Hot April on the Horizon: HDZ Demands Vukoja, SNSD Expulsion of Foreign Judges, "Trojka" Between "Two Fires"

(Patria) - Following the last session of the BiH Council of Ministers, the Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH, Staša Košarac (SNSD), stated that next month, in April, the issue of the Law on the Constitutional Court of BiH and the termination of mandates of foreign judges will be on the agenda.

“We will not forget the law on the Constitutional Court and the termination of mandates of foreign judges. It is coming to the agenda in April, and I appreciate that we will address it adequately with our partners. We should not forget the closure of the OHR office either,” Košarac said at a press conference on March 12.

Just a few days later, the Constitutional Court of BiH scheduled a press conference for March 22. As stated in the invitation, the President, Vice-Presidents, and judges of the Constitutional Court of BiH will present the work of the Constitutional Court to the present media representatives at the conference, with a special focus on the current situation regarding the work of the Constitutional Court.

We remind you that the Constitutional Court of BiH is short of three judges, two elected by the National Assembly of Republika Srpska and one missing judge elected by the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament. However, even without them, the Constitutional Court of BiH can function and make decisions.

It is no secret that the election of judges in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska is stalled because the leader of SNSD, Milorad Dodik, as well as other partner parties, insist on the elimination of foreign judges from this court. They have clearly presented such a demand to their partners in FBiH, HDZ, and "Trojka".

In a solution presented to the public by Milorad Dodik, the BiH Parliament would elect three judges. These judges were previously nominated by the President of the European Court of Human Rights after consultations with the BiH Presidency.

Member of the BiH Presidency, Denis Bećirović, reacted to such announcements and on February 8, stated that no politician advocating for the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina should agree to Dodik's ultimatums regarding the BiH Constitutional Court, as well as other essentially important issues for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“The Constitutional Court of BiH must not be a topic of discussion with political extremists who threaten peace and the constitutional order of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The European path of Bosnia and Herzegovina does not exist for political extremists to destroy the European and Euro-Atlantic future of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but for our country to become a functional and democratic state where European standards and principles are respected,” Bećirović stated.

However, it is known that views within SDP differ from official to official, and that President Nermin Nikšić makes decisions in consultation with a very narrow circle of people to whom he has given positions. In return, they are campaigning to extend his mandate beyond the Statute and electoral rules of SDP.

On the other hand, Nikšić's stance does not bind Bećirović because the citizens of FBiH gave him his mandate.

Although the parties of "Trojka" (NIP, SDP, Naša stranka) initially opposed the departure of foreign judges from the Constitutional Court of BiH, considering that the political moment was not suitable for such a decision, and that "foreign judges can leave the day before BiH joins the EU", there were no reactions to Košarac's announcements that this issue would be put on the agenda in April. We no longer hear that the departure of foreign judges is linked to immediate membership in the EU.

Following a secret meeting in Bakinci, when a document was leaked that also included the issue of the Constitutional Court of BiH, "Trojka's" proposal was to send amendments to the Law on the Election of Judges of the Constitutional Court of BiH into parliamentary procedure after obtaining a negotiation date. The European Council meets next week, but it will only decide on opening the negotiation process with the EU, not the exact date. No one knows how long BiH will wait for EU membership.

Regarding the election of a judge of the Constitutional Court of BiH elected by the House of Representatives of the FBiH Parliament, HDZ BiH and Dragan Čović demand from their coalition partners that it be Marin Vukoja. The opposition, as well as some SDP representatives, demand that the entire list of successful candidates be presented to the deputies. NIP has long since taken the stance that they will support Vukoja's election without any reservations.

However, HDZ BiH does not want such a risk, and the vote on the judge of the Constitutional Court has been blocked for months, first due to a quorum in the committees, and then due to the mistrust that prevails among partners whose majority is on shaky ground. But it is certain that Čović will not have much patience for much longer, and he has already started with new demands.