Publications

Calls for constitutional reform have been a regular feature of Bosnian politics ever since the Dayton Agreement. There is widespread discontent with the present structures of government. This paper is an attempt to identify practical ways of achieving change. Beginning with existing institutions and the interests which lie behind them, it proposes a practical step forward that Bosnian politicians might actually agree to and implement. The paper outlines a step by step process of strengthening federalism in Bosnia by abolishing the Federation and creating a simplified federal structure, based around the current 12 units making up the state: the ten cantons of the present Federation, the Republika Srpska and the District of Brcko. The paper sets out why we believe this could attract support from across the political spectrum.

Politika u Bosni i Hercegovini nastavlja se suočavati sa redovnim pozivima na fundamentalnu ustavnu reformu. Jedni se pozivaju na nestanak Republike Srpske; drugi se zalažu za "treći entitet"; treći

We believe that the Bonn powers are incompatible with international efforts to build democracy and the rule of law, and that this is independent of the best intentions of your office to help Bosnia on its path to Europe. The protectorate role of the High Representative reinforces the worst tendencies of the old Yugoslav political culture: the fondness for the čvrsta ruka, the "strong hand" that acts as a deus ex machina outside the political process. This highly personalised style of politics, where ultimate power rests in the hands of one charismatic individual, is exactly what democratisation efforts are supposed to overcome.

What, then, is the true justification for the extraordinary powers that the international mission enjoys? The conditions that obtained in 1996 and the conditions that obtain today are separated by a gulf too wide to be bridged by the assertion that both represent a state of emergency that only a decisive and unquestioned authority can handle.

The political significance of Trepca as Kosovo's most prominent enterprise largely overshadows Trepca's actual economic significance. This report explores the history of Trepca, from its early management by the British company Selection Trust Ltd., to the nationalization after the Second World War and its development to one of Yugoslavia's most prominent 'big systems' companies. Special attention is dedicated to Trepca's most recent history during the 90s under the directorship of Novak Bjelic, a Milosevic' apparatchik. The report is intended to shed some light on possible claims emerging from Trepca's involvement with foreign investors under the directorship of Novak Bjelik. The findings in this report will hopefully contribute to a more realistic assessment of Trepca's real value and make room for a de-politicization of the debate on its future.

As the political and economic map of Europe is redrawn in 2004, there is a growing fear among the countries of the Western Balkans that they will be left on the margins of the new and integrated Europe. There is a risk that, instead of catching up with the rest of the continent, the countries of the Western Balkans will fall further behind, and the goal of integration – and the promise of regional stabilisation this brings – will become even more distant.

Kako se politička i ekonomska mapa Evrope prekraja za 2004. godinu, postoji sve veći strah među zemljama Zapadnog Balkana da će biti ostavljene na margini nove i integrisane Evrope. Postoji rizik da će, umjesto da sustignu ostatak kontinenta, zemlje Zapadnog Balkana još više zaostati, te će cilj integracije – i obećanje stabilnosti u regiji koju ona donosi – postati još udaljeniji.

Në radhët e vendeve të Ballkanit Perëndimor sa vjen e rritet frika se me ribërjen e hartës politike dhe ekonomike të Evropës në vitin 2004 këto vende do të lihen në periferi të Evropës së re të integruar. Ekziston rreziku se vendet e Ballkanit Perëndimor, në vend që të arrijnë të ecin në hap me pjesën tjetër të kontinentit, do të vazhdojnë të mbesin gjithnjë e më mbrapa dhe kësisoj qëllimi i integrimit – së bashku me premtimin për stabilizimin e rajonit që rrjedh prej tij – do të bëhen gjithnjë e më të largët.

As the period of reconstruction and stabilisation draws to a close, the Western Balkans is facing a looming crisis of social and economic dislocation which puts at risk some of the European Union's most important interests in this strategic region. The crisis is emerging just as existing European assistance is being scaled down, and just as the countries of the region find themselves excluded from the European enlargement process. If the region is not to become an island of instability within the European project, existing European policy instruments need to evolve into a genuine and long-term commitment to address the region's chronic economic and social problems. The European Union should send a strong signal to the countries of the Western Balkans that the promise of Europeanisation is not an illusion.

Während die Periode des Wiederaufbaus und der Stabilisierung sich ihrem Abschluss nähert, sieht sich der westliche Balkan einer sich bereits abzeichnenden sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Zerrüttung ausgesetzt, welche die Verwirklichung einiger der Hauptziele der Europäischen Union in dieser strategisch wichtigen Region ernsthaft gefährdet. Die Krise tritt zu einem Zeitpunkt auf, an dem die bisherige europäische Unterstützung reduziert wird und die Länder der Region sich aus dem Erweiterungsprozess der Union ausgeschlossen sehen. Wenn die Region nicht zu einer Insel der Instabilität mitten im europäischen Projekt werden soll, müssen die bestehenden europäischen Politikinstrumente zu einem echten und dauerhaften Engagement zur Lösung der chronischen wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Probleme der Region ausgebaut werden. Die Europäische Union sollte den Ländern des westlichen Balkans ein deutliches Signal dafür geben, dass die in Aussicht gestellte Europäisierung nicht nur eine Illusion ist.

Kako se period rekonstrukcije i stabilizacije približava kraju zapadni Balkan se suočava sa  prijetećom krizom socijalne i ekonomske dislokacije, koja ugrožava neke od najvažnijih interesa Evropske Unije u ovom strateškom regionu. Ova kriza se pojavljuje upravo kada se postojeća evropska pomoć smanjuje i kada se zemlje regiona nalaze isključene iz procesa proširenja Evrope. Da region ne bi postao ostrvo nestabilnosti unutar evropskog projekta, postojeći instrumenti politike moraju prerasti u istinsku i dugotrajnu obavezu da se pozabave kroničnim ekonomskim i socijalnim problemima regiona. Evropska Unija bi trebala poslati jak signal zemljama zapadnog Balkana da obećanje evropeizacije nije iluzija.

Meqenëse periudha e rindërtimit dhe stabilizimit po i afrohet fundit, Ballkani Perëndimor po përballet me një krizë në hije të një zhvendosjeje sociale dhe ekonomike e cila rrezikon disa nga interesat më të rëndësishme të Bashk

Most travellers in Macedonia pass through Kicevo, on the road from Skopje to Ohrid via Tetovo. But many of them will barely notice the town, let alone the intense social drama of contemporary Macedonia which is being played out in this region. Entering the Kicevo region from the north, the traveller first reaches the village of Zajas, home to the guerrilla leader turned party politician, Ali Ahmeti. The uprising led by Ahmeti brought the country to the brink of civil war in 2001 and his new party, the Democratic Union for Integration, has since emerged as the Albanian community's pre-eminent political force.

Shumica e udhëtarëve në Maqedoni, në rrugën nga Shkupi përmes Tetovës për në Ohër kalojnë nëpër Kërçovë. Por, shumica prej tyre vështirë se do ta vënë re vetë këtë qytet e lëre më dramën intensive sociale të Maqedonisë bashkëkohore që zhvillohet në këtë rajon.

The United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has made itself responsible as trustee and administrator for a vast amount of state and socially owned property across Kosovo, including some 370 socially owned enterprises (SOEs). However, over the past three years, it has lacked the institutional resources to establish an effective property regime. As a result, control over some of Kosovo's most valuable economic assets is being determined outside the legal system, in countless individual power struggles across Kosovo. The results have been harmful both to economic development, social and political stability and the establishment of the rule of law

The Albanian translation of this report is only available as PDF File.

Now that the prospects of an immediate agreement on implementing the Constitutional Court's decision on constituent peoples are receding, the High Representative and the PIC Steering Board need to decide whether to use the High Representative's authority to impose a package of amendments to the Entity constitutions. Among Bosnian politicians and the Sarajevo-based press, this issue has been presented in terms of the "legacy" of the departing High Representative – his last opportunity to bequeath a multi-ethnic system of government to the Bosnian people. They have dared him to impose far reaching changes, particularly in Republika Srpska, or else leave behind an important job unfinished.

In pre-socialist times, the town of Peja (known in Serbian as Peć), was a lively regional centre of around 16,000 inhabitants, housing a community of merchants and craftsmen, several hotels and restaurants, and a few larger enterprises: a stream-driven flour mill (established in 1925), two timber mills (1932 and 1936) and a small brick factory (1936). Peja was first connected to the railway in July 1929 and electrification followed in the same year, with a small hydroelectric power-station on the White Drini River.

For the time being, international intervention in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia has succeeded in containing the violent conflict that sprang up in Macedonia in early 2001. Under the leadership of the EU and NATO, the international community has created a framework for limiting the conflict, which has claimed fewer than 250 victims. However, despite the agreement signed in Ohrid on 13 August 2001 ("Framework Agreement"), Macedonia now finds itself in a situation which is significantly worse than that which prevailed at the beginning of the conflict only a year ago.

Jedno vrijeme su međunarodne agencije u Bosni i Hercegovini govorile o potrebi za promjenom paradigme: sa rekonstrukcije na razvoj. Ono po čemu se strategije efikasnog razvoja razlikuju od čiste rekonstrukcije je što se one fokusiraju na razvoj lokalnih institucija i kapaciteta. Ovo zahtijeva poznavanje institucionalnih i političkih stvarnosti koje preovladavaju na terenu, osobito na lokalnom nivou. Jedino je shvatanjem jakih i slabih strana postojećih struktura moguće postići trajnu institucionalnu promjenu što je preduvjet za odrûiv ekonomski razvoj. Ovaj dokument je stvoren da bi pokazao kako je detaljno znanje potrebno za kreiranje efikasne strategije međunarodnog razvoja.