Expressing discontent and concern with the general state of affairs in which the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina have had growing difficulties exercising their rights, the Helsinki Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina wanted to use the occasion of 10 December, the Day of Human Rights, to particularly stress the issues in the fields of social protection, education and environment. (11-DEC-07)

This article is based on the press release issued by the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The release has been edited for publication here by HRH / Mirsad Pandzic.

Implementation of the Mid-Term Development Strategy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was adopted at all levels of government in March 2004, should have been implemented by the end of this year. Over 50 non-governmental organizations have monitored in a coordinated manner the activities of Bosnian authorities on ensuring conditions for self-sustainable and harmonized development, reducing of poverty and speeding up the process of integration into the European Union. These three goals have constituted the fundamental contents of the Strategy.

The performance of authorities in achieving the said goals is best reflected in the overview and analysis of implementation of measures and activities in the fields of social protection, education and environment, particularly from the aspect of respect for human rights.

In brief, the NGO sector has concluded with supporting arguments that “progress was not achieved, nor serious steps taken for achieving of any of the goals” in any of these segments – social protection, education and environment.

Social issues
There has been no progress in implementation of recommendations of the UN Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights from January 2006. The European Social Charter has not been ratified yet. Legislation that would define a minimum of social protection in an appropriate way was not adopted. There is no social map of the population or initiative of the state to implement projects in order to deal with needs of around 50 per cent of population living below or on the poverty line. Around 500,000 people are unemployed, and the official estimated unemployment rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina is around 46 per cent. The Association of Independent Trade Unions of Bosnia and Herzegovina has warned that the average cost of living is 2.5 higher than the average salary, and even five times higher than the average monthly pension.

Education
Discrimination and politicisation are still present in the field of education. Education is increasingly becoming a mechanism for expression of divisions in a multiethnic society. Discriminatory practices are still present, particularly in the system of the so-called “two-schools under one roof”, the access of Roma children and socially vulnerably children to primary, secondary and tertiary education has not been promoted sufficiently, which had been recommended by the UN Committee and the Council of Europe. This contributes to a long-lasting, systematic strengthening of nationalisms and ethnic intolerance in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Bologna Declaration and the Lisbon Convention should have been implemented for a long time already, but the condition for this was adoption of the Law on Higher Education in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was adopted as late as August 2007.

Environment
Implementation of existing legislation in the field of environment protection is poor, and the awareness about environment is low. It is generally observed that despite the Mid-Term Development Strategy, the National Plan for Environment Protection and Revised Mid-Term Development Strategy, the state does not have a clear vision for development of this sector. The Law on Environment Protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina has not been adopted yet, despite the fact that it has been seen as the condition for implementation of a series of other measures and activities planned.

In their press release, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina urged all representatives of the government at all levels of authority to take all necessary measures under full responsibility and secure conditions for effectuation of all citizens’ rights, as guaranteed by the Constitution of this country and international documents that Bosnia and Herzegovina has agreed to implement.