Who is responsible in RS: Penalties for non-execution of Constitutional Court decisions from 6 months to 5 years in prison

The Criminal Code of BiH treats the non-execution of decisions of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or the Human Rights Chamber as a criminal offense, writes the Patria news agency.

Article 239 states:

- An official in the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the institutions of the entities, or the institutions of Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who refuses to execute a final and binding decision of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or the Human Rights Chamber, or prevents such a decision from being executed, or otherwise obstructs its execution, shall be punished with imprisonment from six months to five years.

The BiH Prosecutor's Office, which is competent for conducting investigations, last made a statement at the end of August. As a reminder, they said at the time that they had not received a ruling from the BiH Constitutional Court confirming the non-execution of the Constitutional Court's decision, nor the identification of individuals who are not implementing the decision.

- The decision was made on November 26, 2015, and the six-month deadline expired on May 26 this year. The BiH Prosecutor's Office has not received a ruling from the Constitutional Court confirming the non-execution of the decision from May 26 until today.

The acting prosecutor of the BiH Prosecutor's Office sent an official letter to the Constitutional Court requesting clarification from the Constitutional Court regarding this matter, according to the statement from the BiH Prosecutor's Office on August 29 this year.

Following yesterday's Decision of the BiH Constitutional Court, which once again confirmed January 9 as unconstitutional, a ruling on execution needs to reach the BiH Prosecutor's Office, after which investigative actions can be initiated against officials who are obstructing the implementation of the BiH Constitutional Court's decision.

The decision to call a referendum by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (NSRS) on the Day of Republika Srpska has also been annulled, and the Constitutional Court has made a decision to temporarily suspend the referendum in RS.

The BiH Constitutional Court is now issuing an order to incorporate the verdict into the Law on Holidays of RS.

Dodik announced that RS will only proceed with the implementation of the BiH Constitutional Court's decision after the referendum on September 25, and the NSRS will decide how the Law on Holidays will be adapted.

With this statement, Dodik announced the possibility of delaying the publication of the BiH Constitutional Court's Decision in the Official Gazette of RS.

If he receives the Decision in two or three days, he will likely try to postpone its publication until next week. Since the Decision applies from the date of publication in the Official Gazette of RS, he would thus try to "legally" avoid criminal responsibility for non-execution.

Who could be held responsible if the BiH Prosecutor's Office opens an investigation?

The President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, the Speaker of the National Assembly of RS, Nedeljko Čubrilović, the Prime Minister of RS, Željka Cvijanović, and the President of the Republican Commission for Holding the Referendum, Siniša Karan. Members of the National Assembly of RS could also be on the list.