RS Representatives Submit Opinion to UN Security Council: Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Brink of Collapse, Schmidt Must Be Immediately Removed from Position

(Patria) - In the document submitted by RS representatives to the UN Security Council, which will hold informal consultations on the situation in BiH, it is stated that High Representative Christian Schmidt is responsible for the current crisis in the country and calls for his removal from office, as reported by Istraga.ba.

It initially states that the current crisis and threat to peace and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a direct result of the verdict rendered by BiH Court judge Sena Uzunović in the case against RS President Milorad Dodik, whom they claim is a former officer of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

They emphasize that a democratically elected RS president has been convicted and that the verdict as such represents a direct violation of the Dayton Agreement, international law, and the constitutions of BiH and the RS.

They reiterate the previously stated position that Schmidt is not the High Representative, that he acts illegally and beyond any legitimate mandate, pushing Bosnia and Herzegovina to the brink of collapse.

"Mr. Schmidt has used every opportunity to undermine democracy in BiH and preserve his position, causing crisis after crisis with his reckless decrees, threats, and other illegal interference.

The most drastic and irresponsible move by Mr. Schmidt was the unilateral imposition of the Criminal Code by decree in July 2023, thereby threatening imprisonment for all BiH officials who refuse to treat his decisions as if they were lawfully adopted by the BiH legislature.

In fact, a German bureaucrat, not confirmed by the UN Security Council, illegally imposed a law making non-compliance with his unconstitutional and illegal orders a criminal offense," the document states.

They add that the democratically elected institutions of the RS rightly refused to comply with what they describe as a neo-colonial practice.

"This defiance resulted in a politically motivated trial and subsequent conviction of Mr. Milorad Dodik, the President of the RS and one of the most prominent political figures in the region. The trial represents a potentially unprecedented destabilizing event in BiH since the 1992-1995 war," the document states.

Further, they explain that Dodik was convicted in a politically driven process while fulfilling his legal and constitutional duties by signing laws adopted in the RS National Assembly.

"The indictment and verdict represent a shocking attack on democracy and the rule of law, piling illegality upon illegality, in a tyrannical attempt to incapacitate democratically elected and legally appointed public officials of the RS," RS representatives claim.

They further state that the BiH Prosecutor's Office and the BiH Court were illegally formed by decrees of former High Representatives, which they claim is a clear violation of the BiH Constitution.

"This is a legal war designed to remove from office an elected president, fully supported by his people, in order to bring to power those forces that would completely destroy the Dayton Agreement and its protection of Serbs and Croats, for the purpose of creating a centralized state dominated by Bosniaks.

It is also an implicit threat to all Serbian, and even Croatian, elected leaders, officials, and representatives that if they do not fully comply with the orders of this German, they too will face criminal prosecution," the document reads.

They consider that the verdict, which they call Schmidt's work, has caused deep instability, injustice, and unrest in the RS, as well as in Bosnia and Herzegovina as a whole.

They emphasize that Schmidt is destroying the rule of law in BiH by violating the constitutional order, which, they claim, requires laws to be adopted through specific democratic procedures by democratically elected institutions, namely the state and entity parliaments.

"No person - not even a legitimate High Representative - has the authority to make laws in BiH by decree, not even through the so-called completely undemocratic 'Bonn Powers'," the document states.

They call the Dodik verdict an abuse of power stemming from a long-standing misinterpretation of the High Representative's mandate.

"The Dayton Agreement did establish the position of High Representative, but his mandate is strictly limited and does not include any authority to make binding decisions for anyone, let alone to make laws instead of domestic parliaments," the document states.

They add that the Office of the High Representative and its allies have initiated a series of court proceedings in BiH that threaten to bring the country to a state of complete disintegration.

"It is completely unacceptable for the BiH Prosecutor's Office to summon and investigate members of the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska for their parliamentary debates and votes.

Equally unacceptable is the demand of the BiH Prosecutor's Office for political parties to submit internal records and minutes of their meetings. These actions are reminiscent of authoritarian rule, not a functional democratic society," the document adds.

They reiterate the previously stated position that the RS is the main defender of the Dayton Peace Agreement, the BiH Constitution, as well as peace and stability in the country.

"The RS remains committed to finding a peaceful and democratic solution to this impending catastrophe, but is equally determined to defend its institutions and their constitutional rights by all necessary means," the document reads.

In conclusion, they emphasize - to resolve the crisis in BiH - it is imperative that Schmidt be immediately removed from the position he "illegally holds".

"And that all actions resulting from his illegal behavior - primarily legislative changes - be annulled. Legislative power must rest exclusively with the parliaments, in full accordance with the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which forms an integral part of the Dayton Peace Agreement," concludes the opinion on the current situation in BiH submitted to the UN Security Council by RS representatives.