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Bosnian Election Ad May Violate Karadzic Deal
‘He is a symbol of Serb heroism and many rightly
By Mark Heinrich
A newspaper advertisement promoting candidates linked to the former Bosnian Serb president was the first concrete sign of Serb non-compliance with a U.S.-engineered accord last week under which Karadzic renounced all political powers and appearances in the media.
Western organisers of the September 14 elections, aimed at reunifying Bosnia, had set Karadzic's removal as a condition for certifying his nationalist SDS party to campaign in the one half of Bosnia controlled by Serbs. Individuals indicted by the U.N. war crimes tribunal on former Yugoslavia were banned from political activity by the 1995 Dayton peace treaty to endow follow-up elections with international legitimacy.
Pressed as to whether the advertisement would be the sort of violation that would lead to a ban of the SDS from the elections, she said only: "(Ads) related to the SDS and elections with Karadzic on them would not be acceptable." The SDS advertisement in a Serb emigre newspaper, Vesti, in Frankfurt, Germany appealed to Serbs and non-Serbs to vote for party leaders as "the closest associates of Radovan Karadzic."
"They are the closest associates of Karadzic, the firm fighter for a free and democratic (Bosnian) Serb Republic," said the ad quoted by the independent Serbian news agency Beta. "Our enemies hate him because he cannot be blackmailed and because he will not sell the Serb Republic obtained painfully at any price. He is a symbol of Serb heroism and many rightly compare him to the greatest figures of our history."
Critics of Friday's agreement prising Karadzic from public power and influence said he would continue calling the shots in the Serb entity from behind the scenes unless he were arrested and shipped to The Hague for a war-crimes trial.
Aleksa Buha, Karadzic's successor as SDS chairman, was quoted by the German news magazine Der Spiegel this week as saying he would keep seeking advice from Karadzic. "I will consult with all intelligent people -- not just Dr Karadzic, but certainly including him," Buha said. |
TRNOVO, Bosnia, July 23 (Reuters) - Bosnia's election organisers said on Tuesday that Serb campaigning for candidates described as "associates of Radovan Karadzic" seemed to violate a ban on political activity by the indicted war criminal.
"We didn't know of this advertisement in advance and will take it up with the (SDS) authorities," said Joanna van Vliet of the Bosnia office of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is staging the vote. "I am not saying we are going to negotiate the issue. Dr Karadzic explicitly stated he would not appear in public or the media related to the elections," she told a news conference in Serb-controlled territory south of Sarajevo.
Berserkistan, July 22 · Bosnia’s Election Looking Like 'Mission Impossible'
Berserkistan, July 22 · International Monitors Arrive in Bosnia to Supervise Elections
Berserkistan, July 22 · Croats to Boycott Newly-Elected Mostar City Council
Berserkistan, July 19 · Bosnian Refugees Can Register to Vote via Internet
Berserkistan, July 19 · SDS Party Will be Certified for Bosnian Election
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