As he pointed out in the letter, this is a situation that has been deteriorating for several years.
"Appreciating your understanding of the importance of the multi-ethnic and multicultural character of Bosnia and Herzegovina as one of the fundamental values of its centuries-long continuity, I am addressing you to highlight and warn about the unacceptable and intolerable level of contestation and disregard for the constitutional, institutional, cultural, religious, and ultimately democratic rights of Bosniaks in Herzegovina, about which you have been informed multiple times by representatives of Bosniaks from the political, religious, and social life in Mostar, Stolac, and Čapljina," wrote Zvizdić.
As he emphasized, Schmidt has already received information from actors in Herzegovina about the state of Bosniak rights in this part of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"The most recent such information about the state of a kind of apartheid in which Bosniaks live in the mentioned cities, with the current situation in Mostar being the best example, was sent to you in the form of a public appeal by the Mostar Mufti, Dr. Salem-ef. Dedović, who, in a highly correct manner, respecting the multi-ethnic character of Mostar but also the imperative need to respect full ethnic equality, proposed the formation of an expert group at the level of the City, Canton, federal and state levels, which would, under the supervision of the OHR, urgently review each individual case that is problematized in public, in order to stop the further devastation of the urban space of Mostar," wrote Zvizdić in this letter.
He added that Mostar is an architectural gem and a sediment of exceptional cultural-historical and spiritual achievements of numerous civilizations, and that it is a space where it will be significantly demonstrated and proven whether Bosnia and Herzegovina will remain trapped in the shackles of hegemonic ethno-national ideas or will respect democratic, multi-ethnic, anti-fascist, and European values.
"The city of Mostar should develop politically, urbanely, and socially on the basis of equality, parity, and solidarity, not on the basis of one-sided ethnic exclusivity that harms Bosniaks, which is, unfortunately, the dominant and evident feature of the current institutional and urban-cultural situation in Mostar," he wrote.
He particularly highlighted the problems that exist with the construction of cultural and religious buildings in Herzegovina.
"For how else, other than an attempt to establish ethnic and institutional dominance over Bosniaks, can one explain why for more than twenty years the construction of cultural facilities, such as the 'Mevlana' cultural center, or religious buildings of the Islamic Community has not been allowed, while at the same time, extra-institutionally and exclusively 'with eyes wide shut,' the construction of cultural and religious buildings of the Croatian people is permitted with questionable legality of spatial planning documentation," wrote Zvizdić.
The representative in the House of Representatives requested from Schmidt the establishment of an expert commission that would individually review each case of construction or prohibition of construction that is problematized in public, as well as the adoption of a binding decision aimed at relaxing inter-ethnic relations and establishing procedures in accordance with applicable laws and professional rules.
Additionally, Zvizdić pointed to the state of Bosniak rights in other parts of Herzegovina.
"Namely, the entire Bosnian-Herzegovinian public has known for years that the ratio of employees in the city administration, management, and companies in Stolac does not reflect the statistics of the population census, neither from 2013 nor from 1991, as prescribed by law. Out of more than 120 employees in the city administration in Stolac, only 6 are Bosniaks, while at the same time, not a single Bosniak is the director of a public company or institution, and the number of Bosniaks employed in them is negligible. The same, or even worse, situation is in Čapljina, where the rights of Bosniaks, as well as Serbs, are systematically violated," wrote Zvizdić.
In the end, he said that he believes it is finally time for concrete action by the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.