The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced Milorad Dodik in a first-instance verdict to one year in prison and imposed a six-year ban on him serving the post of president of the country’s Republika Srpska (RS) entity. Dodik was found guilty of non-compliance with the decisions of the High Representative of the international community in the country.
In the summer of 2023, Dodik was engaged in yet another battle with the High Representative of the international community in the country, Christian Schmidt. The RS National Assembly passed a law stating that the High Representative’s decisions would not be published in the Official Gazette. Before the law came into effect, Schmidt annulled it. When Dodik announced that he would sign a decree enacting the law despite its annulment, Schmidt amended Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Criminal Code, making non-compliance with High Representative decisions a criminal offense.
Defying these decisions, Dodik went ahead and signed a decree enacting two annulled laws. Two directors of the Official Gazette resigned within a few months, and eventually, Milos Lukic, as the acting director, published the adopted laws in the Official Gazette.
Every hearing at the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina was attended by Dodik’s supporters. Throughout the trial, Dodik exerted pressure on judicial institutions, which intensified in the days leading up to the verdict. His party colleagues, as well as Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, have stood in his defense.
Dodik has stated that if convicted, Serbs will withdraw from state institutions, including the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) and the armed forces. In some of his more provocative media appearances, he has even suggested a confederation between Serbia and Republika Srpska.
A rally in support of the RS president took place in Banja Luka as the sentence was being handed down. In his media statements, Dodik, along with his political allies, has equated his trial with a trial against the RS entity and its institutions.
Opposition political parties in Republika Srpska do not support Milorad Dodik or his announced actions. Instead of the support he expected, opposition leaders have called for his resignation.
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