While Dayton's equal inclusion has kept Bosnia functioning, it is the constitution's encouragement of exclusion that has critics calling for change. In 2010, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on Bosnia to enter the international community by including the disenfranchised. This sentiment was echoed at the University of Illinois in 2013, when Bosnian President ?eljko KomšiÄ? called for more inclusion in his country.
The rational solution to this systematic exclusion is to reverse 180 degrees and open elected offices to candidates of any ethnicity with one president presiding over the country and no guarantees of equal ethnic control in government posts.
Should Bosnia organize parliamentary districts like the United States, the makeup of parliament would likely reflect that of the country. Judging by how votes have tallied in the past, this situation is likely.
Even if districts were gerrymandered to elect a more equal ethnic parliament, it is unlikely that any one of Bosnia's super minorities would win. Should the improbable happen, effective governance from the elected minority would be nearly impossible with other branches of government likely controlled by dissenting majority ethnic groups.
While a well-intentioned, meaningful change to include the country's minorities would move Bosnia closer to a traditional EU democracy, it could open fresh wounds.
Bosniaks comprise 48 percent of the population, while Serbs account for 37 percent and Croats 14 percent. Should a constitutional change occur granting the presidency to one individual, control over the "Serb land" of Republika Srpska could fall under the auspices of a Bosniak president and parliament. From that point, a charismatic opposition leader with a strong message to the country's youth -- 62 percent of whom are unemployed -- is all that is needed to renew the conflict that has existed in the Adriatic states since the 14th Century.
Secession has been a theme of Bosnian Serb politicians in recently, with the current Serb representative to the presidency, Nebojsa Radmanovic, campaigning and winning on the theme of secession in 2010. With Kosovo recognized as an independent state, Bosnian Serbs see legal justification for their secession. Bosniaks have warned that secession could lead to war.
Putin's land-grabs are forcing Europe to deal with questions deferred for more than a decade. Bosnia cannot join the EU without changing its constitution, which moderate Bosniak and Croat leaders welcome to the chagrin of the Serbs. Bosnia's dismal economic situation -- coupled with fresh memories of a war that forced enemies to govern together -- would likely lead to internal turmoil and possibly bloody conflict. The alternative is to kick the can down the road and ensure peace.
Bosnian leaders and likely 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton have expressed interest in seeing Bosnia adopt Western-style democracy. The Transatlantic community needs to weigh its options should Bosnia choose to revise its constitution. Thankfully, the ticking time bomb in the Balkans has been defused since the Dayton Accords. Let's hope the clock doesn't start clicking anew with the stroke of a pen.
