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Local elections in Bosnia last April witnessed a retreat in the Democratic Labor Party's position, led by Ali Ezzat Begovic, despite the fierce campaign prior to it. Talk circulates on Begovic's responsibility in the elections and his possible withdrawal from political life, giving room to a new leader to steer the party successfully during the coming elections.
Reasons for resignation:
In fact, such talk was not only voiced by the party milieus, but also by two other bodies. The first was the opposition, which was cemented by the results of the local elections and hoped for better results during the coming elections. The second body was the international administration, which does not conceal its desire for Begovic's withdrawal from the stage, and electing a figure that will be less fundamental and more European.
In the light of these circumstances, Begovic himself announced his desire to withdraw from political life, especially from the party leadership and from his post as member of Bosnia Presidency (the participant president) next October for "health reasons."
However, a Bosnian newspaper published on Friday, 18 August , news to the effect that Begovic would not withdraw from political life, despite his statements from time to time in this regard. This urged Dinevny Avaz newspaper, printed in Sarajevo, to interview Begovic on this very topic the following day.
Begovic clarifies his stance:
In this interview, three new positions are clear > 1 - Assertion that he will withdraw from political life/ Bosnia presidency next October for "health reasons." However, he gave himself room to revolt against this stance due to the current situation in Bosnia, as "the international administration is manipulating Bosnia's national interests."
2 - Sharp criticism against the international administration, which is responsible for the application of the Dayton Agreement. However, he did not consider his party in conflict with the international administration itself. Rather, his party is in a conflict with "ignorance and darkness" practiced by the international administration against his party. (The international administration magnifies mistakes made by the party before and after the war, but disregards positive results achieved by it, such as defending Bosnia, observing tolerance and non-revenge, etc.
3 - Escalating criticism against the opposition, which "promotes" the story that his withdrawal from political life is a mere pretext to keep public opinion away from problems, which the Democratic Labor Party suffers from. In this context, Begovic addressed the people directly, seeking their arbitration regarding what he and his party offered. He said: "The people are aware of what is going on around them. They see the problems and they see the achievements."
In this interview Begovic seemed to be delivering a farewell speech with an aura of defense and attack. He defended accomplishments achieved by him and his party during the first half of his leadership between 1990 and 1995 (independence and defense of Bosnia), and the second half until now (building the modern state in compliance with the Dayton Agreement), despite making mistakes to which he admitted. He vehemently attacked the parties that wanted him to withdraw from political life, i.e., the international administration and domestic opposition.
Biography:
Ali Ezzat Begovic, thinker, politician and statesman, was born in the Bosnian city of Shaptz in 1925. At early stages of his life, he clashed with the authorities owing to his Islamic orientations that ran counter to the Communist attitudes. In his youth, he joined the "Muslim Youth" organization, which was established in Sarajevo on par with its counterpart in Cairo. In 1946, he was sentenced to three years in prison. Following his release, he continued his law studies in 1956 and received his BA in Law in 1962.
Meanwhile, he published some articles under a pseudonym and later became famous in Yugoslavia when he authored "The Islamic Statement," owing to which he was brought to trial in Sarajevo in 1983 with 12 other intellectuals on a charge of adopting "fundamentalism." He was sentenced to a 14 year imprisonment term. It transpired later that the trial was fabricated and he was released in late 1988.
In early 1990, he took part in founding the National Labor Party, which became one of the biggest parties in Bosnia. He became the party leader in May 1990 and then the president of Bosnia. During the Bosnian war of independence between 1992 to 1995, he became an eminent figure whose ideas and activities secured support for Bosnia under harsh circumstances.
Despite his political responsibilities, he authored a book entitled "Islam Between The East and The West." He obtained the King Faisal Award in 1994 among others, which boosted his country's position. His memoirs,"My Escape to Freedom - Remarks from Prison 1983-1988," where published in late 1999.
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