Zvizdic welcomes Bosnia Constitutional Court ruling blocking funding for anti-state lobbying

The Court’s decision, issued following a dispute request filed by Zvizdic against the entity of Republika Srpska (RS), established that acts and budget allocations aimed at funding lobbying activities contrary to the Constitution of BiH, court rulings, and state institution decisions are unconstitutional, banning all further public disbursements for such purposes.

Reiterating the significance of the ruling, Zvizdic stated that public funds cannot be used to finance lobbying initiatives targeted against the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, its territorial integrity, sovereignty, constitutional framework, or institutions.

Zvizdic noted that in 2025 alone, over 40 million Bosnian marks (approx. €20.45 million) of public money was allocated at the RS level for these activities, with similar expenditures continuing into 2026.

"Citizens' money must serve the citizens, for development, investment, and a better life, and cannot be used to undermine the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina," Zvizdic noted, describing the binding decision in case U-10/26 as one of the Court's most vital rulings to date. He added that the judgment sets a clear constitutional standard to permanently halt anti-state lobbying efforts, concluding that Bosnia and Herzegovina is defended institutionally through concrete action.

The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina has prohibited all budget payments from the entity of Republika Srpska (RS) linked to a consulting contract signed between Mladen Filipovic, head of the RS Representative Office in Vienna, and Ari Ben-Menashe, president of the Canadian lobbying firm Dickens & Madson Canada Inc.

The Court also banned the use of public funds for any lobbying activities whose objectives contradict the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Constitutional Court, or state institution rulings.

The ruling was issued following a dispute request filed by Denis Zvizdic, First Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH. The case focused on state-level jurisdictional issues concerning public funds allocated to RS foreign representative offices, specifically 15 million marks (approx. €7.67 million) in the 2026 budget and 49 million marks (approx. €25.05 million) under the second 2025 budget rebalance.

In its assessment of the 6 September 2025 agreement and similar contracts, the Constitutional Court determined that the actions taken by Republika Srpska violated Articles I/2, III/3.b), and VI/5 of the Constitution of BiH, ruling that the contractual objectives were fundamentally incompatible with the state constitutional framework.

Under Article 61, paragraph (4) of its Rules, the Court ordered the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, the RS Government, foreign representative offices, and all relevant entity officials to immediately cease all financial disbursements and activities related to the disputed contract and prohibited lobbying services.