Constitutional Court of BiH Decision on the Unconstitutionality of January 9 Published

The Constitutional Court's decision on the unconstitutionality of the RS's patron saint's day has been published in the Official Gazette of BiH 100/15 of December 29, 2015, as announced on social media by Edin Šarčević, associate professor at the Faculty of Law in Leipzig and director of the Center for Public Law Foundation, reports the Patria news agency.

The Decision states:

- The Constitutional Court considers that the choice of January 9 as the date for celebrating the Day of the Republic does not have the symbolism of collective remembrance that can contribute to strengthening collective identity as values of particular importance in a multi-ethnic society, which is based on respect and observance of diversity as fundamental values of a modern democratic society.

In this regard, the choice of January 9 for celebrating the Day of the Republic as one of the entity holidays, which is a constitutional category and as such must represent all citizens of Republika Srpska, to whom the Constitution of Republika Srpska itself guarantees equal rights, is not in accordance with the constitutional obligation of non-discrimination in terms of group rights, as it establishes a privileged position for only one, the Serb people, whose representatives adopted the Declaration on the Proclamation of the Republic of the Serb People of Bosnia and Herzegovina on January 9, 1992, without the participation of representatives of Bosniaks, Croats, and Others, which represents a unilateral act."

It follows that through the established practice of celebrating January 9, when the patron saint's day of Republika Srpska is also celebrated along with the Day of the Republic, regardless of whether it is a separate or joint celebration of these two events, public authorities in Republika Srpska have created a public atmosphere of values and beliefs that clearly prioritizes the religious heritage, traditions, and customs of only the Serb people, placing them in a privileged position as only one of the three constituent peoples in Republika Srpska, who exercise their rights and obligations under equal conditions and in an equal manner.

In this way, the public authorities of Republika Srpska, through their established practice, have violated the constitutional obligation of non-discrimination in terms of group rights. Namely, religious beliefs, and in connection therewith, tradition and ritual, are part of the identity of each of the constituent peoples in BiH, and it is the legitimate right of each of them to preserve it. Public authorities have the obligation to ensure the exercise of this right equally for all. The practice of celebrating January 9 also as a religious holiday, which represents part of the identity of only one of the constituent peoples, is not in accordance with this obligation of public authorities - states Professor Šarčević's announcement.