Lawyer Senad Pecanin addressed the public regarding the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) decision in the “Respirators” case involving Fadil Novalic. In his statement, he criticized, among others, the United States (U.S.) Ambassador Michael Murphy and mentioned numerous politicians and judges.
Pecanin stated that his client expressed gratitude for the support and encouragement received from hundreds of thousands of citizens in BiH and worldwide.
“We are pleased that the Constitutional Court of BiH confirmed what the defense has been pointing out from the beginning: Novalic neither took nor stole a single BAM or Fening during the procurement of respirators,” he said.
Pecanin spoke of a “media and political campaign of lies coordinated by U.S. Ambassador Michael Murphy.”
He reiterated that they are “pleased the Constitutional Court of BiH, following the Court of BiH, confirmed that Novalic is not a thief and did not gain any material benefit during the process.”
“The Constitutional Court of BiH confirmed that Novalic’s right to a fair trial was violated,” Pecanin stated, adding that “this is where the reasons for satisfaction end.”
Judge of the Constitutional Court of BiH Mirsad Ceman issued a dissenting opinion in this case, which Pecanin also discussed. He compared his opinion with the dissenting opinion of the judge of the Court of BiH, Branko Peric.
“The Constitutional Court determined that the court’s conduct violated the right to a fair trial. However, it does not annul the verdict but concludes that acknowledging this violation suffices as satisfaction,” Pecanin said.
He criticized this as a “cynical and arbitrary conclusion.”
The lawyer also pointed to statements made by public officials Elmedin Konakovic, Nermin Niksic, Fahrudin Radoncic, Edin Forto, and Nasiha Pozder, which are “named by the court and, according to the conclusion of the European Court, may compromise the right to a fair trial, the integrity of judicial proceedings, and the need for protection against potential bias.“
“The European Court, through its judgments, sets standards and guidelines. What applies to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) does not apply to the Constitutional Court. What holds for all Council of Europe states does not hold for Fadil from BiH. The Constitutional Court essentially tells him he should be satisfied because Suada Palavric mercifully acknowledged his right to a fair trial was violated,” Pecanin explained.
He highlighted numerous inconsistencies in the case, stating that it would take hours to cover them all.
Pecanin also accused former Chief Prosecutor of the BiH Prosecutor’s Office, Gordana Tadic, of “abusing her position” by assigning the investigation to her prosecutors outside of standard procedure and software systems, which led to her dismissal. He noted that Tadic claimed that the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) provided evidence of money laundering, which they officially denied.
Discussing U.S. Ambassador Murphy and his “advocacy” in the case, Pecanin argued that “the goal was to bring down the SDA.”
He compared the situation during the COVID-19 pandemic with the current state in Jablanica after recent floods, criticizing the Federal Government for being “unable” to repair even a railway.
“Novalic was targeted for resisting pressure to agree to the privatization of Sarajevo Airport,” Pecanin said, adding that among those pushing for this was, notably, the U.S. Ambassador.
He also emphasized that the process was correct, as former Deputy Prime Minister Jelka Milicevic (HDZ) was acquitted of charges.
Pecanin stated that neither he nor Novalic had received the official verdict yet, and once they do, a four-month deadline will begin for submitting an appeal to the ECHR.
