Nenad Stevandić, the President of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, stated that BiH is at a crossroads with two paths: it could either fall into the abyss or return to a normal path.
Stevandić believes that a major complication is the lack of independent political authority among Bosniak politicians, or the “Trio” parties, as they base their power on the influence of mentors from the OHR and the US Embassy.
- Since they do not possess their own strength, they are unable to adhere to agreements. If we had stuck to the agreements, BiH would already be two to three steps ahead of its current state regarding European integrations. It would be free from mentorship, tutelage, the office of the high representative would be closed, and BiH would be what is written in the Dayton Agreement – said Stevandić.
Discussing whether Republika Srpska can withstand the attacks coming from various sides, Stevandić emphasized that the question is not whether it can, but whether it wants to.
- We, who are in the current ruling cadre, want people to understand that we want to because we can only if we want to. If we don’t want to, we can’t do anything. This unwillingness is more related to the calculative attitude of some colleagues from the opposition, who always need to send a message to foreign mentors that they are not entirely in agreement with the aspirations of Republika Srpska – he noted.
According to him, the National Assembly currently bears the heaviest burden in this fight.
- The toughest laws that were adopted were those proposed by the members of parliament. This includes laws about the Electoral Law and about the referendum, so the role of the National Assembly is currently immeasurable – says Stevandić.
He highlighted that the parliament is currently the backbone that carries the policy of Republika Srpska and protects President Milorad Dodik from being isolated and destroyed as an independent target.
He hopes that there will be “enough wisdom in the Federation of BiH” to adopt an electoral law that will derogate the interventionism of Christian Schmidt.
- Then we could sit together and see how we can balance the relationship of that law with the Electoral Law of Republika Srpska. If that does not happen, the Electoral Law of Republika Srpska is our safeguard to conduct elections on our own – Stevandić pointed out.
Regarding the announced resolution on Srebrenica, Stevandić emphasized that it is the result of accepting colonial rule by the Bosniaks and will only lead to further divisions and tensions in BiH.
Commenting on the behavior of the USA in BiH and the recent sanctions against officials of Republika Srpska, Stevandić noted that the USA is a pillar of democracy for internal issues, but abroad, it is a geopolitical hegemon that conducts the most severe type of colonial policy, which has caused wars where millions of people have died.
Source: RTRS
