No one has the right to stop the fight against crime and corruption

President of the Main Board of the SDP BiH and member of the Parliament of BiH Saša Magazinović met with the director of the Office for South and Central Europe at the US Department of State, Thomas Yazdgerdi, reports the Patria news agency.

Magazinović once again expressed gratitude to the United States of America for its great assistance to Bosnia and Herzegovina, particularly in reforms that ultimately proved successful, and expressed hope that US attention will remain focused on BiH in the coming period.

The interlocutors discussed the overall political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with emphasis on recent events related to the decision of the Government of Republika Srpska to terminate this entity's cooperation with SIPA and the Prosecutor's Office of BiH. In this regard, Magazinović stated that the decision of the Government of Republika Srpska is a very wrong, reckless and harmful move that has brought the entire country into a state of uncertainty, and that it represents a deliberate destruction of state institutions. In this case, he emphasized, the reaction of domestic institutions, and especially the international community, must not be absent.

The interlocutors agreed in their assessment that no one, including the RS Government, has the right to stop investigations against perpetrators of war crimes, as well as persons suspected of the most serious criminal acts of organized crime and corruption, especially within institutions.

Magazinović also informed Yazdgerdi about current developments regarding BiH's European path, stating that he considers the fact that this process has gained new momentum to be good for the country, but that one cannot yet speak of major results and success as is often heard in optimistic statements.

The opposition, civil society, and the public who support the path towards the EU are practically excluded from this process, and information is often concealed, as is the case with the allegedly agreed coordination mechanism, which is a completely wrong approach. The capacities of the opposition and civil society, which are often greater than those of people in power, should be much better utilized in this area, concluded Magazinović.