PETRONIJEVIĆ: DODIK MADE ANOTHER STATESMANLIKE MOVE

BELGRADE, JULY 6 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, by voluntarily appearing before the Court of BiH, has made yet another statesmanlike move, attorney Goran Petronijević told SRNA.

"This is a move that demonstrated to that part of political Sarajevo which is uncompromising, intolerant, not open to dialogue or agreement, how one should actually behave," Petronijević emphasized.

He pointed out that the lifting of detention and the arrest warrant against Dodik should be seen as the first step in de-escalating the constitutional - political crisis in BiH.

Petronijević stressed that from a criminal law perspective, this decision is normal judicial practice, so the reactions by parts of the Sarajevo media attacking the Court and Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, as well as by parts of the Republika Srpska opposition attacking Dodik, are reckless.

"These are absolutely reckless moves. Both sides should seriously reflect and ask themselves whether what they are doing and saying is in the interest of coexistence, in the interest of BiH, and in the interest of Republika Srpska - or not," Petronijević said.

He explaines that the situation regarding the lifting of detention and the arrest warrant issued by the BiH Court against the president of Republika Srpska, concerning the charges and launched investigation for allegedly undermining the constitutional order, can be viewed both procedurally and criminally as a completely standard legal situation in which a person unavailable to a judicial authority becomes obliged to appear under the threat of detention.

"The moment the person appears before the court, the reasons for detention or continued custody cease to exist, and such a measure is lifted. This is a common situation in criminal law and legal procedure, there is absolutely nothing unusual about it, contrary to how some parts of the public are trying to portray it," Petronijević stated.

He notes that from a broader perspective, this situation was prepared in the direction of de-escalating the situation in BiH.

"It is certain that this situation was prepared, and it was prepared solely to de-escalate the problems, tensions, and crisis into which BiH fell due to the reckless prosecution and acceptance of decisions by a person who is not the high representative, but who is treated as such by part of BiH," Petronijević said.