“To begin with, I am encouraged that calm has prevailed and that September 25 passed without incident. I am, however, disappointed that instead of focusing on creating jobs, improving services and fighting corruption, the RS leadership has chosen to flout the rule of law and lead the RS and its people away from reform and towards isolation,” said the High Representative Valentin Inzko, commenting on the illegal referendum on the RS Day which took place yesterday.
This “referendum on the Day of the RS” has no legal basis as it is directly violating an order of the BiH Constitutional Court. It represents, therefore, a challenge to the BiH Constitutional Court, its decisions, the constitutional framework of the country, and the rule of law in BiH.
“The referendum has taken place in one part of the country, but the people and their leaders face the same basic issue – how to improve people’s lives. The European Union has only last Tuesday offered a chance to Bosnia and Herzegovina to follow its neighbours towards greater stability and prosperity by working together. This must be the focus. Therefore, I call on political actors on all sides to work on this goal and to fully devote themselves to the accession process.”
The RS authorities must implement the decision of the BiH Constitutional Court of November 2015 as soon as possible by bringing the RS Law on Holidays in line with the Constitutional Court decision.
The International Community retains the instruments to uphold the Peace Agreement. In the period ahead the High Representative Inzko will conduct consultations with the wider International Community on the path ahead, and will also be reporting on this matter to the UN Security Council.