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Viewing cable 06SARAJEVO945, BOSNIA: CONSTITUTIONAL COURT RULING AFFIRMS

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
06SARAJEVO945 2006-04-28 11:24 2011-08-30 01:44 CONFIDENTIAL Embassy Sarajevo
VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVJ #0945/01 1181124
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 281124Z APR 06
FM AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3382
INFO RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SARAJEVO 000945 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR (DICARLO), EUR/SCE (RIEHL, FOOKS, ENGLISH), 
EUR/ACE (VISOCAN) AND EB/OMA/ (VOLK/YOUTH) 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USAID 
TREASURY FOR GAERTNER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/21/2016 
TAGS: EFIN ECON PREL PGOV ECIN BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: CONSTITUTIONAL COURT RULING AFFIRMS 
REVENUE ALLOCATION LAW 
 
REF: A. A) STATE 55442 
 
     B. B) SARAJEVO 375 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Dougles L. McElhaney for Reason 1.4(B). 
 
1.  (C)  Summary:  On April 19, the Vital National Interest 
(VNI) panel of the Federation Constitutional Court issued a 
formal decision upholding the USG-backed Law on Revenue 
Allocation (Ref B).  With a resounding majority, the panel 
dismissed HDZ claims that objective and transparent revenue 
allocation violates Croat interests by a vote of 6-1.   The 
Court also reportedly resolved procedural uncertainties 
caused by amendments to the Federation Constitution imposed 
by OHR in 2002 that could have given each of Bosnia's 
constituent peoples an ethnic veto overall all legislation, 
with disastrous implications for future reform (Ref A). 
Specifically, the Court has determined that a finding of VNI 
requires a two-thirds majority of the judges on the panel, 
although this has not yet been tested.  That is good news for 
draft public broadcasting (PBS) legislation, an explicit 
requirement for an EU Stabilization and Association Agreement 
(SAA) and subject of another HDZ VNI claim.  Companion 
legislation at the state level was also subject to a VNI 
challenge, which was overcome only because the state-level 
Constitutional Court decides such matters by majority vote. 
The Court's handling of this case, despite OHR's refusal to 
interpret its own confusing and contradictory amendments, is 
a strong sign of the growing domestic constituency for 
reform, especially when tied to EU accession.  End Summary. 
 
One Good Decision... 
-------------------- 
 
2.  (SBU)  In a much anticipated decision, the Federation 
Constitutional Court released its formal opinion on an HDZ 
VNI challenge to the USG-backed law on revenue allocation on 
April 19.  The Court voted six to one (with the majority 
including one of the two Croat judges on the panel) to reject 
the HDZ's assertion that objective and transparent revenue 
allocation harms Croat interests.  Helpfully, the Court also 
pre-emptively ruled that the law is constitutional, depriving 
the HDZ of its last available legal challenge to the 
legislation.  The law now goes into force, with the 
Federation government required to retroactively adjust 
revenue allocation to comply with the law as of February 14, 
the date parliament approved it. 
 
Deserves Another 
---------------- 
 
3.  (C)  Although the overwhelming majority negated the need, 
the Court also reportedly removed a key uncertainty caused by 
OHR-imposed amendments to the Federation constitution in 
2002:  Exactly how many judges from the seven judge panel 
(which is composed of two Bosniaks, two Croats, two Serbs and 
one "other") are required for a VNI finding?  The provisions 
in question first call for a 2/3 majority of judges to 
decide, within one month of a case held to be admissible, to 
uphold a VNI claim.  However, the next article contains a 
reference to the need for "at least two judges" for a finding 
of VNI.  The resulting confusion opened space for a possible 
interpretation that only two judges were needed to uphold a 
VNI claim, in effect giving each of Bosnia's main constituent 
peoples an ethnic veto over all legislation.  Not 
surprisingly, the HDZ strongly favored such an 
interpretation. 
 
4.  (C)  Unable to understand the VNI procedures as written 
and mindful of the broader issues at stake, the Court 
initially asked for clarification from parliament's 
Constitutional Committee.  The Committee could not deduce the 
intent of the amendments either so both turned to OHR for 
assistance.  In a March 31 letter to High Representative 
Christian Schwarz-Schilling, Court President Nedjo Milicevic 
wrote that, "According to acceptable legal standards, the 
only competent institution that can interpret a provision is 
the institution that passed the provision." 
 
5.  (C)  Despite OHR's leading role in drafting the 
amendments in question, the High Rep decided that this was an 
issue of "local ownership."  The High Rep did, under 
considerable prodding from the U.S. and others, point the 
Federation Court toward the its counterpart in the RS.  The 
RS Constitutional Court operates under the exact same 
language and has already ruled on a number of VNI cases.  It 
requires a two-thirds majority for a finding of VNI.  In the 
end, RS practice was decisive in convincing the Federation 
 
Constitutional Court to adopt similar procedures, although 
this decision has yet to be put into practice. 
 
Next Up, PBS 
------------ 
 
6.  (C)  The Court will now turn to its second VNI challenge, 
draft public broadcasting (PBS) legislation that is a 
requirement for an EU Stabilization and Association Agreement 
(SAA).  This case will sorely test the Court's new procedures 
in the face of strong political pressure.  The HDZ is 
adamantly opposed to the law, insisting that anything less 
than a separate public television channel broadcasting in the 
Croatian language damages Bosnian Croats.  Unlike the revenue 
allocation law, the HDZ has a plausible legal basis for its 
PBS challenge -- the OHR-imposed amendments to the Federation 
constitution define "public information systems" as an 
explicit vital national interest.  The HDZ filed a similar 
VNI case against companion state-level PBS legislation.  This 
challenge was only overcome because the state-level 
Constitutional Court decides such matters by majority vote. 
 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
7.  (C)  The recent ruling clears the last legal obstacle to 
the revenue allocation law, which will radically alter BiH's 
political and economic playing field (Ref B).  Resolution of 
the broader VNI procedural issue is an even bigger victory -- 
granting BiH's constituent peoples an ethnic veto in the 
Federation risked snarling all reform efforts in petty 
politics.  The Court's professionalism under enormous 
pressure is a reflection of the growing domestic constituency 
for reform, especially when linked to EU accession.  End 
Comment. 
 
 
 
MCELHANEY