The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina held an extraordinary session today where it considered the extraordinary circumstances in which the Constitutional Court found itself due to political pressure on the Vice President Zlatko M. Knežević.
“In this regard, the Constitutional Court once again expresses its unreserved support for Vice President Knežević who, despite the various difficulties he faced, always contributed to the work of the Constitutional Court in his full capacity. With his professionalism and determination, Vice President Knežević was, among other things, then in the capacity of president of the Constitutional Court, successfully guided the Constitutional Court through the crisis caused by the pandemic. The Constitutional Court strongly condemns all political pressure on Vice President Knežević and calls on everyone to refrain from it,” the Constitutional Court announced.
“There is no doubt that the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently facing the biggest crisis in the last 28 years of its existence. On this occasion, disinformation about certain constitutional issues is published and transmitted to the public. In this regard, the Constitutional Court reminds that the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina prescribes the composition and method of electing judges to the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. No one else, nor any legislative or executive body, has the constitutional authority to ‘remove’ a judge who has been elected to the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The only way in which a judge’s office in the Constitutional Court can end is the one that is prescribed by the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” the statement emphasizes.
According to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the quorum in the Constitutional Court is the majority of all members of the Court, i.e. five judges, regardless of which competent body chose them, and decisions are made by the majority of votes of all members of the Court (five judges), they recalled, and concluded:
“The provisions of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina do not recognize the possibility of the Constitutional Court being blocked, that is, unable to make decisions within its jurisdiction. Such a possibility cannot be prescribed by any other legal act of lower legal force than the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina. see, at today’s extraordinary session, the Constitutional Court passed a Decision on amending the Rules of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and deleted the provision of Article 39 of those rules,” the announcement states.
The Constitutional Court reminds the House of Representatives of the Parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska that for ten and seven months they have not fulfilled their constitutional obligations and elected judges who are currently missing from the Constitutional Court, thereby making the work of the Constitutional Court more difficult.
Photo: archive
