Dodik 'tweets' about Schmidt: A criminal attempt to impose a decision by a person with no legitimacy

(Patria) - The President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, commented on Twitter regarding the decisions made yesterday by the High Representative in BiH, Christian Schmidt.

Dodik wrote that the position of Republika Srpska is clear and known, and that Christian Schmidt's decision, which allegedly imposes an amendment to the Criminal Code, will not be published in the "Official Gazette" and will not be applied in Republika Srpska.

"Schmidt is not the High Representative because he does not have a mandate confirmed by the UN Security Council and his decisions have no legal effect. This is a criminal attempt to impose a decision by a person with no legitimacy," Dodik stated.

Let us remind you that among the series of decisions made by the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the one concerning amendments to the Criminal Code of Republika Srpska was almost overlooked. At the end of the working day yesterday, Christian Schmidt, in order to unblock the formation of the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, reached for the Bonn powers and, among others, imposed the Decision on the adoption of the Law on Amendments to the Criminal Law of Republika Srpska.

In his address in front of the OHR, Christian Schmidt emphasized that in order to improve the integrity of elections, he amended the criminal laws and included a new criminal offense of "Vote Buying in Elections".

"Based on such amendments, it is possible to effectively sanction all cases of bribery of elected officials. This should serve as a warning to all those who are considering resorting to bribery or intimidation to achieve their political goals," he said, emphasizing that the amendments should encourage those who seek fair play and believe that their votes will not be misused.