RETURN TO THE ORIGINAL DAYTON - ALL OF DODIK'S REMARKS ARE JUSTIFIED

BANJA LUKA, MAY 21 /SRNA/ – University professor Radomir Lukić told SRNA that all of the statements made by Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik during his address to the National Assembly of Srpska on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Dayton Agreement are justified and that the agreement should be returned to in the form in which it was originally written.

"The Dayton Agreement should not be undermined, nor should any alternatives be offered, because nothing else can be implemented in this region. It could only be enforced through the terror of some government or the tyranny of an individual imposed here by foreign tanks and rifles – a dystopia we must avoid! We need to listen to local people," said Lukić, who was a member of the Serb delegation during the 1995 Dayton negotiations. He emphasized that BiH is fully mature to be an independent and sovereign state without foreign tutors and should not remain a colony, as it has effectively been for the past 30 years due to foreign influence. However, Lukić pointed out that foreigners – primarily Western Europe – do not allow this, but rather hold the Bosniaks as political hostages through whom they exert influence. He stated that the Dayton Agreement has existed for 30 years and that various centers of power from Europe and beyond have attempted to change it and to turn a highly decentralized, federal community into a unitary and socially homogeneous state, ignoring the historical context and the relations among the three constituent peoples – Serbs, Croats, and Bosniaks. Lukić noted that the Dayton Agreement secured peace, that there are no longer large contingents of foreign peacekeepers in the region, and that political, economic, and social life now functions, including intergroup and interpersonal social interaction. He identified three major obstacles that prevent the Dayton Agreement from producing its full effects and enabling BiH to function as a highly decentralized federal country – which it must be if it is to participate in further integration processes. "The Bosniaks' aspirations to unitarize BiH and pave the way for their dominance in social, political, and economic spheres have greatly harmed interethnic relations in BiH. Foreign centers of power contributed to this, especially through the role of the High Representative, the Peace Implementation Council, which is a legally nonexistent body, and the three foreign judges on the BiH Constitutional Court," Lukić stated. He explained that based on these developments, some now argue that the Dayton Agreement has failed – that it has not succeeded in integrating BiH citizens into a cohesive social and psychological community – and therefore advocate for a "Dayton II" or some alternative. However, he warned, such proposals could lead to renewed conflict. "Such ideas could indeed cause new conflicts in this region. It is especially important to highlight the negative role of almost all High Representatives, with the most damaging being the German national, politician, and so-called diplomat Christian Schmidt, who is attempting to impose his own tyranny, engaging in acts of political terror by replacing domestic institutions and citizens – and he may soon seek to replace the domestic peoples themselves," Lukić commented. The President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik today called for direct talks with the Federation of BiH on returning to the foundations of the Dayton Agreement.