Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Deputy Prime Minister Wopke Hoekstra condemned the adoption of amendments to the Criminal Code of the entity of Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which criminalizes defamation.
“The adoption of amendments to the Criminal Code of the RS will undermine the fundamental rights and work of independent media and civil society. In order for BiH to move forward on its way to the EU, the Netherlands urges to reconsider,” wrote Hoesktra on Twitter.
In his message, he referred to the position of the EU Delegation in BiH, which also condemned this adoption in the National Assembly of the RS yesterday, stressing that these amendments to the Criminal Code reject fundamental European values and undermine the effective functioning of democracy in the RS.