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Before voting in the general election on Oct. 3, citizens from around Bosnia tuned in to watch candidate debates that were novel in focusing on issues that voters said they care most about. The debates, along with a series of regional town hall-style meetings, provided Bosnian parties a platform from which to present concrete policy approaches to voters.
These events, which take cues from U.S. presidential debates, represent one of the sole examples of constructive and collegial political dialogue in an electoral campaign marked by typical post-war Bosnian politics, where ethnic divides dominate political rhetoric and parties in electoral campaigns engage voters solely through ethnically divisive invective.
Two major Bosnian public television stations — Bosnia and Herzegovina Radio Television (BHRT) and Radio Television Republika Srpska (RTRS) — partnered with NDI to produce and broadcast the three televised political debates. The topics for discussion at both the debates and regional forums were identified as those most deemed most important to citizens in NDI's public opinion research, which revealed a citizenry focused on the economy and its livelihood.
The debates, on the last three Thursdays in September, took place in Banja Luka on Sept. 16, featuring the parties most popular in the Republika Srpska; on Sept. 23 in Mostar, including parties ranked highest in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina; and Sept. 30 in Sarajevo, showcasing parties from both of Bosnia's political entities in a relatively rare joint policy discussion at the national level. The parties invited to participate had received the highest levels of support in NDI's public opinion research.
The two-hour Banja Luka debate was broadcast live throughout the country and then rebroadcast the next day on statewide television station BHTV. Watch highlights from the third debate on YouTube, or watch the debates in their entirety on the RTRS website.
In Banja Luka, five high-level party representatives discussed their policy platforms and explained their approaches to priority issues for citizens. Topics were determined through public opinion research, as well as through questions videotaped from citizens on the street. In one taped question, played on a screen in the studio, a young man asked about jobs for young people. Participants addressed the issue by explaining their parties' approaches to reducing youth unemployment. Most responses described anti-corruption projects that would support a hiring system based on meritocracy, rather than backroom deals and connections; while one party president presented a difference approach of building a skilled labor force through education.
The eight pre-election regional forums brought political party representatives together in a more intimate setting to debate economic issues and field questions from citizens in the audience. A Sept. 4 regional forum in Livno took place in a public space at a downtown shopping mall. About 100 citizens posed substantive questions about unemployment to a panel of seven party representatives from the local ruling and opposition parties.
A forum in Tuzla on Sept. 13 saw an even more frank exchange about youth unemployment between about 70 voters and a panel of local party leaders. The citizens challenged parties to put a stop to political favoritism in employment and promote a system of meritocracy. The inclusion of two young political candidates made the debate particularly relevant.
To carry out this project, NDI has drawn on its institutional partnership with the United States Commission on Presidential Debates and has also sought advice on debate format and approaches from a civil society organization advisory board including such groups as Women for Women, the Center for Civic Initiatives, and the Youth Communications Centre, among others. This approach has enabled a wide spectrum of voices and opinions from the Bosnian non-governmental sector to participate.
On election day, Bosnians will vote to elect representatives to their state parliaments, as well as regional parliaments representing the Republika Srpska (RS) and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The polls will also decide the president of the RS and the federation's tripartite presidency — a rotating presidency that includes one representative from each of the country's three major ethnic groups.
NDI has worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 1996, supporting the long-term development of political parties, citizen participation in the political process, and professional and transparent legislative bodies. NDI's current programs, funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), advance issue-based politics through policy development and open debate among political parties and citizens. NDI's debates and forums project is funded through USAID.
Related:
- Public opinion poll, Bosnia and Herzegovina, August 2010»
- Bosnia After Dayton: NDI Report Assesses Challenges that Lie Ahead»
- International workshop explores best methods for organizing candidate debates»
Pictured above: Debate moderators greet a participant before the Sept. 30 national debate.
Published October 1, 2010. Updated October 6, 2010
