“The DNS received more than 63,000
votes or 50% more than in the previous local election. Our policy is reaching
our citizens slowly but surely and our deeds are becoming visible in a wider
territory,” Pavić says in an interview with Srna.
The DNS got councillors in nearly all
municipalities in the Republika Srpska and in three municipalities in the
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), as well as two mayors individually
and five mayors in coalitions. “It’s important to note that the DNS received
extraordinary support of voters in the cities of Banja Luka, Bijeljina,
Prijedor and Doboj,” he said.
As the negative event of 2012, Pavić
singled out the decision of the Central Election Commission, which did not approve
a repeat election in Srebrenica due to outvoting.
“The DNS believes that the election in
Srebrenica was not determined by democratic principles, but the manipulation of
election laws and political interests, instead of the voters who have realistic
interests of living in Srebrenica,” underlined Pavic.
In his opinion, the year 2013, which
is predicted to be difficult financially, the Government of the Republika
Srpska should take all measures to ensure that the economy is operational under
such conditions.
“There has to be vigorous action in
order to allow investments to come in so that a long-term crisis does not
destroy entrepreneurship all over again. Politics must in no case be an
obstacle on the road to economic recovery. Institutions must operate and create
conditions for progress,” said Pavić.
When it comes to the negotiations on
the Sejdic-Finci ruling, Pavic said it should be the institutions that decide
on the issue, not the party leaders.
“Where is there a place where things
are agreed bypassing the governments, parliaments, presidencies? And where such
agreements then put the parliaments and bodies under the obligation to
implement them? It’s unbelievable that the highest bodies of authority should
be put under obligation by such agreements,” said Pavic.
In his opinion, the case of Sejdic-Finci
vs. BiH should be dealt with by the State Presidency, in which the interests of
the constitutive peoples are clustered.
The DNS opposes the idea that the
Peace Implementation Council or anyone else should decide which constitutional
changes will be made. “We will back a change to the Constitution in accordance
with the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling, but nothing more than that,”
he said.
As for the reorganisation of the
Federation of BiH, he says that the main problem, which was also established by
the Venice Commission, is that authority within the Entity is organised very
poorly and that the realistic and democratic mechanisms to protect the rights
of all constitutive peoples are not developed enough. These problems should be
resolved by the Federation itself, said Pavic.
With respect to military property,
Pavic believes that the Republika Srpska’s suggestion of a solution to this
problem is a good one and that it should be persistently pursued.
“In order to achieve economic growth,
the DNS demands a rationalisation of institutions, both on the BiH level and at
the Republika Srpska level, a rationalisation and harmonisation of personnel,
not only in terms of their number but also in terms of their expertise,” said
Pavic.
Economic growth should be based on
public goods which should never be privatised, he concluded.
Pavic added that the events that
marked 2012 in the region and around the world were the elections in Croatia
and Serbia, the conflict in Syria, turmoil in Egypt and Israel, Olympic Games
in London, and the appointment of Vuk Jeremić as the President of the UN
General Assembly.
(Srna/Frontal)
