In the Morning Program studio, legal representatives of Milorad Dodik, President of Republika Srpska, and Miloš Lukić, acting director of Official Gazette, discussed the outcome of the trial.
“When you fall into illegality, it’s like quicksand—the more you struggle to get out, the deeper you sink. From the very beginning, we have argued that Christian Schmidt does not have the status he claims. He was mentioned at least seven times in the factual description of the indictment. The idea was that by integrating him into the indictment, his legitimacy would be established by default. However, we dismantled Schmidt’s legitimacy, proving that he was not legally appointed as High Representative,” emphasized Goran Bubić, Dodik’s attorney.
He underlined that the public reaction to the verdict is not happening by chance.
“The target of this trial is an attack on Republika Srpska, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, and the institution of the President of Republika Srpska. The person responsible for all this is now retreating from the scene, but that should not be the case,” Bubić added.
He also pointed out the inconsistencies in the court’s explanation of the verdict.
“The court provides a different explanation regarding the consequences of the ruling, but this can only be relevant when the verdict is final and binding,” said Bubić.
He reiterated that one of the crucial aspects of a fair trial is public access, which was not ensured in this case.
Meanwhile, Miljkan Pucar, the attorney representing Miloš Lukić, stressed that the entire trial should never have been prosecuted before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“Christian Schmidt does not have the authority to amend laws. We previously filed objections to the indictment, demanding proof of who Christian Schmidt is and whether he has legitimacy. We are yet to see how the court will respond to this issue. The prosecution did not even bother to check with the Commercial Court in Banja Luka to confirm when Miloš Lukić was officially registered as acting director of Službeni glasnik. It is clear that everything was done under OHR’s directives,” Pucar emphasized.
He also pointed out several inconsistencies in the trial process.
“If more than 30 days pass after the last main hearing, the trial must restart from the beginning. However, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina invoked a precedent from a case in Strasbourg. The judge clearly stated her decision, and that should have been reflected in the ruling. Instead, they seemed to be justifying themselves to someone. As a lawyer, I cannot speculate on the reasons behind this,” Pucar added.
He expressed hope that the appeal process would produce a different outcome.
“The Appellate Panel should acquit Dodik and confirm Lukić’s acquittal if the law is to be respected. If this ruling is upheld, every citizen has the right to demand that Bosnia and Herzegovina be removed from the United Nations because it functions as a protectorate,” Pucar concluded.
Source: RTRS
