Duska Jurisic, Deputy Minister for Human Rights, addressed European Union ambassador in Bosnia and Herzegovina Johann Sattler, warning about the latest steps by President of Republika Srpska entity Milorad Dodik that, according to her, threaten the freedom of expression and safety of journalists.

Jurisic wrote the warning in context of the country's EU membership aspirations and obligations that need to be fulfilled prior to the start of the negotiations with the EU.

She mentioned Dodik's latest press conference during which he labelled some media outlets including Buka, Capital and BNTV as “traitors to Republika Srpska” and N1 as an “enemy of the Serb people and Republika Srpska,” stressing that he not only slandered majority of media outlets in BiH but jeopardising the safety of journalists and preventing them to work regularly.

“Let me remind you that Bosnia and Herzegovina is obliged to guarantee the freedom of expression and media and to protect journalists as a condition for the European integration in the field of fundamental human rights,” Jurisic said, adding that no one has right, especially not high-ranking politicians to call media enemies of the Serb people or Republika Srpska.

SafeJournalists: Dodik should be punished for endangering safety of journalists

The deputy minister then recalled of some events from earlier this year which include the attack on returnees from Visegrad, the attack on LGBTIQ activists in Banja Luka, another attack on a returnee in Bratunac, etc. as well as Dodik's cursing of the Srebrenica genocide and media chase of the authors of the Srebrenica Genocide Denial Report 2023 and staff of the Potocari Memorial Centre.

“One of the conditions for the start of Bosnia and Herzegovina's negotiations for full membership in the European Union is the improvement in protection and inclusion of vulnerable groups, especially persons with disabilities, children, LGBTIQ persons, members of the Roma community, detainees, migrants and asylum seekers, as well as displaced persons and refugees. The position of vulnerable groups, taking into account the large number of incidents in the last five months, is worse than before, and I expect you to keep this in mind when assessing whether Bosnia and Herzegovina has fulfilled the conditions for the start of negotiations, that is, a new step towards European integration,” Jurisic said in a letter to the EU ambassador.

N1, BNTV, CAPITAL and Buka respond to Dodik's threats

She stressed that the many want a real progress of the country towards the EU and not only formal fulfillment of the conditions without any content.

“I expect you to keep these numerous and recently frequent cases of the threatening of the freedom of expression and the media, as well as jeopardising of the rights of vulnerable groups, in mind when evaluating the progress of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” she underlined.