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SARAJEVO, February 6 (FENA) - Head of the EU Delegation to Bosnia and Herzegovina and EU Special Representative, Ambassador Lars-Gunnar Wigemark, expressed hope that the election campaign in Bosnia and Herzegovina will take into account the issue that all political leaders agree on, and that is the progress on the European path.
As he said in the interview with FENA, bearing in mind that the EU membership is one of the strategic goals of BiH and that most BiH citizens want it, the progress on the European path should be one of the key topics of the election campaign.
Author: Jelena Marković
Wigemark believes that it is quite justified to discuss this issue during the election campaign so that voters can pose questions to political parties and their leaders on the ways in which they plan to make progress on the European path.
"The progress on the European path is a much wider issue than the issue election itself, it is a question for the generation that will determine the future for young people and future generations in BiH," Wigemark said, adding that it is no secret that young people are in a dilemma whether to stay or to leave the country.
He said that he talked about this issue with a large number of people during his visits to a number of communities in BiH, and that many have the intent to stay in BiH, but they highlight the issue of European integration as one of the key ones.
Therefore, he conveyed to the BiH citizens to ask questions, saying that he hopes that this time politicians would give answers that are a bit wider than what they previously have focused on, which have mostly been the usual ethnic and national issues that are not so important.
He recalled the Joint Statement on the commitment of political leaders in BiH to undertake the necessary reforms in the process of BiH accession to the European Union, and when it comes to the basic issues in BiH, according to Wigemark, these are the rule of law and independent judiciary.
“These are the topics that the EU emphasizes and are absolutely essential if BiH seeks to become a member. This is not an objective for the future, which is too far to reach, but something that should begin to be implemented immediately,” he stressed, adding that, in this context, the politicizing of the judiciary should be stopped.
Wigemark added that the same principles apply when it comes to public administration reform.
"We need public administration that is efficient, impartial and professional and that will enable progress in the EU integration process," he said.
Commenting on the reform process in BiH in general, Head of the EU Delegation said that a significant part of the reforms will produce their results in the next year or two. He noted that certain improvements in some industries are already visible, adding that exports are record-breaking, industrial growth is consistent, while interest rates are the lowest since the establishment of the Central Bank of BiH 20 years ago.
“All this yet is not enough to create new jobs. The number of those who work through unregistered employment is too big, there are too many taxes that employers have to pay if they want to hire someone,” he added.
He noted that it only seems that a significant part of the EU integration process is taking place at a high level that involves politicians, civil servants and bureaucrats, but he pointed out that the real change, especially when it comes to reforms, can only happen at the local level, because here we see the actual results.
Wigemark also pointed to the fact that corruption is still present to a large extent, which hampers a favorable business climate that would bring more private investments, both domestic and foreign.
He also recalled the meeting of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker with the BiH Presidency Chairman Dragan Čović last week in Brussels, where Juncker stated that BiH must continue with reforms, primarily referring to social and economic reforms, as well as the judicial reform.
Wigemark said that he understands that many wonder about the benefits of these reforms, but also that he does not want to appeal to more patience of citizens who have shown incredible patience over the past 20 years or more.
“However, it is like building a bridge across the river. You have come to a half of it, and in order to cross the river, you have to build the other half or go back. But, there should be no going back on the European path,” he underlined.
Head of the EU Delegation assessed that BiH has progressed considerably over the past two or three years in terms of EU integration, pointing out that an important step was filing an application for EU membership. It is now important to finalize the activities related to the European Commission Questionnaire.
Wigemark believes that all these things come at the right moment for BiH, although last year, the country lost some valuable time in the bickering of political leaders, which is why all of them should bear responsibility.
He stressed that 2018 will undoubtedly be an extremely important year, not only for BiH, but for the entire Balkans, noting that in this context, the European Commission today will present the EU Enlargement Strategy for the Western Balkans.
Wigemark says that this will now be one of the main priorities for the EU, which in itself, is important.
He pointed out that what comes next is a big debate in Europe about its future, as the EU countries themselves will have to undergo certain changes if the EU is to accept new members.
According to Wigemark, it may not be the best for BiH for all of this to be happening in an election year, but he believes that it can also be a test for political parties and their leaders to see if they can really keep the European integration process as a priority.
His message to the political leaders in BiH is to continue working on the European path because BiH has the opportunity to catch up with the neighboring countries, while the international community will be there to help as much as possible.
Wigemark also talked regional cooperation, noting that it is quite necessary, which is why all countries in the region should resolve their border issues the way BiH did with Montenegro.
“You should take advantage of all the synergies that exist at the moment, because the EU really wants to see the Western Balkans as a group of countries because you have a lot more in common than differences,” concluded the Head of the EU Delegation to BiH, Ambassador Lars-Gunnar Wigemark in an interview with FENA.
(FENA) S. R.
