Bosnia's national minorities say "Others" category misused, seek electoral reform without constitutional changes

The issue was discussed during a session of the Council of National Minorities held at the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, focusing on proposed amendments to the Election Law and the political participation of national minorities at the entity and cantonal levels of government.

Council members expressed concern that members of national minorities currently participate in political life almost exclusively at the local level, where guaranteed seats exist, while no comparable mechanisms are available at higher levels of government.

According to the Council, national minorities are not seeking constitutional amendments or changes to Bosnia and Herzegovina's constitutional order. Instead, they believe a solution can be found through amendments to the Election Law.

"Our message as national minorities is that by advocating amendments to the Election Law, we do not seek to undermine the policies or constitutional position of the constituent peoples. We simply want the opportunity to participate at all levels of government for the benefit of all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina," said Mujo Fafulić, Chair of the Council of National Minorities.

Fafulić said the Council believes too much time has been lost without addressing the political representation of national minorities.

"We believe we have lost many years without any meaningful progress on the issue of national minorities, even though the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina recognizes the category of 'Others'," he said.

He argued that the constitutional category of "Others" was originally intended to include national minorities, but that political actors had instead used it in a way that allowed certain political interests to participate while denying national minorities genuine representation.

According to the Council, its initiative aims to ensure that members of national minorities can contribute to policymaking at all levels of government through changes to the Election Law, while preserving the existing constitutional framework and the rights of Bosnia and Herzegovina's constituent peoples.