The leader of the ruling coalition in Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, claimed on Sunday that 55,000 criminal complaints had been filed with the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina against citizens of the entity over social media posts and other public statements following the death of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić.
Dodik made the remarks in Banja Luka after an expanded session of the Presidency of his Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD).
He said the reported number of complaints demonstrated what he described as the deep divisions within Bosnia and Herzegovina, while again criticizing the Court and Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“That shows how divided and impossible Bosnia and Herzegovina is and how the Court and Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina should be instruments exclusively of Bosniak politics,” Dodik told reporters.
Dodik Criticizes Law Criminalizing Genocide Denial and Glorification of War Criminals
Dodik also criticized the legal provisions under which the complaints could be examined, referring to amendments to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Criminal Code imposed in July 2021 by former High Representative Valentin Inzko.
The amendments criminalize genocide denial and the glorification of individuals convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes. Convictions under the provisions can carry prison sentences ranging from six months to five years.
Dodik argued that the legislation had not been adopted through the parliamentary process in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He also questioned whether authorities would take action against people attending Mladić’s funeral, asking whether Bosnia and Herzegovina should function in such a manner.
Prosecutors Open Case Against Republika Srpska Officials
Earlier on Sunday, it was reported that the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina had opened a case following a criminal complaint concerning statements made by several Republika Srpska officials after Mladić’s death.
The case reportedly concerns Dodik, Republika Srpska National Assembly President Nenad Stevandić, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations Staša Košarac, and Banja Luka Mayor Draško Stanivuković, who also leads the Safe Srpska Movement.
Mladić, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, was sentenced to life imprisonment by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for genocide and other war crimes committed during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He died on August 27 at the age of 85 while in detention in The Hague.
Dodik’s claim that 55,000 criminal complaints have been filed was made publicly by the Republika Srpska leader; the figure was not independently verified in the information provided.
