Čapljina Removed BiH Flags, Croatian Flags Appear Along M-17: Double Standards or Law Enforcement?

(Patria) - While over the weekend in Čapljina, workers from the Elektroprivreda "HZHB" utility company, accompanied by police, removed around 150 flags of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina that had been placed in support of the BiH national team during the World Cup, today, on the day of the match between England and Croatia, flags of neighboring Croatia can be seen along the M-17 highway.

And they are placed on traffic signs. At six locations along the busy road.

No one will be punished for displaying symbols of foreign countries, because in Bosnia and Herzegovina there is no law prohibiting citizens from displaying flags of other states, nor is it precisely regulated where they can be displayed outside official protocol events.

However, a completely different issue is the placement of any markings on public infrastructure, traffic signs, poles, and objects that are part of public space. Such actions are subject to traffic safety rules, municipal regulations, and approvals from competent institutions.

Particular attention is drawn to the fact that the city authorities of Čapljina had previously demanded the urgent removal of other flags and symbols, citing that they were placed without the necessary approvals and constituted unauthorized intervention in public space. A recent such case involved the historical flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina with lilies, an internationally recognized state symbol of our country from 1992 to 1998, placed on the tower in Počitelj.

So, if the flags of Bosnia and Herzegovina were removed under the justification of respecting regulations, did the flags of neighboring Croatia placed on traffic signs along the M-17 highway receive the necessary permits, and will the competent authorities react in the same way?

In a state that is based, or at least should be based, on the equality of all citizens and respect for the law throughout the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the answer should not depend on whose flag is in question. Specifically, although extremely illogical and unfair, the same rules apply to the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, or any other state. Otherwise, it is not about enforcing the law but about a political message from the local Čapljina authorities.

And at the very least, it is nonsense that in a city in the 21st century on planet Earth, they remove flags of their own state and put up those of a neighboring one?!