Komšić requested the Venice Commission's Opinion on the method of electing judges to the Constitutional Court of BiH

(Patria) - Željko Komšić, in his then capacity as Chairman of the Presidency of BiH, sent a request to the Venice Commission on March 15 this year for an opinion on the method of electing judges to the Constitutional Court of BiH, and comparisons with the practice in Council of Europe countries.

"The reason for seeking such an opinion is the fact that the provisions of the BiH Constitution governing the method of electing judges to the Constitutional Court of BiH are not sufficiently precise and open up the possibility for incompetent individuals without any judicial experience to be appointed to the highest judicial institution in BiH," Komšić's cabinet announced.

The statement states that, in addition, a wrong practice is being created whereby judges are appointed to the Constitutional Court of BiH within certain ethnic quotas, although this is not prescribed by the Constitution.

For these reasons, in which it is evident that the quality of the Constitutional Court of BiH itself is significantly undermined in both cases, Komšić sent a request for an opinion to the Venice Commission, asking for the current system of appointing judges to the Constitutional Court of BiH to be aligned with European practice.

"Therefore, we call on all political and other actors in BiH to refrain from any appointments to the Constitutional Court of BiH until the Venice Commission, as the most significant legal authority in Europe, provides its opinion, which is planned for June 2024, after the Plenary Session of the Venice Commission.

This is of particular importance, as disregarding the opinion of the Venice Commission and not accepting European standards can jeopardize the European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina," Komšić stated.