Christian Schmidt, the international High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, said on Thursday that court decisions must be respected, following the final verdict sentencing Milorad Dodik, president of the Serb entity Republika Srpska, to one year in prison and banning him from political office for six years.
In a written statement to local outlet Detektor, Schmidt responded briefly to the appeals court decision that confirmed Dodik’s earlier conviction for defying the High Representative’s decisions.
“Court rulings must be respected,” Schmidt said.
The verdict relates to Dodik’s refusal to implement Schmidt’s decisions, including the annulment of Republika Srpska legislation aimed at limiting the jurisdiction of Bosnia’s Constitutional Court and the Office of the High Representative (OHR).
Dodik has rejected the ruling and the authority of Schmidt, whom he and the RS leadership do not recognize as a legitimate High Representative under the Dayton Peace Agreement. At a news conference in Banja Luka, Dodik accused foreign powers of interfering in Bosnia’s internal affairs and vowed not to step down or permit early elections in Republika Srpska.
“This is not just about the verdict itself,” Dodik said. “It’s about whether we accept a situation where a foreign, unelected individual can impose legal decisions on our institutions.”
He argued the decree for which he was convicted was signed before Schmidt’s legal order came into effect and repeated his position that Schmidt was never officially appointed.
Earlier, the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina said Dodik knowingly violated Schmidt’s decisions between July 1 and July 9, 2023, by continuing legislative procedures to enforce laws previously annulled by the OHR.
The February 26 first-instance ruling was upheld on appeal, confirming the one-year sentence and six-year ban from holding the presidency or any political office within Republika Srpska.