PRESS REVIEW FROM SLOVENIA, March 2, 1992

Ljubljana, 2 March - SLOVENEC: NEW SWITZERLAND IN THE BALKANS - The referendum in Bosnia and Herzegovina has lost its significance due to the latest agreements of the Bosnian-Herzegovina politicians at party discussions concerning the future of B&H in Lisbon and Sarajevo. Representatives of three peoples have now agreed on the further existence of the republic within its present borders, but in the form of a regional state community. The sovereignty of the citizens and state is not under question, the only question is are the people also sovereign. The Muslims have sacrificed the most, for they will not be living in a uniform republic anymore. For the Serbians such an agreement was the condition for them to accept the B&H state. The issue of Serbian territory in Croatia remains completely open due to the foundations of such a solution. With a positive outcome of the referendum, even though the Serbs boycotted it, B&H will become independent externally, while internally it will be divided into three ethnic cantons with the attributes of a federal state. This will probably be the compromise of the Serbian and Croatian policies after the six month war in Croatia, so that an even worse war in B&H is avoided. If the referendum does not succeed, then the Croatians and Muslims would be in a subordinated position. And this, in regard to the past experiences and the pre-referendum acts, is nearly impossible. Important issues on human rights and the position of the Yugoslav Army have still to be solved, writes Stane Okoliš.