Turf battle breaks out in Bosnia

Date: 02/04/1998

By Mark Turner

A TURF battle has broken out between the European Commission and other international organisations in Sarajevo highlighting the morass of competing international development interests in Bosnia.

Experts from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Office of the High Representative (OHR) and the Soros Foundation are expressing concern at Commission plans to set up a new democracy foundation at an estimated cost of 1.5 million ecu.

Although they support the idea in principle, they claim the Commission has not consulted other international organisations sufficiently on the project and is running the risk of funding a scheme which does not fully address Bosnia's particular needs.

Following recommendations by German Green MEP Daniel Cohn-Bendit, the Commission intends to set up a Bosnian-run Foundation for Democracy. It would prepare the country for this September's general elections, foster the development of free media and help to educate returning refugees.

As Bosnia begins to recover from its wartime scars, international observers say that it is more crucial than ever to encourage multi-culturalism and political pluralism in the country, especially in the face of increasingly hardline rhetoric from President Franjo Tudjman in neighbouring Croatia.

High Representative Carlos Westendorp warned last week that refugees were returning too slowly, due in part to the lack of political freedom in the country, and underlined the need for open and free debate before the elections.

Yet there is a real danger, according to some experts, that the Commission's rush to create a foundation could do more harm than good by setting unrealistic or misguided targets and leaving local activists confused.

"The biggest problem is the amount of confusion surrounding this whole thing," said Dianne Cullinane from Soros-funded LEA Link. "These are very, very vague ideas supported by a big budget. I am a little worried that civil society is being equated to money."

"My concern is one of process," agreed an OHR official. "The signals we are receiving is that this must go ahead at all costs. This leaves doubts amongst a number of people whether this can be implemented as planned."

Concerns were first raised in 1996, when Danish organisation Dialogue Development was hired by the Commission to investigate ways of strengthening civil society in Bosnia.

Organisations on the ground, especially Bosnian ones, felt slightly aggrieved by the sudden arrival of western Europeans with little apparent experience of the country's situation.

Nonetheless, by the end of 1997 the organisation had managed to win the trust of many of the local groups it was investigating while preparing to set up the foundation.

But feathers were further ruffled this year when the Commission called for the foundation to be coordinated by another organisation - International IDEA, from Sweden - which would later assist the new body's governing board of 15 Bosnians.

Local activists fear that the Swedish organisation has little experience of Bosnia itself, and that it is more driven by a desire to get involved in a high-profile and well-paid project than any particular appreciation of the country's needs.

Experts from other international organisations are concerned that some of the ideas for the foundation, such as election supervision, will not fit in well with parallel OSCE activities.

Some people have also questioned the decision to choose IDEA to supervise the foundation, given the relationship between Commission official Ana-Maria Corazza - who is set to get the job of EU expert consultant to the new body - and the previous Swedish High Representative Carl Bildt.

Corazza strongly defends the proposals. She argues that criticisms are motivated more by jealousy, as the Commission begins for the first time to take control of its own funding, than by policy differences.

"This has been a really transparent process for more than a year," she said. "The Commission wants to do something that is policy-driven and cost-effective - to create a truly Bosnian institution that can be strong enough to be protected from the authorities. Other people would perhaps prefer us just to pay the bills."

Corazza roundly dismisses any claims of personal interest in the decision to appoint IDEA.

While declining to comment on the specifics of the case, UK Conservative MEP Tom Spencer, who chairs the European Parliament's foreign affairs committee, pointed out that it appeared to be a classic illustration of the disorganisation surrounding Bosnian development efforts.

The Parliament was considering this week whether to warn the Commission that it would withhold funds for Bosnian development projects unless management was improved.