Bosnian Serb president’s jail time substituted with fine
(MENAFN) The State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has replaced a one-year prison sentence for Milorad Dodik, president of the autonomous Serb-majority Republika Srpska, with a fine of 36,500 convertible marks (approximately $21,600).
Earlier this year, a lower court sentenced Dodik to one year in prison and a six-year ban from holding political office for allegedly acting against the constitution. The appeals court in Sarajevo had confirmed the sentence earlier this month. The change follows a proposal from Dodik’s defense and input from the Prosecutor’s Office, as Bosnian law allows prison terms of up to one year to be converted into fines at a rate of €52 per day.
Dodik had been accused of blocking Constitutional Court rulings in Republika Srpska and defying Christian Schmidt, head of the Office of the High Representative overseeing the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement. Dodik has long criticized Schmidt for overreach and infringing on Republika Srpska’s autonomy.
Last week, Bosnia’s Central Election Commission revoked Dodik’s presidential mandate in line with his office ban, but he dismissed the decision and refused to step down. Opposing Bosnia’s EU and NATO integration, Dodik has pledged to seek support from Serbia, Russia, and the Trump administration.
Srdjan Mazalica, head of Dodik’s SNSD parliamentary group, condemned the trial as a “judicial disgrace,” citing procedural errors and violations, and called for the case to be taken to the European Court of Human Rights.
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