GOAL IS DECONSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE SERB PEOPLE; SRPSKA’S INSTITUTIONS MUST RESPOND

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 1 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska institutions must respond following the confirmation of the first-instance judgment against President Milorad Dodik, as the consequences could be historically fateful for Srpska’s position, Minister of Scientific and Technological Development and Higher Education, Željko Budimir, cited in SRNA statement.

Budimir stated that the ultimate goal of confirming the first-instance judgment is the deconstitutionalization of the Serb people in BiH and the creation of a false model of a centralized, civic-based BiH dominated by Bosniak Muslims. "This is both a result and the beginning of political persecution. Srpska’s institutions must respond, because the consequences could be historically decisive for the position of the Serb people. All political instruments should be used to ensure the position of the Serb people is safeguarded in accordance with the Constitution and the Dayton Peace Agreement," Budimir explained. He emphasized that this is not about an individual or a personality, but about the complete undermining of the constitutional authority of the president of Republika Srpska through the confirmation of a judgment by what he called an unconstitutional Court of BiH. "This is a disgraceful and expected ruling by an unconstitutional court, through which judicial dictatorship in BiH led by one ethnic group, the Bosniaks, has initiated political persecution of the most important Serb political leaders in Srpska and BiH, beginning with this judgement against the president of Republika Srpska," Budimir emphasized. The fact that a higher court upheld the first-instance judgment has a clear consequence - the collapse of the constitutional system and an attack on all institutions of Republika Srpska, since the president of the Republic represents all of its institutions and the unity of the Serb people. The Appellate Division of the Court of BiH confirmed the first-instance judgment against Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, sentencing him to one year in prison and a six-year ban on political activity for "disrespecting" the decisions of Christian Schmidt.