Bosnia-Herzegovina

[BA] Law on Public Radio Television System Adopted

IRIS 2005-10:1/11

Dusan Babic

Media Analyst, Sarajevo

The House of Peoples of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Parliamentary Assembly has adopted the draft Act on the Public Radio and Television System in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the form adopted by the House of Representatives of the State Parliament (see IRIS 2004-1: 9 and IRIS 2005-6: 8).

Bosnian Croat deputies at the House of Peoples voted against the law, since they had earlier declared this law detrimental to the vital interests of the Croat people in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But the Bosnia and Herzegovina Constitutional Court ruled that the law was not unfavourable for the vital interests of the Bosnian Croats.

The adoption of this law was one of the obligations deriving from the European Union Feasibility Study, whose fulfillment was a precondition to the start of negotiations for acceeding to the EU.

The Act regulates the Public Radio-Television System in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the relations between the three public Radio Television services and a corporation intended to serve as an entity responsible for infrastructural and logistical support to the three public broadcasters, as well as its activities and organization.

According to this act, the Bosnia and Herzegovina Public Broadcasting System is made up of: B-H Radio Television, as the umbrella body, which is a country-wide public broadcaster, the Federation of Radio Television and Serb Republic Radio Television and the Corporation of the Public Radio Television Services of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The next step is the adoption of the Act on the Public Broadcasting Service in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which should then enter into force after 60 days.