IDC director Mirsad Tokaca detained in Rogatica over Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina flag

As he explained to N1, a police vehicle stopped him after he exited a tunnel in the Rogatica area.

"Somewhere at the exit of the tunnel, the police appeared behind me with flashing lights. They overtook me inside the tunnel and pulled me over immediately after exiting. I assumed what it was about because I had a small flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina on my car," Tokaca said.

He stated that the police officers demanded he hand over the flag, claiming it was the flag of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

"I told them that it was not that flag, but the flag of an internationally recognized state. I did not want to comply with their order. I said they could remove it if they wished, but that they would have to return it to me," he noted.

Following a brief consultation with their superiors, the police officers, according to him, took him to the Rogatica Police Station.

"There, they requested that I give a statement, but I said I did not want to provide any statement and that I wanted to protect my rights in court. The entire procedure lasted nearly two hours. I was trying to explain to them that they were acting unlawfully," Tokaca said.

He added that the police compiled a report containing his personal data and handed him a misdemeanor warrant of 100 KM (approximately €51).

"Of course I will not pay it. We are going to court, so we will see what happens," he stated.

Tokaca believes that his case is not isolated and warns that, as he claims, it is part of a broader issue.

"This is already one in a series of events. You can imagine how many cases there are that have never been registered, where people are harassed and where their fundamental human rights to freedom of expression are violated. You can express yourself verbally, in writing, and through symbols, and the symbol of my state is this flag as well. This is not a banned flag, under any law, whether entity or state level," he said.

He emphasized that, in his opinion, no one has the right to remove flags from private property or to sanction citizens for displaying them.

"No one has the right to intrude into people's private space, to remove flags from houses or cars. This is a brutal message to people that they must behave in accordance with someone's arbitrarily imposed rules, but that will not pass," Tokaca concluded.