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SARAJEVO, December 11 (FENA) - All-present corruption in Bosnia and Herzegovina leads to a kind of institutional paralysis, and key problems in this regard continue to be related to the public procurement process and the unsustainable situation with the judiciary, which is under political control, and to the absence of an adequate legal framework in accordance with the 14 priorities from the Opinion of the European Commission, it was pointed out today in Sarajevo at the opening of the conference "20 years later, Western Balkans and BiH - has corruption won?", held with the financial support of the Swedish Development Agency (SIDA) and organized by Transparency International in BiH (TIBiH).
Srđan Blagovčanin, Chairman of the TI BiH Steering Board, emphasized in a statement before the meeting, that the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH and other parliaments in BiH, unfortunately, has not expressed readiness to adequately tackle the problem of corruption and to adopt adequate laws, first of all, the ones on the Law on Conflict of Interest, the Law on Public Procurement, the Law on Financing of Political Parties and the new law on the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH.
He assessed, at the same time, that corruption is a complex issue and that there is no quick solution, and that pressure on the authorities is needed, including insistence on the implementation of appropriate reforms, as well as the support of the international community.
"The fight against corruption is an issue of all issues in BiH. Without progress in the fight against corruption, it is certainly not possible to solve any other problem in the country," said Blagovčanin.
The participants of the conference were greeted via video link by the Ambassador of the United States to Bosnia and Herzegovina Eric Nelson, emphasizing that the fight against corruption deserves special attention every day in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"I will not quote many reports that, unfortunately, identify corruption as deeply rooted in all segments of society in BiH and as an obstacle to Euro-Atlantic integration. That would take too long. What I want to emphasize is that corruption is a major stumbling block on the road to BiH self-sustainability. Tackling corruption is a precondition for a country to work on its own development without relying on international support," Nelson said.
He added that the US government, as a longtime friend of BiH, would continue to help BiH citizens fight corruption.
"The progress in BiH in the last 20 years has not been stopped by a lack of finances or local expertise. Progress has been halted by irresponsible politicians who have found too many ways to force the justice and business sector to work for them, not for the citizens. This has led to the erosion of democracy in BiH and has led to the spread of cynicism and mistrust among the people," said Ambassador Nelson, adding that he remains optimistic and believes that corruption will not win.
The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to BiH, Johanna Strömquist, also expressed her support for the conference via video link, stating that the presence of corruption undermines trust in the system and its institutions, as well as fundamental democratic values.
Strengthening democratic processes, she said, creates stability and security and is a condition for economic growth and prosperity.
In that context, the Swedish Ambassador reaffirmed the readiness of her country's government to intensify support for institutions that are on the line of growth of democratic processes, including assistance in the fight against corruption, which is at the very top of priorities.
"Strengthening the capacities to fight corruption is one of the key priorities and BiH must make significant progress in this regard in order to become a candidate country for membership in the European Union," said, among other things, Ambassador Strömquist.
Ahead of the conference, Alena Kurspahić, Chief Disciplinary Prosecutor at the HJPC, told reporters that BiH was recognized by the European Commission as a country where corruption is widespread and where all levels of government in BiH show signs of being captives of a corrupt system.
Kurspahić is of the opinion that the judiciary is no exception in this regard and that what is encouraging at the moment is the efforts of the international community and its commitment to reform, especially judicial reform, which should establish new mechanisms to finally liberate the state and society out of the shackles of political captivity.
(FENA) S. R.
