If Serbs have their 'Serbian world', Bosniaks have their 'Ummah'!

By: Enver Išerić, Doctor of Law and member of NES BiH

The National Assembly of Republika Srpska, at a special session held on March 28, 2024, considered the latest situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, arising after the decision of High Representative Christian Schmidt to amend and supplement the Election Law of Bosnia and Herzegovina and introduce electoral technologies into the electoral system and the possibility of automatic vote counting.

The National Assembly of RS requested that the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina annul all of Schmidt's decisions within seven days and prohibit the publication of his decisions in the Official Gazette of BiH.

Milorad Dodik and his political followers do not recognize Christian Schmidt as the High Representative, as they believe he was not legally elected. They do not recognize the answers provided to their questions by the United Nations, i.e., the UN Secretary-General.

They have simply deluded themselves into thinking they rule the entire world and that everything revolves around them, Republika Srpska, and the Serbian world. This is a great delusion, and a very serious, perhaps incurable, illness. They should not have a problem with the introduction of electoral technologies in these amendments to the Election Law, as they themselves have committed to doing so.

Čović also has a problem that the amendments do not include the non-existent concept of legitimate representation, which he advocates for and which is contrary to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.

And to make the paradox even greater, Schmidt has given them (the Parliamentary Assembly) a deadline within which certain issues can be regulated differently, by which time the provisions of the law he enacted will not come into force.

Perhaps the ruling political parties are afraid of electronic vote counting and the introduction of electoral technologies into the electoral system.

However, if we read Schmidt's law more carefully, we will see that electoral technologies can be introduced, but they don't have to be. This follows from Article 113 of Schmidt's amendments, by which, after Article 20.16a, he added Article 20.16e, which stipulates:

"(1) Except for the provisions necessary for the implementation of pilot projects for the introduction of specific electoral technologies, the application of the provisions of this law relating to the introduction of specific electoral technologies shall commence upon the fulfillment of the technical conditions for their application;

(2) The acquisition of technical conditions from paragraph (1) of this Article includes the preparation of a feasibility study, the procurement of necessary equipment, and the implementation of pilot processes, as well as all other additional activities aimed at ensuring the integrity and functionality of the selected electoral technologies in the electoral process;

(3) In consultation with IDDEEA and the Personal Data Protection Agency of BiH, the Central Election Commission of BiH shall determine the fulfillment of technical conditions by a separate legal act;

(4) The Central Election Commission of BiH shall regularly submit comprehensive reports to the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina on its activities regarding the introduction of specific electoral technologies."

From paragraph (1), it is evident that the introduction of electoral technologies will begin upon the fulfillment of technical conditions, and paragraph (3) stipulates that the Central Election Commission will determine when these conditions are met.

The Central Election Commission has not been given any deadline, so electoral technologies can be introduced in 2050, and everything would be in accordance with the law. The essence is that these conditions do not have to be met by the next General Elections in 2026.

The entity parliament (National Assembly of RS) has set another request alongside these, which is that the "state Parliament confirms the territorial integrity of BiH" and that "a political consensus is reached on the further European path of BiH". Generous and patriotic, indeed!

The territorial integrity, as well as the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was confirmed in Dayton, at the peace conference, after Serbia and Croatia failed to divide our country through aggression. We do not need any new confirmation. The National Assembly and the President of RS perhaps do, because they sometimes deny it and sometimes want to confirm it.

As for the European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a "consensus has been reached" on that several times, only that Milorad Dodik and Dragan Čović, with their demands, by blackmailing the continuation of this journey towards the European Union, would like to turn this "highway" into a dirt/forest road on which only those isolated from civilization and European values can travel. That is why they do not mention the implementation of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.

For Dodik, the "Serbian world" and the Easter Assembly of Serbia and Republika Srpska are more important than anything else, in order to strengthen that Serbian world.

Well, Milorad and Vučić, Bosniaks also have their "Ummah", just as you have your world. And Ummah is any community that binds and gathers something. We Bosniaks are gathered by our state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and our faith.

You build your worlds wherever you want. Just don't do it at the expense of Bosnia and Herzegovina. No one. Neither Serbs nor Croats who want to involve Croatia in decision-making on Bosnian issues.

And do not forget that we will not accept any decisions or conclusions made by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska that are directed against Bosnia and Herzegovina and its institutions. Bosniaks in Republika Srpska must also have a say in this. This is also stipulated in the Constitution of Republika Srpska:

"Laws or other regulations or acts adopted by the National Assembly shall be submitted to and considered by the Council of Peoples if they relate to a vital interest defined in Amendment LXXVII." (Article 70 of the Constitution of RS)

And vital national interests include, among other things - equal rights of constituent peoples in the decision-making process; and the realization of the right of constituent peoples to be adequately represented in legislative, executive, and judicial bodies of authority.

Either we will all have the same rights throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, or a completely "new era" will begin in which new relationships will be built without those who deny human rights and attack the state.

The time when Bosniaks conceded, and when conceding was detrimental to both the state and the Bosniaks, is ending.