Bosnian Serb Leader Blamed For Fomenting Crisis

Bakir Izetbegovic, son of Bosnia's wartime leader, a member of the state presidency, has told the President of the Bosnian Serb entity, the Republika Srpska, to tone down his language.

In an open letter penned to Radio Free Europe he said Dodik's rhetoric was in danger of fomenting new conflicts in the divided country with his constant talk of secession. 

Izetbegovic said Dodik's positions were based on unfounded and arbitrary claims and that they did not contribute to reconciliation, mutual respect and the development of democracy within Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

“Talks about referendums, about Bosnia-Herzegovina’s unsustainability, inability to live together, and about the state as a failed experiment of the international community, continuously poison the public and create anxiety among people in the entire country,” the Bosniak [Muslim] presidency member said. 

He accused Dodik of pushing Bosnia into one of its worst crises since the signing of the 1995 Dayton Accords that ended the 1992-5 war in Bosnia. Reforms were blocked, the country was lagging behind the entire region in the European integration process and ethnic reconciliation had been halted by rising tensions. 

“You, Mr Dodik, will personally bear all responsibility if the conflicts that you are provoking in your public appearances happen,” Izetbegovic said, calling on Dodik to direct his energy towards more constructive goals.

“With a little effort from Bosnia-Herzegovina's political leaders we can move forward, catch up with our neighbours and soon become an equal, prosperous and credible member of the European Union. Be an engine, not a brake, on processes that have no alternative,” he said.

The letter was a response to an earlier interview that Dodik gave to Radio Free Europe in which he called Bosnia a failed international experiment, adding that the vast majority of Serbs overwhelmingly wanted out.

Dodik said it was clear that the Muslims wanted to dominate Bosnia and marginalize and subjugate the country's smaller Christian Serb and Croat communities.

Bosnia comprises two highly autonomous entities, the Bosniak and Croat dominated Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska. Disagreements between the two entities have prevented the formation of a state government for more than a year.