“Unseen and unprecedented violence” was how Branislav Borenovic, the leader of the opposition Party of Democratic Progress (PDP), described the incident in a session of the parliament of Bosnia's Serb-majority region Republika Srpska (RS) this Monday when Interior Minister Dragan Lukac slapped an opposition MP during a debate over a NATO document.
“One yet unseen and unprecedented violence that culminated in the hitting and attack of a minister on an MP. A thug-like behaviour has been present for years, which had its highlight at the National Assembly of Republika Srpska and that has never been seen before,” Borenovic said in N1's programme ‘Dan uzivo’.
Minister Lukac slapped Drasko Stanivukovic, the opposition MP, during a discussion on a document that Bosnia's state authorities sent to NATO on Monday and which, according to the opposition, paved the way for the country's NATO membership.
The opposition accused the Serb member of the Presidency, Milorad Dodik, as well as his Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), of betraying Serb interests.
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According to Borenovic, the discussion was pointless and conditions were not met to hold it, because Dodik brought for discussion a different document from the one that the Presidency adopted. “That was a reason enough to end the session,” he added.
But, what matters the most, according to Borenovic, is the reaction of the “first man of the police.”
“If there were any democratic values, we would speak about him as about an ex-minister,” he added.
According to him, the ruling coalition is trying to find an excuse for the minister's behaviour but the only solution, the opposition leader said, is to remove the Interior Minister from the post.
