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The Mayor of the City of Sarajevo, Benjamin Karić, and the Chairman of the City Council, Jasmin Ademović, met today in the City Hall with the delegation of the OSCE Mission led by the newly appointed head of the OSCE Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ambassador Brian Aggeler.

They congratulated the new ambassador on assuming his mandate and wished him success in his work, and expressed their expectation that the City of Sarajevo will continue the successful cooperation with the OSCE Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the future. They also recalled the last example of cooperation during the adoption the Draft Code of Ethics for elected and appointed Sarajevo officials, which is currently in the stage of public discussion.

The guests from the OSCE were presented with the projects of the City of Sarajevo, and the importance of improving the transparency of the work of the City Council was particularly emphasized. They were informed that, after a long time, the sessions of the City Council are broadcast live, as well as the fact that all acts related to the work of the City Council and working bodies are publicly available on the official website of the City Council. The communication and coordination of the City of Sarajevo with the local self-government units in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also with the cities of Europe and the world, within the framework of international cooperation, has been improved. Ambassador Aggeler is also familiar with the need of the City of Sarajevo for support in adopting regulatory plans to enhance the transparency of the entire procedure.

Chairman Ademović informed the guests about the concept and actions of the “Troika” at the city and cantonal level, which resulted in even more excellent support from citizens in the just-held elections, and the vision to spread this concept to other cantons, to the federal and state levels of government.

In accordance with the discussions on the results of the General Elections, Chairman Ademović expressed dissatisfaction with the imposed decisions of High Representative Christian Schmidt in terms of amendments to the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina and modifications to the Constitution of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He expressed his assessment that this method, to impose changes to the election procedure on election night, is an unprecedented attempt to retroactively apply the law because the elections are announced according to one legislation, and the results are implemented according to another, which does not correspond to democratic practice and the principles of the rule of law. At the same time, he criticized the essence of the imposed changes, pointing out that they only deepen and promote the existing ethnic divisions in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina while they are approved in the RS entity. He emphasized that such solutions could only further slow down Bosnia and Herzegovina on the way to mandatory Euro-Atlantic integration, especially since they were brought under pressure and open interference of the neighboring country in internal political relations in BiH. In the end, the chairman of the City Council, Jasmin Ademović, expressed the hope that such changes will be challenged before the relevant courts or that the decisions will be revoked by the high representative.

The meeting was attended by a delegation consisting of Ms. Samra Ramić, Acting Head of the Office in Sarajevo, Mr. Mathieu Lemoine, Head of the Office for Policy Planning of the OSCE Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Ivan Lupis, Head of the Office for the Human Dimension.

The 19th anniversary of the death of Alija Izetbegović, the first president of the Presidency of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was marked today at the Kovača Martyr’s Cemetery in Sarajevo by laying flowers and reciting the Fatiha.

On behalf of the City of Sarajevo, the chairman of the City Council, Jasmin Ademović, laid flowers and paid his respects.

Flowers were also laid by numerous delegations from all levels of government in BiH, representatives of the diplomatic corps, veterans’ associations, and others.

Today, the citizens of Sarajevo and the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina remember, pay respect and express gratitude to the first president of the RBiH Presidency, Alija Izetbegović.

Alija Izetbegović was born on August 8, 1925 in Bosanski Šamac, and died on October 19, 2003 in Sarajevo. He was buried at the Kovača Martyr’s Cemetery.

In the organization of the Association of Parents of the Children Killed in Besieged Sarajevo 1992-1995, family members of the victims, friends, neighbors, students of “Silvije Strahimir Kranjčević” Elementary School, students of the Trade, Dental and Medical Secondary Schools, representatives of the Municipality of Centar and the Association of Parents of the Children Killed in Besieged Sarajevo 1992-1995, by laying flowers in front of the memorial plaque, and by reciting the Fatiha and a minute of silence, they paid tribute to innocently killed fellow citizens during the siege of Sarajevo 1992-1995, in Tahtali street number 10.

On behalf of the City of Sarajevo, the deputy chairman of the City Council, dr Dragan Stevanović, laid flowers and paid tributes to the victims.

At that place, as a result of the explosive effect of a grenade fired from the aggressor’s position, six citizens of Sarajevo were killed, three of them children, and three people were wounded.

On that tragic day, four-year-old Anela Isanović, five-year-old Belma Ahmetović, and nine-year-old Dževad Dautbašić and three other adult members of one family were killed: Franjica Bartolec, her daughter Azra Vapetić and son-in-law Miroslav Vapetić.

Franciscan Theology in Sarajevo, one of the oldest educational institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina, opened its doors today to numerous dignitaries, including representatives of the cantonal, city, and municipal authorities in Sarajevo, to mark a significant event together.

Thanks to donors from Switzerland and the help of the Government of the Canton of Sarajevo and the City of Sarajevo, the amphitheater in the building that came out of the war wholly devastated was restored after many years.

Professor and economist at Franciscan Theology, Friar Emanuel Josić, on behalf of the host, thanked the ministers in the Sarajevo Canton Government, Samir Avdić and Enver Hadžiahmetović who, after a number of years, directed the Government to recognize the importance of the renovation project and allocate significant funds for the completion of this project. But also to help repair the building’s roof, which had been leaking for years. He thanked dr Samir Bejić for his initiative and persistence to convey the need and connect Franciscan theology, the Government of Sarajevo Canton, and the City of Sarajevo on this project.

He also thanked the City of Sarajevo, headed by Mayor Benjamina Karić, and the Chairman of the City Council, who, among others, addressed the gathering.

The Chairman of the City Council, Jasmin Ademović, expressed his pride that he was among the individuals who, each in his way, contributed to the restoration of the amphitheater – a place of exchange of knowledge, experiences, and socializing that will indeed serve many generations of students well.

He emphasized the importance of Franciscan theology and “the importance but also the pride of the Franciscan Province Bosnia Srebrena and our Bosnian Franciscans, the indispensable connective tissue of Bosnia and Herzegovina, its guardians but also guardians of all people and citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.”

He particularly pointed out the involvement of the city and municipal councilor, Dr Samir Bejić emphasizing that without his initiative and activity, this kind of support from government representatives for this project would not have been realized. “Samir regularly reminds us that there is good in people,” stressed Chairman Ademović.

He thanked Mayor Karić, who accepted and carried out this initiative of the City Council without hesitation.

Finally, he emphasized the commitment of the City of Sarajevo to continue and improve cooperation with Franciscan theology and the Bosnian Franciscans.

The process which was started and submitted at the first session of the City Council of the City of Sarajevo in the current mandate, held in May 2021, by the initiative of the Chairman of the City Council Jasmin Ademović and his deputies Mirela Džehverović and Dragan Stevanović was completed with the registration of the ownership rights of the City of Sarajevo over the SPO building.

The City Council relied on the exclusive legal and statutory jurisdiction to manage and dispose of the property of the City of Sarajevo and to take care of it with the attention as a good host, in the best interest of the City, and decided to define the property and place the entire administration of the City of Sarajevo in its own building.

In the process of formalizing ownership, the City of Sarajevo’s Attorney’s Office and the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo, the Institute for Construction of the Canton of Sarajevo, as well as the Government and the Assembly of the Canton of Sarajevo, gave their total contribution, without whose support and decisions the process could not have been completed.

This created the conditions for the final accommodation of the entire administration of the City of Sarajevo in one location in its building, but also for regulating relations with the authorities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who also use part of the building and which they have used for years together with the rules of the City of Sarajevo.

It should be recalled that the reason for this initiative and all the activities that followed was that most of the administration of the City of Sarajevo, after the expiration of the mandate of the City Council and the mayor from the previous convocation, was moved to another dilapidated building in the shortest possible time and that thus freed space in the SPO building, under suspicious circumstances, was given to the authorities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was definitely against the interests of the City of Sarajevo.

At the last City Council session, again on the initiative of the City Council Chairman, Jasmin Ademović, the City Council also adopted the conclusion to proceed with the complete reconstruction of this building, which should now bear the name – “Administrative Building of the City of Sarajevo.”

Therefore, the City Council, together with other bodies of the City of Sarajevo, managed to acquire, or return, property – a representative property in a central city location of 2113m2, worth several tens of millions of convertible marks, in just over a year, to the City of Sarajevo and its citizens.

As soon as the City of Sarajevo takes over the management of the building, the competent service will order the installation of national flags as required by the Law on the Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The legitimate and host attitude towards the property of the City and the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the fundamental commitment of the leadership of the City Council of the City of Sarajevo.

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At the 18th session of the City Council of the City of Sarajevo, which was presided over by Jasmin Ademović, the chairman of the City Council, the city councilors honored the murdered victims of genocide and war crimes in Srebrenica and Prijedor by reciting Fatiha and observing a minute of silence.

Having adopted the agenda, the session’s work began with the adoption of the Decision on the dismissal of a member of the Commission for Human Rights and Freedom. The Decision on the election of a new member of this working body of the City Council of the City of Sarajevo was also adopted.

In the continuation of the session, the City Council unanimously passed the Decision on accepting the transfer of ownership rights and possession free of charge and giving consent to the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo to sign – conclude the Agreement on the transfer of ownership rights and control without compensation, at the address Hamdije Kreševljakovića 3 (SPO building), of the statutory seat of the City of Sarajevo, and after the Government of the Canton of Sarajevo accepted in its conclusion the initiative of the Institute for the Construction of the Canton of Sarajevo to start the procedure for the transfer of ownership rights and possessions of the Institute for the Construction of the Canton of Sarajevo to the City of Sarajevo, all at the request submitted by the City of Sarajevo as legally interested parties in this procedure and after all formal-legal prerequisites for making this Decision have been met.

It is necessary to remind that the City Council, at the very beginning of the mandate, initiated the resolution of the status of the SPO building. A process followed that resulted in the adoption of the Decision.

The city councilors adopted the Decision by which the City Council decided to join the City of Sarajevo to the CIVITAS network of European cities. The Mayor of Sarajevo, Benjamina Karić, will, on behalf of the City of Sarajevo, sign the Declaration by which the City of Sarajevo will become a member of one of the leading programs of the European Union in promoting the goals of sustainable mobility and traffic, after this Decision enters into force. With the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan (SUMP) for Sarajevo and the Cooperation Agreement signed between the City of Sarajevo and the Ministry of Transport of Sarajevo Canton, membership in CIVITAS will open up additional possibilities and opportunities for improving the quality of urban mobility in Sarajevo. So far, over 350 cities have signed the Declaration.

The Decision to give consent to the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo to sign the Memorandum on Cooperation between the City of Sarajevo, the NGO “Naša perspektiva” and the Sarajevo Regional Development Agency (SRDA) was adopted. All three parties expressed their desire to formalize cooperation with the aim to support investments from the diaspora in BiH, joint promotion of the city of Sarajevo as an investment and tourist destination, promotional activities, including the organization of business meetings of investors from the diaspora and potential partners from BiH, and networking of the BiH diaspora through the development of a sustainable local platform that will provide services to the diaspora and facilitate the investment process.

The City Council also adopted the Decision to give consent to the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo for the conclusion of the Twinning Agreement between the City of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the City of Ljubljana, Republic of Slovenia. The ties between the two cities developed to mutual satisfaction in various areas, such as economy, culture, tourism, sports, archives, infrastructure projects, and university and youth cooperation. The city of Ljubljana, governed by Mayor Janković, participated in the renovation of the Sarajevo City Hall in 2008. One of the streets in Ljubljana has been named Sarajevska since 2021. The twinning agreement will further strengthen this long-standing friendship between Sarajevo and Ljubljana.

In the continuation of the session, the Decision establishing the standards and criteria for the appointment of attorneys and deputy attorneys of the City of Sarajevo Prosecutor’s Office was adopted, as proposed and amended in accordance with the submitted amendments.

The City Council adopted the Decision on acquiring the status of an association of particular importance for the City of Sarajevo “SOS – KINDERDORF INTERNATIONAL.” The activity of the Association “SOS – KINDERDORF INTERNATIONAL” is aimed at creating assumptions and conditions for social inclusion and overall affirmation of children without parental care while promoting non-discrimination, tolerance, and equality, as values ​​that are in the interest of the city of Sarajevo and its citizens.

At today’s session, following an urgent procedure, the Decision was adopted on the lease of a part of the Bistrik Railway Station facility, which completes the revitalization of the facility and further enriches the tourist offer of our city with museum content and new catering facilities.

Under the urgent procedure, the Decision was adopted by which the City Council of the City of Sarajevo gave consent to the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo to sign an Agreement with the City of Sanliurfa, the Republic of Turkey, on the installation of two masts with the flag of the City of Sarajevo and the flag of the official mascot of the XIV Winter Olympic Games – “Vučko” at the location at Koševo stadium in Sarajevo.

The city councilors considered and adopted the Report on the Implementation of the Decision on Scholarships for High School Students from the Budget of the City of Sarajevo, according to the competition for scholarships for high school students from the Budget of the City of Sarajevo for the school year 2021/2022. year, from which it is evident that in the school year 2021/2022, the City of Sarajevo, in accordance with the criteria for scholarships for high school students, established by the Decision on Scholarships for High School Students from the Budget of the City of Sarajevo, i.e. the conditions specified in the Competition, awarded 352 scholarships in the total amount of 317,100.00 CM. At the initiative of the joint Commission for consideration, processing and analysis of applications received for the Competition, it was proposed that, for the next school year, changes and additions to the current Decision should be made in order to eliminate ambiguities and other difficulties that hindered the Commission’s work on processing applications.

The Report on the implementation of recommendations from the Report on the Financial Audit of the City of Sarajevo for 2022, the Report on the Expenditure of Current Reserve Funds from the Budget of the City of Sarajevo for 2022, for the period from 01/01/2022 to 30/062022 were considered and adopted. In addition, the Information on the adopted Document of the tentative Budget of the City of Sarajevo for the period 2023-2025 was duly noted.

Information on the implementation of the extraordinary investment maintenance of the fountain for the murdered children of Sarajevo in 1992-1995, Information on the performance of the project of cleaning and removing silt from the bed of the Miljacka River, which is an integral part of the Unique Project “Clean Miljacka River,” were also noted. 

The Information on the completed public call procedure for leasing part of the building “Bistrik Railway Station,” the Information on general traffic safety in Canton Sarajevo, and the Information on the implementation of council issues and initiatives for the current year were also received.

At the end of the session, specific council questions were addressed, and initiatives were initiated. Thus, the chairman of the City Council, Jasmin Ademović, on the occasion of the adoption of the Decision on accepting the transfer of ownership rights and possessions without compensation and giving consent to the Mayor of the City of Sarajevo to sign – conclude the Agreement on the transfer of ownership rights and possessions without compensation, submitted initiatives and the City Council adopted conclusions which the Mayor is in charge:

• • For the realization of the Agreement on the transfer of ownership rights and possessions without compensation and the completion of all necessary activities to register ownership rights, registration of controls, and creation of other conditions for the management of the real estate in the capacity of the owner.

   

  • For the next City Council session to propose the accession to the project of reconstruction and adaptation of the SPO building, and to obtain a feasibility study of the task of rebuilding the SPO building by the end of the current year and to propose the funds needed for the preparation of project documentation for a complete renovation when presenting the Budget of the City of Sarajevo for 2023 SPO buildings, as well as funds for the start of works.

   

  • For the next City Council session, to propose the adoption of a decision by which the building “SPO” – Building of socio-political organizations of the City of Sarajevo” will be renamed “Administrative building of the organs of the City of Sarajevo.”

   

The initiative of city councilor Toni Vukadin was adopted for the City of Sarajevo to initiate activities on the study of the revitalization of the old Jewish cemetery, a national monument that is in a much neglected state, and which could be one of the most exciting tourist destinations in Sarajevo in the future.

City councilor Nihad Uk submitted an initiative for the City of Sarajevo to consider installing new public drinking fountains, especially in the parts of the city used by recreationists and walkers.