The administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Samantha Power, warned that the president of Bosnia’s Republika Srpska (RS) entity, Milorad Dodik, is going down “a dangerous anti-democratic path” in trying to pass “Kremlin-inspired” draft laws.
“In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the President of Republika Srpska is following others in the region down a dangerous anti-democratic path in trying to pass Kremlin-inspired draft laws that rob residents of their basic rights, silence dissent and allow corruption to flourish unchecked,” Power wrote on Twitter.
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She was referring to Dodik’s announcement that a law on “foreign agents” will be adopted in the RS, as well as the criminalisation of defamation which the entity is considering.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the President of Republika Srpska is following others in the region down a dangerous anti-democratic path in trying to pass Kremlin-inspired draft laws that rob residents of their basic rights, silence dissent and allow corruption to flourish unchecked. https://t.co/VmU4HmWUz5
— Samantha Power (@PowerUSAID) March 11, 2023
Power retweeted the statement of the US Embassy in BiH on the matter as well.
“The proposed laws would stigmatize and silence the independent voices in the Republika Srpska seeking to build a democratic and prosperous future for its residents. The proposed laws would make it harder for citizens to hold the Republika Srpska government accountable and make it easier for corruption to flourish unchecked. The proposed laws’ attacks on fundamental freedoms would discourage legitimate businesses from investing in the Republika Srpska. In short, the proposed laws would be bad for the democracy and prosperity the residents of the Republika Srpska want and deserve,” the Embassy said on Friday.
