Demand to Schmidt: Ban the unconstitutional and anti-state celebration of January 9th

(Patria) - Emir Ramić, Director of the Institute for Genocide Research Canada, sent a letter to the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt, demanding that he ban the unconstitutional and anti-state celebration of January 9th as the Day of the Republika Srpska entity.

We are transmitting the letter in its entirety:

Your Excellency,On behalf of many organizations, communities, and numerous prominent human rights and freedom fighters and activists worldwide, we address you for the third year in a row with a demand to ban the unconstitutional and anti-state celebration of January 9th as the Day of the Republika Srpska entity.

It is well known to you that the Constitutional Court of the then-Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina made a Decision on February 28, 1992, annulling both the declaration and the Constitution of the Srpska Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Twenty-three years later, in November 2015, the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina made a Decision stating that the article of the Law on Holidays of the Republika Srpska entity, which refers to the Entity Day, is unconstitutional.

In March 2019, the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina made a Decision stating that the article of the law which states that "based on the confirmed will of the citizens of Republika Srpska, January 9th is established as the Day of the Republic" is unconstitutional and contrary to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. It was also determined that it is contrary to the Protocol to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
Previously, the Venice Commission, in its opinion, assessed that the Day of the Republika Srpska entity on that date is "discriminatory, as it is not in line with the universal values of dialogue, tolerance, and understanding”.

In response to a letter from the International Expert Team of the Institute for Genocide Research Canada, Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly wrote in 2024:

"Canada condemns the unconstitutional marking of January 9th as the Day of the Republika Srpska entity. Canada fully supports the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Canada supports the full integration of Bosnia and Herzegovina into Euro-Atlantic structures. Canada supports a stable, secure, and multi-ethnic democracy in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Canada, along with its international partners, will not allow any destabilization of Bosnia and Herzegovina, nor endanger peace, stability, and the Dayton Agreement. Canada supports the decisions of the Peace Implementation Council in Bosnia and Herzegovina”.

As you know, Canada is a member of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Telling the Bosnian-Herzegovinian truth about January 9th is the most powerful tool we have against the ongoing joint anti-Bosnian endeavor. And that truth is: January 9th is one of the darkest dates in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe, and the world. It marks the beginning of the implementation of the aggression against the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the execution of genocide against its citizens.

Victims of aggression and genocide, as well as numerous fighters and activists worldwide for truth, justice, culture of remembrance, human rights, and freedoms, ask you to raise your powerful voice and authority against the celebration of January 9th as the day of the smaller Bosnian-Herzegovinian entity, to raise your voice against the non-recognition of the suffering of victims, the denial of crimes of aggression and genocide, the denial of verdicts by international courts, the glorification of convicted war criminals, the misuse of past events, and the prohibition of the culture of remembrance.

For a very long time, defenders of Bosnian-Herzegovinian statehood, sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and political subjectivity have not been heard or believed, if they dared to speak the truth against the power of the so-called leaders of the anti-Bosnian campaign.

It is time for your decisive action and ban on marking January 9th as the Day of the Republika Srpska entity.