OUT of the blue, Bosnia’s leaders have agreed to form a government, almost 15 months after the October 2010 general election. The country's politicians had supposedly been on the verge of agreement for so long that most observers had lost faith they would ever be able to strike a deal. There was even talk of a new election.
The deal came on December 28th. “We did not get what we thought we should, but no one got everything they wanted,” said Milorad Dodik, president of the Republika Srpska, the Serbian-dominated half of the country. A corruption investigation into Mr Dodik was dropped on the same day the deal was struck. Vjekoslav Bevanda, a member of one of the two main Bosnian Croat parties, has been nominated for the post of prime minister.
Mr Dodik and the Republika Srpska usually get the blame for the failure of central institutions in Bosnia. But in this case the formation of the Council of Ministers was held up by bitter disputes between the main Croat parties and the technically multi-ethnic, but mostly Bosniak, Social Democratic Party, led by Zlatko Lagumdzija.
Surprise at the deal soon gave way to relief among many observers, although it could be three more months until the government starts work. But Anes Alic, a local analyst, is sceptical that it will bring much change to Bosnia:
What is left of the ruling parties’ mandate (with 15 months already lost) will be characterized by the traditional political obstruction and nationalist rhetoric which the majority of the electorate has grown to accept as par for the course.
Republika Srpksa officials will stay the course of attempting to diminish the power of state institutions, and hints of secession will continue to circulate. Bosnian Croats will continue to work towards the creation of a third entity in the country with a Bosnian Croat majority under the perception that their ethnic identity is under threat. Bosniaks will continue to fight both without any compromise.
Bosnia is in essence a federal state, so most of the everyday work of government is the preserve of its two so-called "entities" (the Republika Srpska and the Bosniak-Croat Federation). But the lack of a central government has stymied European integration, stopped the flow of EU funds and led to a collapse in foreign investment.
Other tasks have been neglected, too. For example, when Croatia joins the EU in July 2013 Bosnia will no longer be able to export eggs, meat and dairy produce to its neighbour because of a lack of agreement on whether it is the state or the entities that should be in charge of veterinary and sanitary regulation.
Bosnia's leaders now say they will tackle several other outstanding issues. One of them is the so-called Sejdic-Finci ruling of the European Court of Human Rights. Under the terms of the Dayton Accords, which ended the Bosnian war in 1995, certain jobs in Bosnia are restricted by ethnicity. Only Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks are eligible for the country’s three-member presidency, for example. The court ruled two years ago that this illegally discriminates against anyone who either is not a member of one of these groups, or who does not want to identify themselves as such.
The inability of Bosnian politicians to get their act together has led to unprecedented levels of gloom about the future of the country. But as Wednesday's deal shows, they are quite capable of working together when they want to. The pity of it is that they have wasted so much time in a country that is already lagging behind in so many areas. (The Economist)
