabled to return home, and we should deal with any conditions that prevent them from doing so.
Secondly, all perpetrators of horrible crimes should pay the price. There must be no impunity for the perpetrators of such crimes. That is the basis on which the scope of the national strategy on the prosecution of war crimes must be determined, and we hope that the Bosnian authorities will cooperate in that respect. We welcome what has been achieved by the Chairman of the Council of Ministers in that respect. We value the efforts undertaken on Bosnia and Herzegovina by international and regional stakeholders, and we believe that continuing such efforts is important to bringing about stability, sustainable peace and the development that is needed.
Finally, I would like to express once again our high regard for the efforts of the High Representative.
