Prison sentence and political ban: Dodik warns of revenge

The president of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, has announced that this Serbian entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina will “take revenge” following the final conviction to one year in prison and a six-year ban on political activity.

“The population of Republika Srpska must remain calm and mobilize with our institutions. No one can break the will of the citizens. Republika Srpska has the strength to defend itself politically, because if it does not, it faces greater dangers,” Dodik wrote in a post on X on August 3.

Dodik did not provide any specific details about the planned political measures.

On August 1, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced Dodik to one year in prison and a six-year ban on political activity for disregarding the decisions of the High Representative.

Dodik was found guilty of signing a decree promulgating laws that the High Representative, Christian Schmidt, had previously repealed. With these laws, the legislative bodies of Republika Srpska attempted to prevent the implementation of decisions by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the High Representative in the Bosnian Serb sub-region.

Following the decision on August 1, Dodik stated that he would not accept the criminal charges for “disregarding the decisions of the High Representative,” for which he had been convicted by the court in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He published the new resolutions of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, which he said contained a “concrete plan for further action,” without elaborating on what those resolutions were.

“All our decisions will be political in nature; the court in Bosnia and Herzegovina has disqualified itself as a legal body,” Dodik said.

He said there would be no early elections in the Republika Srpska.

Dodik’s lawyer, Goran Bubić, said at a press conference on Friday that he would appeal the decision to the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“We will apply for an injunction to suspend the decision until the Constitutional Court reaches a decision,” said Bubić, pointing out that these are necessary steps before the case goes to the European Court of Human Rights.

After the final decision is delivered, Dodik must accept a summons to serve his prison sentence.

Immediately after the summons, the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina must decide on the termination of his mandate as president of the Republika Srpska.

According to the election law of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the mandate of an elected official ends “on the day on which the court decision sentencing him to a prison term of six months or more becomes final.” /REL