Despite the decision by the Constitutional Court of BiH on temporary prohibition of carrying out the referendum and the calls from international community to postpone the referendum, citizens of Republika Srpska will vote today on whether January 9 should be celebrated as the Day of RS.
“Do you support celebration of January 9 as the Day of Republika Srpska?”That is the question that citizens will answer on the referendum today, by marking one of the two provided answers: YES or NO. More than 1.2 million citizens of RS have the right to vote. That includes almost 30.000 residents of the District Brčko who hold entity citizenship and who will be able to vote in two locations, since the referendum is not allowed in Brčko.
Apart from RS, voting will also be held in Serbia, Russia, Belgium, Austria, Germany, France and the Netherlands.
Leading Bosniak politicians claim that this referendum is a classic violation of the constitutional order of BiH and the Dayton Peace Agreement, as well as that it is a rehearsal for referendum on secession of RS in the coming years.
Ambassadors of the Peace Implementation Council in BiH confirmed twice that the referendum is unconstitutional and that it has no legal basis. Authorities of the RS did not receive support for the referendum from Serbia or Russia either. However, President of RS Milorad Dodik was persistent in the aim to implement the referendum, regardless of the consequences that might follow.
Consequences announced by the High Representative Valentin Inzko include financial ones, in terms of blockade of any projects of international community in the RS, and before that the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH should react, because this referendum is a direct attack on the constitutional order.
Government of the RS provided more than two million BAM for the referendum, on the other side, that same government and the National Assembly of RS stated that after the referendum is carried out they will amend the Law on Holidays and thus change the discriminatory decrees, which caused the Constitutional Court of BiH to declare the January 9 as the Day of RS unconstitutional.
Representatives of Bosniaks in government institutions in the RS invited Bosniaks to boycott the referendum due to apparent violation of the constitutional order of BiH.
(Source: klix.ba)
