Court of BiH acquits Fatmir Alispahić

SARAJevo, (Patria) - Judge Goran Radević today issued an acquittal for Fatmir Alispahić, a journalist and publicist who was on trial for inciting national, racial, and religious hatred, discord, and intolerance, in connection with publications on the Antimigrant portal regarding migrants. This information was confirmed to Patria by Alispahić's lawyer. 

The trial of Alispahić began on October 1st and concluded on November 12th. 

The defense submitted about 50 media reports, which, according to defense counsel Mensur Radončić, formed the basis for the accused's belief that migrants posed a threat.

In his closing statement, lawyer Radončić stated that Alispahić had always advocated for the humane treatment of migrants, and that the Prosecution had failed to precisely identify the offenses for which it sought a specific sanction.

The defense counsel stated that the entire indictment resembled a "buffet" where "nothing was concretized," and that the assertion that Alispahić incited hatred and discrimination was arbitrary.

"Alispahić acted in good faith. He never told anyone to take a rifle and kill migrants. He called for the activation of security mechanisms in the country," said Alispahić's lawyer, adding that it was plausible to claim that migrants were a security threat.

According to Detektor, Judge Goran Radević stated that the State Court acquitted Alispahić of the charges of committing the criminal offense of inciting national, religious, and racial hatred, discord, and intolerance because the Prosecution did not prove that he incited hatred towards constituent peoples and migrants, and because the indictment incorrectly invoked the application of international mechanisms.

He stated that the Prosecution did not establish which specific claims were attributed to the accused, and it was the Court's obligation to analyze all claims in relation to constituent peoples and migrants in order to identify the disputed statements from the perspective of hate speech.

"By analyzing the facts, the Court determined that 80 percent of the allegations relate to migrants and 80 percent to constituent peoples," stated Judge Radević, adding that the analysis of all texts found that they were within the permissible narrative defined by freedom of thought and speech.

Judge Radević stated that all statements and claims were within the scope of freedom of thought and speech, noting that migrants are not an object of criminal legal protection at the state level, and that the Court, ex officio, by reviewing state legislative practice, determined that State Law did not prescribe all forms of so-called hate speech, unlike the Criminal Code of Republika Srpska.

"The Court notes that the Prosecution incorrectly invoked the provisions on discrimination and the Convention on Cybercrime," Radević stated in the explanation of the first-instance verdict, adding that it was overlooked that this criminal offense is not supplemented by additional norms.

The parties to the proceedings were not present at the pronouncement of the verdict, Detektor reports.