Išerić: Urgent measures needed to save the state

By: Dr. sci. Enver Išerić, legal expert and member of NES

This year, as in previous years, Milorad Dodik defies the entire international community by committing criminal offenses of "non-implementation of decisions of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which issued a ruling establishing that January 9th, as the Day of Republika Srpska, is unconstitutional. And not only that. Milorad Dodik is launching unprecedented attacks on the constitutional order of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its institutions and is threatening secession by the entity he presides over.

He proceeds very carefully, step by step, but also acts very aggressively with false claims that he is a man who advocates for respect for the Dayton Constitution. Thus, in reality, his unconstitutional and anti-Dayton actions, as well as the non-implementation of Constitutional Court decisions, the commission of criminal offenses, and the adoption of unconstitutional laws in the National Assembly of the RS entity, become a "normal" state for a certain period for politicians with whom they are in coalition, and for the entire international community.

When that "normality" is established, he immediately moves on and launches new attacks, so that the earlier ones are further confirmed and understood as a "normal" and de facto situation.

But in reality, all of this is a great abnormality and a very great danger to peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Thus, despite the Constitutional Court's ruling, they want to continue celebrating January 9th as the Day of RS. And on that very day, elected representatives in the Assembly of SRBiH acted contrary to the Constitution of SRBiH, attacked the constitutional order, and announced ethnic cleansing of areas they considered to belong only to the Serb people, including those that, as stated in the Declaration of January 9, 1992, "on which the Serb people remained in the minority due to the genocide committed against them in World War II".

And at the session of that illegal assembly of the Serb people in Bosnia and Herzegovina, held on May 12, 1992, in Banja Luka, convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić, reacting to the plans presented at that session, stated:

„Therefore, we cannot cleanse, nor can we have a sieve to sift only to keep Serbs or for Serbs to perish and others to leave. That is, that will not happen, I don't know how Mr. Krajišnik and Mr. Karadžić will explain it to the world. That is, people, genocide.“

And they want to impose such dates, on which monstrous and criminal plans were forged against those who are not Serbs, as dates that Bosniaks and Croats living in that entity should also celebrate.

The overall situation, i.e., the period since the end of the aggression against Bosnia and Herzegovina, indicates that such constitutional solutions are unsustainable and must be urgently changed. This is necessary to ensure equal rights for all citizens throughout our country, which includes the implementation of all judgments of the European Court of Human Rights and ensuring the efficiency of state institutions.

And we will not be able to achieve that with these destructive and aggressive political forces that are perpetrating unprecedented terror against our institutions and all citizens. The repair of Dayton solutions must be mediated by the US and the EU as soon as possible, if peace is to be maintained in this region.

And before that, it is necessary for state institutions (Prosecutor's Office and SIPA) to immediately arrest all persons who are attacking the constitutional order and not implementing the decisions of the Constitutional Court (organizing the celebration of January 9th). Members of the international forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina should assist them in this. If the flyovers of American planes on January 8, 2024, will be in support of these activities, then I welcome those flyovers. If they are just training flights that Dodik mocks, then it would be better for American bombers not to fly at all.

The High Representative should direct all his energy towards the implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement, and talk as little as possible about the problems in our country with the representatives of the states that committed aggression against our country. He must use his powers and dismiss all politicians who undermine the Dayton Peace Agreement and attack the constitutional order of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Central Election Commission can also revoke mandates and annul the registration of political parties that violate the Dayton Peace Agreement. Why isn't the CEC doing this?

And if the High Representative is to make amendments to the Election Law in order to ensure fair and honest elections, and we hope he will, if Milorad Dodik does not prevent him with further threats, then he must use that opportunity and ban political parties and individuals who violate the Dayton Peace Agreement, who have been convicted of war crimes, who violate the constitution and laws of this country, and who attack the constitutional order of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from running.

And the Troika? The Troika, i.e., the political parties that form the government at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina, should immediately break the coalition with SNSD due to the continuous destruction of state institutions, attacks on the constitutional order, threats of secession, and denial of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina should immediately dissolve the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly, due to obstruction of work and the inability to pass laws.

If the "Troika" and the Presidency do not do what is expected of them and what they are obliged to do to protect the state, then they are accomplices in its destruction. The excuse for their inaction must not be the fear of further complicating the political situation. The situation is complicated to the point that the state is in danger. Measures are needed to save the state.