The budget is of key importance to the city
functioning

It is already April, and OHR notes with concern that the
City of

Mostar

has not yet adopted a
budget for 2006, while most municipalities in BiH have done so.  We urge
the City Administration to finalize a balanced draft budget for submission to
the City Council as soon as possible.

As you know, the City’s administrative bodies have functioned so far this
year under a decision on temporary financing.  That decision expired at the
end of March.  If the City is to continue functioning, the budget must be
adopted.

We need not remind the City officials of the difficult situation last year,
when the budget was not adopted until June.

OHR calls on the political parties in Mostar to put aside their differences,
in order to pass a budget, thereby allowing the City Administration to continue
to serve the needs of the citizens.

SDHR Peter Bas-Backer to Visit Mostar

The Senior Deputy High Representative, Peter Bas-Backer, will visit Mostar on
Thursday 6 April. In the morning, Ambassador Bas-Backer will meet Mayor Ljubo
Beslic and President of the Council Murat Coric.

Ambassador Bas-Backer will then hold an extended discussion with
representatives of civil society at the

Nansen

Dialogue

Center

. The focus of this discussion
will be on the progress that has been made in establishing a “Mostar Platform” –
an institutional and systematized mechanism for communication between the City
Authorities, representatives of NGOs and the business sector.

After this, the Senior Deputy High Representative will take part in a
“Two-Way Street” discussion, in which Mostar young people will have an
opportunity to ask him questions about his work and responsibilities.

Details for media are in the media advisory that I have brought here for you.