April 4 (SeeNews) - Bosnia and Herzegovina was burdened by a weak economy, high indebtedness, and problems in every sector of the state in 2016, while its politicians continued to deflect attention from their poor performance on governance matters, independent watchdog organisation Freedom House said.
In order to retain their positions and benefits, Bosnia's politicians constantly provoked interethnic tensions and then presented themselves as saviors of the state’s various nations, Freedom House noted in its latest report Nations in Transit 2017, published on Monday.
Although Bosnia applied to join the European Union in 2016, the process was marred by political and institutional dysfunction, the organisation noted.
In September, the EU officially accepted the application after the Bosnian authorities reached agreement on several pending requirements at the last minute. However, according to Freedom House, this can hardly be viewed as a success given that they had been delayed for years and were "essentially awkward, stopgap solutions that circumvented the democratic process".
The organisation also noted that Bosnia's political institutions remained crippled in 2016 and that the signs of deep dysfunction extended to the judiciary.
In its outlook for 2017, Freedom House noted that authorities on all levels will need to work hard to start fulfilling EU candidacy requirements, but added that considering current practices, there is little reason to expect much in the way of progress.
Continuing the trend from previous years, more attacks on state institutions by president of Bosnia's Serb Republic, Milorad Dodik, and his party, the SNSD, are likely, the organisation warned. "A political deadlock among parties in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is possible, as the disputes between SDA, SBB, and HDZ are intensifying. There are few prospects for improvements in the fight against corruption or the independence and efficiency of the judiciary," it also said.
Details on Bosnia (ratings based on a scale of 1 to 7, with 1 the highest level of democratic progrss and 7 the lowest):
Bosnia |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
National Democratic Governance |
5.75 |
5.75 |
6.00 |
Electoral Process |
3.25 |
3.25 |
3.25 |
Civil Society |
3.50 |
3.50 |
3.50 |
Independent Media |
4.75 |
4.75 |
4.75 |
Local Democratic Governance |
4.75 |
4.75 |
4.75 |
Judicial Framework and Independence |
4.50 |
4.50 |
4.50 |
Corruption |
4.75 |
5.00 |
5.00 |
Democracy Score |
4.46 |
4.50 |
4.54 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina is made up of two autonomous entities, the Serb Republic and the Federation.