ŽUPLJANIN: BOSNIAK POLITICAL ELITES WANT THE DISAPPEARANCE OF SERBS FROM THE FEDERATION

BANJA LUKA, NOVEMBER 2 /SRNA/ - Security expert Slobodan Župljanin told SRNA that the philosophy of Bosniak political elites is for Serbs to disappear from the territory of the Federation of BiH /FBiH/, and that they now seek to complete what they failed to achieve during the war and immediately after it.

Commenting on the increasingly frequent attacks on Serbs and their property, as well as the limited information provided by cantonal police, Župljanin stressed that this is nothing new, noting that throughout the post-war years, actions have been taken in the Federation aimed at expelling the remaining Serb population. He said there have been many cases of brutal attacks on Serbs and their property, after which the police merely announce that they are "searching for the perpetrators" and that "all measures will be taken to bring them to justice," but that such outcomes never actually occur. "In the Federation of BiH, they are bothered when Serbs sing, play loud music, visit their properties, or go to cemeteries to light candles. The general policy in Sarajevo is to drive Serbs out of the Federation - to create such living conditions that would be unbearable and force them to leave on their own," Župljanin stated. He said he does not expect the situation to change anytime soon and believes that Republika Srpska must, in every possible way, help Serbs remain in those areas. "It will be very difficult to reach a point where law enforcement and judicial institutions perform their duties professionally and protect every citizen equally, regardless of whether they are Serb, Croat, Bosniak, or anyone else," Župljanin concluded. According to data from the ministries of the Una-Sana, Livno, Posavina, and West Herzegovina cantons, nine reports of attacks on property owned by Serbs or the Serbian Orthodox Church have been recorded in the Federation over the past three years. The remaining six cantonal interior ministries did not respond at all to inquiries regarding such incidents.