Bosnia: Declaration to close OHR heads to RS Constitutional Court

A declaration aiming to close the Office of the High Representative (OHR) in Bosnia and Herzegovina is headed to the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska (RS). The decision follows a failure by a joint commission from the RS National Assembly and the Council of Peoples to reach a consensus on the document.

The Bosniak Club within the Council of Peoples had invoked a vital national interest protection mechanism, asserting that the declaration undermines the Dayton Peace Agreement. The declaration, adopted by the RS National Assembly on May 26, calls for the termination of the High Representative's function and the closure of the OHR.

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Annex 10. of the Dayton Peace Agreement clearly stipulates that the OHR is a Dayton category. As long as Dayton exists, so does the High Representative, unless the three constituent peoples agree otherwise. Therefore, the High Representative remains a Dayton category as long as Dayton lives.

Alija Tabaković, president of the Bosniak delegates' club in the Council of Peoples, stated that Annex 10 of the Dayton Agreement designates the OHR as a Dayton category. He argued that the OHR's existence is tied to the agreement's continuation, unless all three constituent peoples agree otherwise.

Srebrenka Golić, chair of the Council of Peoples, criticized the move as a repeated misuse of the protection mechanism, suggesting instructions came from political circles in Sarajevo. She noted that the RS Constitutional Court has previously dismissed four similar declarations and resolutions, finding they did not harm the vital national interests of any constituent people. Golić expressed her view that the OHR's mandate should end soon, believing its presence hinders agreements among domestic political representatives.

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The Constitutional Court of RS has so far considered a total of four declarations and four resolutions. It has rejected every single one, because they do not cause damage to the vital national interests of any of the constituent peoples.