Prosecutor Wants Five Years in Prison for Dodik, Bans Political Activity for 10 Years

Bosnia and Herzegovina's prosecutor, at the final session on February 19th, asked the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina to impose a five-year prison sentence on Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, and to deal with his political activity for ten years.

The same maximum sentence was demanded by prosecutors for Milos Luqinqi, the task manager of the Republika Srpska Official Journal.

They are accused of disrespecting High Representative Christian Schmidt's decisions, and risk being sentenced to imprisonment for up to five years and stopping political activity.

Dodik is accused of signing presidential decrees, with which he validated two unconstitutional laws of the Republika Srpska, which had previously been canceled by the High Representative. Luqic is accused of publishing these laws and decrees, which predict the decisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina's High Representative and Constitutional Court will not be implemented in that entity.

In front of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Court building, there is an added presence of the Sarajevo Canton's Interior Ministry police forces. Even Dodik's supporters are gathered there.

While the outcome of a year-long trial is expected, pressures on the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina are increasing.

On the one hand, the RS leadership threatens with <x0 radical decisions” and abandoning all institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina if Dodik is convicted.

Pressure is also exercised by representatives of neighbouring Serbia authorities as well as Hungary.

Thus, Serbia's president, Aleksandar Vuciq, said in Budapest on February 17th that he hopes that “in Bosnia and Herzegovina will not make judicial decisions that could jeopardise stability”.

Two days before the last session, even Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban called for “preventing the punishment of Dodik”, which, along with all RS leadership, is under sanctions from the United States and the European Union for corruption and the minim of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

What led to this trial?

The RS Assembly hearings in June 2023 passed unconstitutional laws envisioning that High Representative's legal acts would not be published in the RS Official Journal and that the decisions of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which under the Constitution of this state are final and binding, would not be implemented on the territory of this entity.

High Representative Christian Schmidt cancelled these two entity laws on July 1st 2023 through his Bonn Powers and changed the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, making it a criminal offence to fail to implement High Representative decisions.

On July 7th 2023, Dodik signed the decrees, with which he pronounced these valid laws, and they were published in the RS Official Journal. Bosnia and Herzegovina's prosecutor filed an indictment against Dodik and Lukiq on 11 August, and the court confirmed it on 11 September. / REL