VZCZCXRO3603
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHVJ #1068/01 1780831
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 260831Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY SARAJEVO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8563
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUFOAOA/USNIC SARAJEVO BK PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001068 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR, EUR/PPD, EUR/PPD-PA, EUR/SCE (HOH, 
SILBERSTEIN, FOOKS, CABRAL), INR/R/MR 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV KPAO BK
SUBJECT: DODIK TARGETS YET ANOTHER STATE INSTITUTION (BHRT) 
 
REF: A. 07 SARAJEVO 1564 
     ¶B. SARAJEVO 90 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary: RS Prime Minister Dodik recently launched 
a frontal attack against BiH's national public broadcaster, 
BHRT, demanding that it be forced into bankruptcy, as part of 
his broader campaign to attack state-level institutions.  As 
he has in other political initiatives, Dodik has sought to 
enlist Croat support for this position by invoking the 
sensitive issue of Croat-language broadcasting and calling 
for the creation of a public broadcasting service to serve 
Croats modeled along the lines of RTRS.  More ominously, 
Dodik threatened that if BHRT were to continue operating as 
it is now, it could lead to the "disappearance" of BiH.  End 
summary. 
 
¶2.  (U)  Drawing from a recent State Auditor report into the 
dysfunction of the public broadcast system, including 
problems with the state-level public broadcaster, BHRT, RS 
Prime Minister Dodik on April 24 called for BHRT to begin 
bankruptcy proceedings and to be liquidated.  He justified 
his call on the grounds that the institution is operating in 
the red (its losses amounted to 25 million KM in 2006) and 
allegations that some of its officials had been involved in 
criminal activities.  Dodik also proposed that the monthly 
subscription fee that Bosnians pay to support Bosnia's public 
broadcasting system be reduced from six to three KM (at the 
current exchange rate 1USD equals 1.25KM).  He noted that 
RTRS was a good example of how a public broadcaster should 
operate, echoing his familiar theme that RS institutions 
function better than those at the state level or in the 
Federation. 
 
¶3.  (U) Dodik went on to assert that Bosnian Croats also 
deserve their own public broadcasting TV channel similar to 
RTRS.  Dodik called for the protection of Croat rights 
through the "elimination" of the existing mono-ethnic 
national public broadcaster, which he described as &full of 
criminals.8 He advocated the creation of a new Croat public 
broadcasting service based in Mostar.  This issue remains 
sensitive for Croat parties which throughout the year have 
sought to invoke vital national interest (VNI) vetoes at both 
the state and Federation levels to block PBS legislation that 
does not include provisions for a Croatian language service. 
As he has on other issues, such as his implied support for a 
third Croat entity, Dodik is again playing to Croat 
sensitivities in order to enlist the support of Croat 
political parties in his efforts to consolidate the 
administrative and political autonomy of the RS. 
 
¶4.  (U) Dodik continued his attack on BHRT by publishing an 
open letter to BHRT and the Federation public television 
broadcaster FTV on April 26, saying that BHRT should have 
been forced into bankruptcy long ago and that Social 
Democratic Party (SDP) leader Zlatko Lagumdzija had been 
using BHRT to work against the RS.  Dodik again stated that 
RS citizens had far too long "been forced to pay expensive 
fees" to support public television that was working against 
RS citizens, interest.  Dodik concluded by warning BHRT that 
if it continued with its current practices it could lead to 
the "disappearance" of both BHRT and BiH. 
 
¶5.  (U) Dodik,s attacks on BHRT provoked swift reactions 
from political leaders.  Lagumdzija responded with an April 
28 open letter of his own to High Representative Miroslav 
Lajcak and PIC ambassadors.  In the April 28 letter, 
Lagumdzija criticized Lajcak for remaining silent in the wake 
of Dodik,s provocative statements noting that, "seventeen 
years ago Radovan Karadzic started his criminal path with a 
request for the division along ethnic lines of the then 
RTVSA, a station with a four-decade long tradition at that 
time."  He accused Lajcak of bearing responsibility for 
Dodik,s actions with his charge that, "together with the 
reformers who have jointly adopted false police reform, you 
are the most responsible for Dodik's behavior, which has now 
resulted in an open invitation towards the disappearance of 
BiH."  Lagumdzija concluded by urging the High Representative 
to use the Bonn Powers to enforce the laws on public 
broadcasting and to use the OHR's anti-corruption analysis 
cell to investigate allegations against BHRT. 
 
¶6.  (U) As currently configured, BiH's public broadcasting 
system consists of a nation-wide broadcaster BiH Radio and 
Television (BHRT) responsible for the entire state, 
Federation Television (FTV) responsible for the Federation 
 
SARAJEVO 00001068  002 OF 002 
 
 
entity, and Radio and Television Republika Srpska (RTRS) 
responsible for the RS.  BiH's public broadcasting system was 
first suggested by the PIC in June 1998 and has been the 
subject of controversy ever since.  In May 2002, after failed 
attempts by Bosnian legislators to pass public broadcast 
legislation, the High Representative established BHRT by 
decree in the Public Broadcasting Law of 2002.  Many 
important provisions of that law that go beyond the scope of 
this cable have yet to be implemented leading to the current 
furor over the role and structure of public broadcasting. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Comment:  BHRT is an easy target for Dodik.  While 
Dodik,s claims that it is anti-RS is groundless -- neutral 
observers agree that BHRT provides fair and balanced 
broadcasting and is doing its best to serve the needs of all 
citizens of Bosina and Herezgovina -- BHRT has been bleeding 
red ink as long as it has been in existence, and the quality 
and popularity of its programming lags well behind its FTV 
and RTRS entity counterparts.  However, much of this loss is 
due to BHRT,s uncertain status and failure to establish the 
broadcasting corporation, the fourth and final element of the 
nationwide public broadcasting system, which would assume 
many of the liabilities for the system currently shouldered 
by BHRT.  Blame for both rests with local politicians. 
Dodik,s attack on BHTV is both the latest salvo in his 
ongoing campaign against state-level institutions and also an 
attempt to marginalize media outlets critical of his 
government (Ref B).  The attack also follows Dodik,s now 
familiar pattern of citing the dysfunctionality of state 
institutions as a justification for reclaiming RS 
competencies previously ceded to the state, and seeking Croat 
support in the process.  End Comment 
 
ENGLISH