Party of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Law on Public Order and Peace strengthens Milorad Dodik's dictatorship

The Party of Bosnia and Herzegovina condemns the support given by some opposition deputies in the National Assembly of the RS entity, representing the "Domovina" joint list, for the adoption of the Law on Public Order and Peace, which only further strengthens the position of Milorad Dodik and his undemocratic practices, condemned by the entire international community, civil society, and media, reports the BH News Agency Patria.

- It is now clear to everyone that Milorad Dodik wants to create a dictatorship in one part of Bosnia and Herzegovina with such a law, which could only be adopted in North Korea. Support from those who perceive Bosnia and Herzegovina as a state, especially those representing the returnee population, towards whom there is already too much discrimination, must be absent.

To say that progress has been made through amendments because deputies removed sanctions that "could also apply to calls to prayer from mosques" is completely unacceptable. Mind you, this means we are negotiating a law that severely violates civil liberties, encroaches on the sphere of social media, and through numerous mechanisms opens up the possibility of further harassment of all those who think differently from the ruling elite in Banja Luka. By doing so, the deputies have accepted the "spirit" of the law with minor changes that should serve as justification for what they have done. Let's ask ourselves what would have happened if the entity authorities dared to ban calls to prayer from mosques from Prijedor to Trebinje? Does anyone think that this could have been negotiated at all? Some deputies, such as Senad Bratić and Nedim Čivić, apparently think so - said Amer Jerlagić, president of the Party of Bosnia and Herzegovina.