Public Opinion Poll on citizens' view on constitutional reform, commissioned in July 2013 within the project “Constitutional Reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Engaging Civil Society"
1. CITIZENS’ OPINIONS ON
STATE-LEVEL CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM
in Bosnia and Herzegovina
1000 CITIZENS
20
QUESTIONS
2013
JULY
88%OF RESPONDENTS
SUPPORT state-level
constitutional reform
98.5%
91.5%
79.5% 87.6%
BRCKORS SERB
FBIH
CROAT
FBIH
BOSNIAK
36.4%to ensure EQUALITY of
ALL CITIZENS
Several civic, political and international proposals for constitutional reform
have FAILED TO ACHIEVE ANY PROGRESS.
For example:
to reform the state
level constitution
were submitted by
CIVIL SOCIETY
ORGANIZATIONS
3
PROPOSALS
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Law Institute in Bosnia and Herzegovina
2006
Alumni Association Center for Interdisciplinary
Postgraduate Studies
Forum of Tuzla Citizens
from
POLITICAL
PARTIES6PROPOSALS
• SNSD and SDS Proposal
of Amendments to the
Constitution of BIH
HDZ 1990 Platform for a New
Constitution of BIH
HDZ BIH Amendments to the Constitution
of Bosnia and Herzegovina with Regards to
the Implementation of the Judgment of the
European Court of Human Rights in
Strasbourg in the Case of Sejdić-Finci
versus Bosnia and Herzegovina
SDA Proposal of
Amendments to the
Constitution of BiH
the Prud Process
(PARTIALLY)
the April Package
SDA Proposal of
Amendments to the
Constitution of BiH
• HDZ and HDZ 1990
Proposal of Amendment to
the Constitution of Bosnia
and Herzegovina
All of these were packages of reform that failed to attract sufficient political and citizens’ support.
STATE-LEVEL
CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM
“It is desirable for the citizens at some stage to decide to have an
entirely new constitution based on their own wishes and drafted
during a period without ethnic strife.
The ultimate goal should be to have democratically legitimate
constitutions prepared with the participation of all political forces
and civil society in a public and transparent process.”
(Venice Commission, Opinion on the Constitutional Situation in Bosnia
and Herzegovina and the Powers of the High Representative, 2005)
71.5%so that BIH can function
like a NORMAL COUNTRY
94.9% BRČK
O
DISTRICT
63.1% FBIH
CR
O
AT
76.6%
FBIH
BOSNIAK
67.4%RSSER
B
67.3%
33.8%
FBIH CROAT
38.7%
FBIH BOSNIAK
32.1%
RSSERB
B
RČKO
DISTRICT
34.9%
29.2%
27.5%
46.5%
FBIH CROAT
FBIH BOSNIAK
RSSERB
BRČKO DISTRICT
35.7%so that BiH can
INTEGRATE in the EU
Why?
Why?
Why?
People think
Politicians should still lead the process
of constitutional reform, but
this process should engage citizens.
think that
politicians do not
represent the
interest of the
citizens but rather
the interests of
their parties.
Citizens know that
politicians alone
will never be able
to agree on
constitutional
reform.
86.7% 59.5%
POLITICIANS + CITIZENS + NGOs = STATE-LEVEL
CONSTITUTIONAL
REFORM
56%
think that it is not in
politicians’ interest
to reach an
agreement on
state-level
constitutional
reform.
think that NGOs
should inform the
citizens through
the media on the
current
constitution and its
reform process
of
citizens
of
citizens
of
citizens
from the
INTERNATIONAL
COMMUNITY2PROPOSALS
2009
For more information on BiH 2013 Public Opinon Poll, please visit www.k143.org or www.cgs-livno.net
