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Crisis in Republika Srpska after Dodik is taken away from office

2025-08-19 19:15:02Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

Crisis in Republika Srpska after Dodik is taken away from office

Who will propose a mandate for prime minister for the new Government of Republika Srpska?

This question arose after the prime minister of this entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Radovan Vishković, resigned on August 18 and, on the same day, Milorad Dodik was also taken away from the mandate of the entity's president.

According to the Constitution of Republika Srpska, only the president of the entity has the right to propose a mandate for prime minister for the new government.

Vishković's resignation automatically led to the overthrow of the government, but, until the new government is elected, the current ministers, led by Vishković, will continue to carry out technical tasks.

Dodik officially no longer holds the office of president, after the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rejected his legal team's appeal against the Central Election Commission's decision to strip him of his mandate.

Earlier, he was banned from holding public political office for six years.

The CEC must announce early elections for the president of the entity within 90 days.

Dodik's appointment of a prime minister would be unconstitutional

If Dodik, now a former president of Republika Srpska, were to decide to nominate a candidate for the new Government of Republika Srpska, he would violate the Constitution of this entity, as well as the Constitution and laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina, professor of constitutional law Milan Blagojevic tells Radio Free Europe.

He explains that this is a consequence of the final decision of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina – published in early August – by which Dodik was sentenced to one year in prison and banned from holding public office for six years.

Bosnia and Herzegovina's electoral law stipulates that an elected official's term ends on the date of a final court decision, sentencing him to imprisonment of six months or more.

"Since the day the final decision was given, Milorad Dodik is no longer the president of Republika Srpska. Not because that's what I want, but because the law and the decision say so. From the moment the Appeals Chamber of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina confirmed the verdict, he can no longer hold that position," Blagojevic says.

He adds that the Constitution of Republika Srpska clearly stipulates that only the president of the entity has the right to propose a candidate for the new government.

"If the prime minister resigns or is dismissed from office in the National Assembly, only the president of the Republic can propose the new mandate for prime minister. Legally, Dodik is no longer him. It is another thing to try to forcibly impose a different situation, but this is not a matter of personal wishes – it is strict application of the Constitution and the law," says Blagojević.

According to him, Vishković is currently a prime minister with a technical mandate and the new prime minister can only be elected after the early elections for the president of Republika Srpska are held.

"Therefore, the election of a mandate for prime minister is only possible when the citizens elect a new president, who is the only one who has the constitutional right to propose a future prime minister. If Dodik did this, he would violate the Constitution of Republika Srpska," Blagojevic concludes.

Why did the Government of Republika Srpska fall?

Political analyst Stefan Blagić tells Radio Free Europe that the main reason for Vishković's resignation and the fall of the Republika Srpska government lies in Dodik's final verdicts and political strategy.

"The verdicts and plans that Dodik has for the next period are the main motive. He will need more obedient collaborators and broader political support," he says.

Dodik has reiterated several times that he does not recognise the verdict and has warned of a number of decisions that are contrary to the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Among other things, he has announced a referendum for September, without specifying the question, but it is hinted that it could be related to the status of Republika Srpska.

Blagic estimates that Vishković's resignation is, in fact, a political price that Dodik is paying to implement his plans.

"It is clear that Dodik does not plan to hand over power peacefully. This has been evident from his recent public appearances. Everything goes in that direction, but the question is whether it will succeed in doing so and what it will actually achieve with it," Blagic says.

The other political analyst, Mladen Bubonjic, agrees that Vishkovic's resignation is part of a wider political crisis in Republika Srpska, intensified by the adoption of several decisions challenging the jurisdiction of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He recalls that Vishković was an active participant in these processes and that he had the longest prime ministerial mandate in Republika Srpska, but adds that the results of his government remain controversial, especially in the context of problems with finances, commodity reserves and management of public resources.

"There could be many reasons for the government's downfall – from attempts to improve the government's image, through internal conflicts in the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), to the strategic dismissal of personnel that had become a burden. So, anything could happen, but this is very likely... considering the messages Dodik sent later... he spoke about Vetevendosje, a referendum and leaving Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is illusory to think that they will surrender like this, without a war," Bubonjic says.

What does the Law on Government say?

The law stipulates that the mandate of the Government of Republika Srpska ends if the National Assembly is dissolved, if deputies vote for no confidence in it or if the prime minister resigns.

In the event of the resignation of the prime minister, the mandate of the entire government ends automatically, but it remains in office with a technical mandate until the new one is appointed.

The procedure involves submitting the prime minister's resignation to the speaker of the National Assembly, who then hands it over to the President of Republika Srpska and all deputies.

The Assembly must within seven days put the resignation on the agenda and confirm its acceptance.

Only then, the resignation becomes officially legally valid, while the prime minister and ministers continue to work with a technical mandate until the formation of the new government.

All governments of Republika Srpska in the post-war period

Vishković resigned just over a year before the general election, scheduled for October 2026, when his mandate would officially expire.

But, even earlier, prime ministers of Republika Srpska have left office before the end of their mandate.

The first post-war prime minister, Rajko Kasagić, was dismissed in May 1996, by decision of the then president, Bilana Pllavšić.

His successor, Gojko Kličkovic, resigned in 1998 and fled to Serbia, where he went into hiding for almost a decade, to escape war crimes charges. Following his extradition, a court in Bosnia and Herzegovina acquitted him.

Dragan Mikerević resigned in 2004, stating that he did not want to accept the ultimatums of the high international representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Pero Bukejlović's government lost the confidence of the National Assembly in 2006, leading to Dodik's appointment as prime minister.

Dodik left office in 2010, to take on the role of president of Republika Srpska.

Later, he withdrew his support for the then prime minister, Aleksandar Dhombic, who resigned in 2013.

Zelka Cvijanovic left office in 2018, after being elected president of Republika Srpska and succeeded by Vishković.

Although Vishković has been prime minister of Republika Srpska for the longest period without interruption, Dodik holds the record with more than seven years as prime minister in various mandates./REL


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