Helez: Dodik violates the BiH Law on Defense, BiH Prosecutor's Office to investigate his advocacy for military service in the Serbian army

(Patria) - The president of the smaller Bosnian-Herzegovinian entity RS, Milorad Dodik, is directly attacking the Armed Forces of BiH for the umpteenth time. This is a continuation of his policy of attacking state institutions: the Constitutional Court of BiH, the Prosecutor's Office of BiH, JP RTVBiH, and especially the Armed Forces of BiH and other institutions of BiH that are symbols of our country, stated the Minister of Defense of BiH, Zukan Helez, in his reaction.

"With his statements in which he directly incites citizens of BiH from the RS entity to serve their military service in Serbia, he violates the BiH Law on Defense, Article 51 (Prohibition of engagement of citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina). Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina whose residence is in the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including those with dual citizenship, are prohibited from serving military service and training as recruits in the armed forces of other countries. Furthermore, any incitement and encouragement of actions contrary to the provisions of the relevant article of the law can be linked to the violation of Article 162b of the Criminal Code of BiH, which stipulates that anyone who publicly, through the media, distributes or otherwise conveys a message to the public, which aims to incite another to commit this criminal offense, will be punished by imprisonment," stated Helez.

He called on the judicial bodies of BiH, especially the Prosecutor's Office of BiH, to investigate Dodik's statements in which he incites citizens of BiH from the RS entity to serve their military service in Serbia, in accordance with legal provisions.

"The Armed Forces of BiH are the best integrated part of Bosnian-Herzegovinian society, and no matter how much Milorad Dodik and his entourage try, they will not destabilize them.
For years, citizens in our country have been hostages of the unsystematic and illegal actions of Milorad Dodik, which have unfortunately often been tolerated by the international community in our country, the judicial institutions of BiH, especially the Prosecutor's Office of BiH. I am sure that by now we could have been a full member of the EU and NATO, all of us richer and happier, if the authorities of RS had been truly committed to Euro-Atlantic integrations.

Because of a few irresponsible nationalists, ready to endanger the future of all citizens in our country, instead of the EU, we are still wallowing in the mud of the 90s, still dreaming of some new 'great states' and 'some kind of cleansed, ethnically pure worlds'.

To all those who openly attack the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country, who want to redraw borders again, I say that they will receive a response from the institutions of BiH.
I call on all citizens and all political actors in our country to build BiH together as a state in which all its citizens will have equal rights and freedoms, regardless of their ethnic affiliation and place of residence, a member of the EU and NATO.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is big enough for all of us, let's make it a country where all its citizens will live happily from their work," Helez concluded.