Dr. Cerić: Sanction those who blocked the law, not the state and citizens!

Politicians responsible for the failure to adopt the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering and amendments to the Criminal Code of BiH should be sanctioned, not the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the citizens who have been fighting the catastrophic consequences of floods in recent days, it was announced today from the Press Office of the independent candidate for the Presidency of BiH, Dr. Mustafa Cerić, reports the Bosnian news agency Patria (NAP).

The Committee of Experts on the Evaluation of Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Measures of the Council of Europe – Moneyval, announced that BiH does not meet international standards in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing, which is an introduction to possible negative consequences for the state and citizens.

Dr. Cerić believes that the reputation of the state and citizens must be protected, and that those who once again brought the state and its institutions under the threat of sanctions by the international community and other states should bear the consequences.  

- It is known to everyone which institutions and individuals blocked the adoption of these laws when the time was right. The European Union Delegation publicly requested the adoption of the law more than two months ago and warned that representatives of the Republika Srpska in the institutions opposed its adoption. This turned out to be true, and the current announcement of sanctions against BiH and its citizens is, above all, a result of that blockade - the statement says.

The Press Office of Dr. Cerić reminds that the mentioned legal amendments in the Parliament of BiH were blocked by Dušanka Majkić, Chairperson of the Joint Commission for Defense and Security, at the order of party president Milorad Dodik back in early March this year.

Also, the chance to adopt the law before June 1, which was the deadline, was missed a second time because Dragan Čović, Chairman of the House of Peoples of BiH, scheduled the session for June 6, refusing calls for it to be held before the deadline, the Press Office of Dr. Cerić states.

At the same time, other ruling parties also failed to exert pressure and react in time so that citizens and the state of BiH would not again be exposed to threats of sanctions and further damage to its reputation.  

- The international community has mechanisms, including the High Representative and the Special Representative of the European Union in BiH, to sanction and put on the "blacklist" the politicians responsible for this blockade. The citizens and the state of BiH do not deserve to once again be hostages to bad decisions, deliberate obstructions by certain politicians, and their incompetence - it was emphasized in the statement of Dr. Cerić, as reported by Patria.