Željka Cvijanović, the Serb member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), stated that while officials from Republika Srpska discuss the necessity of maintaining peace and stability and resolving all open political issues through democratic institutions, Western ambassadors in Sarajevo, through certain threats and militaristic statements, seek to instill fear in the Serbs. Simultaneously, they give hope to some radical forces within the Bosniak political elite that NATO will “resolve” the “problematic” Republika Srpska by abolishing it.
At the same time, Bosniak officials, such as the BiH Minister of Defense Zukan Helez and the Minister of Security of the Federation of BiH Rame Isak, openly threaten violence and war. Among many inflammatory statements by Minister Helez, two are the most dangerous: the creation of “reserve” military forces in BiH, and the call for “military training” to be introduced in schools across BiH. Minister Isak, on the other hand, has stated that he will “lead 10 corps” when Republika Srpska is abolished, according to Cvijanović.
She emphasizes that such threats and calls to violence are rarely condemned by Schmidt and foreign ambassadors.
“It should also be noted that the current threat from radical Islamic terrorist cells poses a danger not only to peace in BiH and the Western Balkans but also throughout Europe. Just two weeks ago, police forces arrested an individual in Zenica suspected of belonging to a radical Islamist group in the Federation of BiH. Local media in BiH recently reported that Minister Helez had approved the use of Armed Forces of BiH training grounds in Mostar by foreign nationals and certain locals linked to the radical Wahhabi movement,” said Cvijanović.
She pointed out that this is particularly dangerous and irresponsible as “BiH has been designated as the most dangerous source of jihadist terrorism in Europe by foreign media and international security reports for many years.”
“Concerns about terrorist threats emanating from BiH have been noted by many Western governments and other sources. For instance, the U.S. State Department wrote last year: ‘Terrorist groups continue to plan possible attacks in BiH.’ French President Emmanuel Macron, in 2021, speaking about the presence of jihadists in BiH, described the country as a ‘ticking time bomb.’ According to data published by the Wilson Center in Washington, BiH had the highest number of citizens who went to wage jihad in Syria and Iraq among European countries. As we all know, the rule of law is one of the basic conditions for peace and democratic governance. Unfortunately, it is persistently violated and ignored in BiH, particularly by Schmidt and his helpers and accomplices from certain foreign embassies,” Cvijanović noted.
She indicated that the rule of law is also at the heart of the process of European integration, and representatives of the EU and EU member states consistently emphasize the importance of its adherence, but Schmidt is only mildly reprimanded for his constant violations of the same rule of law.
“Schmidt and his supporters claim he has executive, judicial, and legislative powers and is not accountable to any government or court in BiH. In other words, they believe he has absolute power and no accountability. It is unclear how this can fit into any normal concept of the rule of law. In a further undermining of the rule of law, Schmidt has amended the Criminal Code of BiH to use it as a means of punishing anyone who does not comply with his decisions. Currently, proceedings are being conducted against the democratically elected president of Republika Srpska, as well as a public official, because they, fulfilling their constitutional and legal obligations, did not obey Schmidt’s orders,” said Cvijanović.
She says the rule of law is also under assault by threats and international sanctions from the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom.
“Threats and sanctions are used to intimidate elected and other officials, their families, private businesses, and even the media. Any leader who refuses to obey Schmidt or who rejects the unlawful subversions of the Dayton Agreement is openly and relentlessly attacked and becomes a target of sanctions. These sanctions are imposed without due process, that is, without any formal charge, even without appearing before a judge or court, even for a minute. Banks are forced to close accounts and deny services to these individuals, who have not been formally charged with any criminal offense. This behavior is often seen in organized crime and in no way resembles the behavior of democratic states that support the international legal order or the rule of law,” Cvijanović stated.
This flagrantly illegal behavior, adds Cvijanović, and the complete disregard for the rule of law by Schmidt, his accomplices in BiH, and helpers from various governments, undermines the entire constitutional order in BiH, weakens government institutions, and disregards the will of the citizens of BiH.
“Such behavior, undoubtedly, poses a threat to peace and stability in BiH. In addition to the aforementioned violations of the Dayton Agreement, international law, the Constitution of BiH, and the rule of law, efforts continue to deny voters in BiH their rights. Schmidt’s latest decision imposed amendments to the Electoral Law in BiH, which is a clear attempt to intervene in the elections and manipulate the results of the upcoming local elections. Although announced as a technical amendment to the Electoral Law, which supposedly ensures greater election integrity, this decision is actually political and calls into question the integrity of the entire electoral process, while real control and influence are left to an unelected foreigner,” says Cvijanović.
She asserts that Schmidt has once again violated the Dayton Agreement.
“He has transferred powers from the entity governments to a centralized body at the state level, the Central Election Commission, which is devoid of both legitimacy and legality. In addition, Schmidt violates labor legislation: he has extended the term of members of the Central Election Commission beyond the legal and retirement age limit. The Central Election Commission can now bypass the court since Schmidt has given it the right to directly punish any violation of his election law as the Commission sees fit. By the same decree, citizens of BiH are denied their constitutional and legal rights to run for elective office without proper procedure or any legal remedy,” said Cvijanović.
Source: RTRS
