Agents Mijić and Cvijetić signed the appeal: Bosnia and Herzegovina officially requested a review of the verdict in the 'Kovačević' case!

Bosnia and Herzegovina has submitted an “appeal” to the European Court of Human Rights against the decision in the case of Slaven Kovačević, Istraga.ba learns from the Office of the Agents of BiH before this Court.

The request for review (appeal) was signed by two BiH agents – Monika Mijić and Jelena Cvijetić. The “appeal” was sent on September 19, i.e., the last working day of Jelena Cvijetić in the position of agent of BiH before the Court in Strasbourg. Twelve days before she sent the appeal, the current composition of the Council of Ministers of BiH appointed Jelena Cvijetić as the Ombudsperson of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This is the first time that Bosnia and Herzegovina has requested a review of any decision of the European Court of Human Rights related to electoral legislation – i.e., the constitutional order.

Let us recall, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Slaven Kovačević, as a voter and citizen of Sarajevo, was denied the right to vote for a candidate for the member of the Presidency of BiH from the Republika Srpska. The Court stated that the Presidency of BiH is a state institution and that all citizens should have the right to elect all members of the Presidency of BiH.

Thus, the Court effectively established that, in addition to ethnic discrimination, territorial discrimination is also in force in BiH. To eliminate this discrimination, it is necessary to have a single electoral unit when electing members of the Presidency of BiH and delegates to the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH.

Dissatisfied with these decisions, BiH agents Monika Mijić (HDZ) and Jelena Cvijetić (SNSD) submitted a request for review. Agent Harisa Bavčić did not sign this appeal, although, as we learn, she supported her colleagues in drafting the request for review. Today we tried to get a comment from agent Bavčić, but she did not respond to our messages.

According to the Rules of Court of the European Court of Human Rights, the request for review is decided by the Grand Chamber, which consists of seventeen judges. The initial decision, we recall, was made by seven judges. They voted in a ratio of 6:1. The only one who opposed the initial decision was the Austrian judge Gabriele Kucsko-Stadlmayer. It is precisely on her dissenting opinion that agents Mijić and Cvijetić based their appeal.

For the request for review to even reach the Grand Chamber of seventeen judges, it is necessary that its admissibility be initially determined by a Panel of five judges.

This Panel ex officio includes the President of the European Court of Human Rights and two Vice-Presidents. In addition to them, there are two more judges who rotate, selected from among the judges of the remaining sections. When considering the request for review of the judgment, no judge who participated in the adoption of the initial decision will be on the Panel.

It is precisely through this request for review that the leaders of SNSD and HDZ intend, with the tacit consent of Our Party, NiP, and SDP, to annul the decision of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, which established that in BiH, in addition to ethnic, there is also territorial discrimination. Implementation of this judgment would bring BiH closer to the EU.

According to information from Istraga, officials of the Republic of Croatia and the OHR have engaged to have the European Court, through the Grand Chamber, challenge the initial decision.