REPUBLIKA SRPSKA REPRESENTATIVES IN JOINT INSTITUTIONS ARE THERE TO PROTECT ITS INTERESTS

SARAJEVO, AUGUST 27 /SRNA/ — Deputy Chairperson of the Council of Ministers Staša Košarac has said today that representatives of Republika Srpska in BiH's joint institutions are not guests, but are there to represent and protect the interests of Republika Srpska and the rights of the Serb people.

"When it comes to the joint institutions, the Muslim-Bosniak side often tries to create an atmosphere in which representatives of Republika Srpska feel as though they have come to someone else's house, with the message: `This is ours, so if you don't like it - why do you come?`" Košarac said.

He stressed that Republika Srpska representatives did not come there at anyone's discretion and were under no obligation to justify their presence to anyone.

"We come because we are from Republika Srpska and because those positions belong to us under the constitutional order of BiH," Košarac explained.

He said it should not be forgotten that the functioning of institutions at the state level is financed with funds from citizens and taxpayers in Republika Srpska, as well as from citizens of the Federation of BiH.

"We are aware of the political environment in which our people work in Sarajevo. The numerous attempts to deny us the right to mark our own holidays, traditions and identity - from January 9, Republika Srpska Day, to patron-saint celebrations and other symbols that form part of our national and spiritual identity are the clearest indication of the attitude of part of the Bosniak political establishment towards Republika Srpska," Košarac noted.

Košarac said no one had the right to treat representatives of Republika Srpska as people who had come to "someone else's house".

"Republika Srpska stands behind its people, behind every Serb who performs their duties honorably and professionally in BiH institutions," Košarac posted on Instagram.

He also said that Republika Srpska was not seeking more than what belonged to it, but would not accept having what belonged to it taken away.