Denial of Genocide and Lack of Indictments for the Siege of Sarajevo: Does the BiH Prosecutor's Office Have a Shred of Shame?

By: Amina Čorbo-Zećo

The Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina has once again shown that justice in this country operates according to double standards. Regarding the criminal complaint filed by the President of the Bosniak Caucus of Delegates in the House of Peoples of the FBiH Parliament, Jasmin Duvnjak, the BiH Prosecutor's Office decided not to launch an investigation against SNSD leader Milorad Dodik, who cursed the genocide.

Such a decision always shocks not only citizens who follow politics but also the international community, which has insisted on accountability for war crimes for decades. And especially because the persecution of members of the Army of RBiH and the Ministry of Internal Affairs continues persistently and unimpeded, filling the courtrooms of the BiH Court as they try to prove their innocence. That is, to prove what is generally known - the Army of RBiH defended Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Let's recall that the law enacted by former High Representative Valentin Inzko clearly stipulates prison sentences from three months to five years for denying genocide in BiH. This is not a mere formality – it is a legal norm that should protect the memory of the victims and prevent revisionism in society. However, as practice shows, we still have a situation where laws exist only "on paper," while their provisions are applied selectively.

Milanko Kajganić heads the BiH Prosecutor's Office, and his explanations for suspending investigations often sound unbelievable, sometimes almost absurd, giving the impression that the law does not apply equally to everyone. Citizens of BiH watch as some issues are swept under the rug, while politically powerful individuals remain untouched. The irony is even greater when considering that the outgoing year has not brought a single indictment for the siege of Sarajevo, one of the most difficult chapters in the country's recent history.

Such decisions by the Prosecutor's Office send a clear message: in BiH, justice is not an abstract ideal but a political instrument. Citizens are losing trust in institutions that should protect the law, while certain leaders, regardless of the gravity of their actions, remain beyond the reach of justice. This creates a dangerous culture of impunity and relativization of crimes, while simultaneously rendering meaningless the laws enacted to protect fundamental human rights and the dignity of victims.

As long as such decisions are not changed, as long as the Prosecutor's Office does not show equal treatment to all perpetrators and politicians, citizens will see justice only as mere statistics on paper. And for those who survived the war and genocide, such "justice" is both painful and humiliating.

The state of the judicial system in Bosnia and Herzegovina is not accidental; it is a direct reflection of a combination of influences coming from all sides. The work of courts and prosecutor's offices is influenced not only by those who appoint judicial officials but also by those who provide funds for their work. Add to this all other negative elements – political pressures, nepotism, selective application of the law – and you get a system where justice often remains just a word on paper.

And without justice in the judiciary, there is no justice in the country, and without justice in the country, hardly any system can survive. Instead of judging fairly and without prejudice, the judiciary in BiH often loses its neutrality and objectivity, becoming an instrument of political and financial interests. At this moment, it is undeniable that the monopoly in the judiciary is held by those who today follow the policies of the nineties, which aimed to erase BiH.

Citizens are losing trust in institutions that should protect their rights, and the state, without a functioning judiciary, remains in a vacuum of legal certainty. As long as the system is not free from pressure and as long as justice is not equal for all, justice in BiH will continue to elude. And worst of all, there is no end in sight to the agony, which affects not only former members of the Army but also future generations who, with such an attitude from the judiciary, can only wonder if it is worth fighting!