A first-instance court in Bosnia and Herzegovina has sentenced Miograd Malić to three years in prison for glorifying convicted war criminals Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić, both found guilty of genocide and war crimes.
The verdict was delivered on January 26, with the court finding Malić guilty of inciting national, racial, and religious hatred, division, and intolerance, in violation of the Criminal Code of Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to an official court statement.
The ruling stated that Malić publicly glorified individuals who were convicted by final judgments for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes committed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s conflicts.
According to the Srna news agency, Malić displayed photographs of Radovan Karadžić, the first president of the Republika Srpska entity, and Ratko Mladić, the former commander of the Bosnian Serb army, during a protest organized by opposition parties in Banja Luka in November 2022.
Both Karadžić and Mladić were sentenced to life imprisonment by the Hague Tribunal for their roles in war crimes, including genocide.
The court also took into account the testimony of Harnes Sefić, who stated that he felt disturbed and alarmed upon seeing the images of Karadžić and Mladić displayed publicly.
Neither Malić nor his defense attorney, Milan Petković, were present at the court session when the verdict was announced.
The ruling is not final, and an appeal may be filed before the Appellate Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
