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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release September 12, 1996

Today, the President announced that Ambassador Richard Holbrooke will lead the Presidential Delegation to observe this Saturday's Bosnian elections. In addition to Holbrooke, the former chief negotiator for Bosnia, the delegation consists of Members of Congress, senior Administration officials and distinguished private American citizens.

The September 14 elections, which will take place on the national, entity and cantonal level, will create essential legislative and judicial bodies to provide the framework for inter-ethnic cooperation and enable Bosnia to function as a unified civil society.

"I am grateful to Ambassador Holbrooke and the rest of the members of this observer delegation for agreeing to take on this important mission. Since the Dayton Peace Accords last November, the United States has led the process of reconciliation and rebuilding in Bosnia. I am proud of our efforts to date and am pleased to be sending this talented group of Americans to support the elections," said the President. "These elections are a key step on the long, difficult path to a lasting peace in Bosnia -- a path we are determined to walk alongside the Bosnian people in the days ahead," he said.

The Delegation plans to observe the elections in several locations, including Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Mostar-and Tuzla. They will also meet with a wide variety of Bosnian leaders and senior international officials involved in the election process, including Ambassador Robert Frowick of the OSCE and IFOR military Commander Admiral Joseph Lopez.

The Delegation will be available to media in Sarajevo for preliminary comment before returning home to report their findings and observations to the President.

Members of the Delegation include:

Head of Delegation

The Honorable Richard Holbrooke
Vice Chairman of CS First Boston

Members of the Delegation

The Honorable John Menzies
U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia

The Honorable John P. Murtha
House of Representatives (D-PA)

The Honorable Steny Hoyer
House of Representatives (D-MD)

The Honorable Peter King
House of Representatives (R-NY)

The Honorable Frank Mascara
House of Representative (D-PA)

The Honorable John Shattuck
Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor

The Honorable Richard Penn Kemble
Deputy Director
United States Information Agency

The Honorable Sally A. Shelton
Assistant Administrator
U.S. Agency for International Development

The Honorable Sam W. Brown, Jr.
Head of Delegation to the Organization
on Security and Cooperation in Europe

The Honorable William Montgomery
Special Advisor for Bosnia Implementation

The Honorable Mike Jaros
Legislator Minnesota House of Representatives

Mr. William S. White Chairman, President and CEO Charles Stewart Mott Foundation

Mr. Tom McDonald, Partner
Arter & Hadden Law Firm

Mr. Howard Roy Williams
Vice President
Overseas Policy and Planning,
International Rescue Committee

Ambassador Lester Korn Chairman,
Korn Tuttle Capital Group
Founder Korn/Ferry International

Ms. Nancy Rubin
Board of Director of the Overseas Development and the International Human Rights Law Group and serves on The Women's Commission on Refugees for Women and Children

The Honorable William Luers
President, Metropolitan Museum of Art and former Ambassador to Venezuela and Czechoslovakia

Mrs. Wendy Luers, Chairperson
Foundation for a Civil Society

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