Croat entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg said on Tuesday that it has ruled that Bosnia and Herzegovina must amend the country's electoral law to allow local elections to be held in Mostar after an 11-year gap.

Despite that danger, Bosniak, Bosnian Croat or Bosnian Serb politicians and their affiliated media continue to confuse and frustrate both the local and international public by clinging to their conflicting, outdated and unrealistic narratives.

Sarajevo is getting ready to host its first Pride parade on Sunday, aimed at supporting protection of the rights of the LGBTIQ community, which some 500 people are expected to join. However, the march will be matched by counter-marches held both the day before and on the same day as the Pride event.

Bosniak Sefik Dzaferovic (R) and Croat Zeljko Komsic (2-R), members of the presidency. EPA-EFE/FEHIM DEMIR

The presidency - comprising a Bosniak, Serb and Croat - was unable to agree the agenda for Tuesday's session and so postponed the meeting and a decision on appointing a prime minister, or the chair of the Council of Ministers.

Political observers and ethnic Croat parties in Bosnia have criticised the fact that the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the de facto state government, Denis Zvizdic, is to take over as speaker of the House of Representatives in the state parliament as well.

Republika Srpska police on parade. Photo: EPA/Vladimir Stojakovic.

Parliament in Bosnia's Serb-dominated Republika Srpska on Tuesday is set to discuss a controversial draft law to introduce a new reservist police force, a move seen as a security threat by the Bosniak and Croat minorities living in the entity.

Bosnia's Bosniak-Croat Federation has turned to China for cash to secure its coal-fired energy production, but the EU and Bosnian environmentalists warn there will be consequences.

Under strong local and international pressure, Bosnia's Central Election Commission, CIK, on Tuesday adopted a decision fixing the country's dysfunctional election law and enabling the establishment of a new government in the Federation entity, which it has lacked since last October's elections.

The Croatian parliament on Wednesday will discuss a declaration on the rights of Croats living in Bosnia and Herzegovina which calls for changes to Bosnia's constitution and electoral law which it claims will ensure equality for Croats in the country.

The European Court of Human Rights is expected to hear a case involving elections in the southwest city of Mostar, where political disputes have prevented local elections from being held for a decade.

Irma Baralija, a politic activist and professor of sociology and philosophy in Mostar, has sued Bosnia for discrimination over the town's inability to stage local elections since 2008.