Court bans Republika Srpska from paying international lobbying firms to promote the entity’s independence from the Bosnian state.
Bosnian lawmaker Denis Zvizdic, who initiated teh legal challenge. Photo: EPA/FELIPE TRUEBA.
Bosnia’s Constitutional Court on Friday declared that budgetary funds used by Bosnia’s Serb-dominated Republika Srpska entity to pay foreign consulting firms to lobby for independence violate the state’s constitutional architecture.
The ruling targets a consulting agreement signed between the Republika Srpska Representative Office in Vienna and a Montreal-based firm, Dickens & Madson Canada Inc., which listed “the independence of Republika Srpska” as a core political objective.
The legal challenge was initiated in April
The legal challenge was initiated in April by a state-level lawmaker, Denis Zvizdic, who argued that using taxpayers’ funds to lobby against Bosnia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity was unconstitutional.
A 2008 ruling allowed the entity to engage foreign firms for general economic promotion. However, the court has now established that funding campaigns explicitly promoting secession represents an assault on the constitutional order.
“The Constitutional Court hereby prohibits all payments from the budget of Republika Srpska regarding the consulting services contract concluded with Dickens & Madson Canada Inc.,” the court said. “Financing lobbying services for goals that run counter to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina is strictly incompatible with the constitutional order.”
The applicant, Zvizdic, welcomed the announcement, saying
The applicant, Zvizdic, welcomed the announcement, saying the entity had weaponised massive public funds for anti-state campaigns.
“Public money cannot be used to finance lobbying aimed against the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, its territorial integrity, sovereignty and its institutions,” Zvizdic stated.
“This binding decision establishes a clear legal standard: citizens’ money must serve development and investment, not the undermining of the state,” he added.
Under Bosnia’s state-level laws, entities possess no constitutional
Under Bosnia’s state-level laws, entities possess no constitutional right to unilateral secession. Furthermore, ignoring or violating a binding order of the Constitutional Court carries severe penalties.
The court said the full text of the judicial decision will be delivered to all parties and published on its official website within the month.
Source: balkaninsight.com
