MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

8.2.2006

to wind up the debate on statements by the Council and Commission
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit, Angelika Beer, Joost Lagendijk, Raül Romeva i Rueda, Gisela Kallenbach and Sepp Kusstatscher,
on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
on the EU perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina

B6‑0097/2006

European Parliament resolution on the EU perspective of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on Bosnia and Herzegovina and, in particular, that of 17 November 2004 on the ALTHEA mission,

–  having regard to its resolution of 14 April 2005 on the state of regional integration in the Western Balkans,

–   having regard to its resolution of 2 February 2006 on the annual report from the Council to the European Parliament on the main aspects and basic choices of CFSP, including the financial implications for the general budget of the European Communities - 2004,

–  having regard to the Stabilisation and Association Process for the Western Balkans,

– having regard to the Council’s political agreement of 12 December 2005 on the draft Decision on the principles, priorities and conditions contained in the European Partnership with Bosnia and Herzegovina,

– having regard to Rule 103 of its Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the Thessaloniki agenda sets a clear perspective for European integration and states unequivocally that the future of the Western Balkans lies in the European Union; whereas the Stabilisation and Association Process is to be considered a pre-accession strategy,

B.  whereas the pace at which these countries move closer to the Union depends on how quickly they adopt and implement the necessary reforms; whereas each country will be judged on its own merits,

C.  whereas at its meeting of 21-22 November 2005 the Council adopted a decision authorising the Commission to negotiate a stabilisation and association agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina,

D.  whereas the opening of negotiations marked an historic moment for both the EU and Bosnia and Herzegovina ten years after the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the war in that country,

E.  whereas the time has come for Bosnia and Herzegovina to lay the basis for a self-sustainable state with fully functioning institutions; whereas this can only be achieved through a process of deep reforms, which must enable the country to go beyond the Dayton accord and incorporate in its legislation EU standards and values,

F.  whereas this process should go hand-in-hand with the progressive downgrading of the presence of the international community and the phasing-out of UN structures so as to fully empower Bosnian institutions and make them work properly and effectively,

G.  whereas the agreement on police reform paves the way for the consolidation of state-level institutions; whereas further deep reforms must be undertaken and implemented at the institutional and administrative level so as to make Bosnian state-structures viable,

H.  whereas the dissolution of the armies of the two entities and the foundation of a Ministry of Defence at the end of August and beginning of September 2005 marked an important step towards the creation of a stronger Bosnian state at the central level,

I.  whereas talks have started between the main Bosnian political forces with a view to amending the constitution following the Brussels talks of 12-13 November 2005 and the Washington Declaration of 21 November 2005 in consultation with the US Institute for Peace; whereas these talks, due to end by next March, must lead to a constitutional model that overcomes ethnic divisions and recognises individual rights instead of collective rights of sovereign ethnic camps in order to recreate the conditions for a genuine inter-ethnic, inter-cultural and inter-religious society,

J.  whereas the EU has a duty to accompany and closely follow this process so as to facilitate the integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina into the Union and satisfy the Copenhagen political criteria for its eventual accession,

K.  whereas full cooperation with the ICTY is a precondition for closer relations with the EU and a basic element for full reconciliation between all the different components of Bosnian society with a view to healing the wounds of the recent tragic past,

1.  Welcomes the decision of the Council to appoint Christian Schwarz-Schilling as the EU Special Representative/High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina and calls on him and the Commission to find ways to provide the necessary political, technical and legal assistance to the Bosnian leaders in their efforts to reform the Constitutional Charter adopted in 1995 in Dayton;

2.  Reminds the Bosnian parties that the ongoing process must be aimed at streamlining and rationalising the institutional architecture in order to make Bosnia and Herzegovina a more efficient and self-sustainable state, in particular with a view to its future European integration;

3.  Takes the view that the new charter must overcome ethnic divisions and adopt the European principles of a representative democracy based on individual rights and civil liberties regardless of ethnicity and religion;

4.  Points out that the pace of reforms and their relevant implementation will determine the will of Bosnia and Herzegovina to secure a future in the EU, moving from today’s quasi-protectorate to local ownership and full sovereignty; calls, in this regard, on the EU Special Representative to use the 'Bonn powers' more carefully;

5.  Welcomes the new Commission communication on the Western Balkans, which aims at fostering trade, economic development, movement of persons, education and research, regional cooperation and civil society dialogue as a further step forward as regards the integration of the countries of the region into the European structures;

6.  Stresses the crucial role played by education in forging the future citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina; calls, in this regard, for a common understanding of the past which avoids the present ethno-nationalistic interpretations of history;

7.  Supports the initiative to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission aimed at coming to terms with the recent past and dealing with the problems of justice and compensation with a view to achieving reconciliation between all the components of the Bosnian society;

8.  Urges the Bosnian authorities, in this respect, to protect and support the work of human rights activists, who often face a hostile environment when they challenge the dominant attitudes relating to the war-time period;

9.  Calls on the Bosnian authorities to make every possible effort to put an end to the widespread discrimination still hindering the return of refugees and displaced people and the access to work and to help those wishing to return to do so;

10.  Takes the view that the lifting of the EU arms embargo on Bosnia should be handled with due attention because there is still an instability in the region, in particular with regard to the final status of Kosovo and the forthcoming referendum in Montenegro; urges EU Member States, in this regard, to be very careful about arms exports to Bosnia;

11.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the EU Special Representative/ High Representative Christian Schwarz-Schilling and the Presidency and Parliament of Bosnia-Herzegovina.