The functioning of democratic institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 27 January 2026 (4th sitting) (see Doc. 16310, report of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations
and Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee), co-rapporteurs: Mr Zsolt Németh and Mr Pablo Hispán). Text adopted by the Assembly on
27 January 2026 (4th sitting).
1. Bosnia and Herzegovina joined the
Council of Europe on 24 April 2002. Accordingly, the country entered into
and agreed to honour a number of specific commitments which are
listed in
Opinion 234 (2002) of
the Parliamentary Assembly “Bosnia and Herzegovina’s application
for membership of the Council of Europe”.
2. Referring to its
Resolution 2574 (2024) “The
honouring of obligations and commitments by Bosnia and Herzegovina”,
the Assembly reiterates its full support for the State of Bosnia
and Herzegovina and all its citizens, and urges all Council of Europe
member States to respect the constitutional and legal order, sovereignty
and territorial integrity of the country.
3. The Assembly expresses its concern about the recent developments
in Bosnia and Herzegovina, marked by attacks against the State,
the rule of law and the institutions established following the General Framework
Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Dayton Peace Agreement).
There is cause for hope, however, in light of recent decisions that
have reversed some of these concerns.
4. On 6 August 2025, following the decision by the Court of First
Instance of Bosnia and Herzegovina to sentence the then President
of Republika Srpska, Mr Milorad Dodik, to one year in prison (later
converted to a fine) and impose a six-year ban from holding public
office for failing to comply with decisions of the High Representative
for Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Central Election Commission revoked
Mr Dodik’s presidential mandate. As a consequence, an early election
for the President of Republika Srpska took place on 23 November
2025.
5. The Assembly notes that, according to the statement of the
electoral observation mission of the Congress of Local and Regional
Authorities of the Council of Europe, the early presidential election
was “generally well-organized … despite some irregularities”, particularly
regarding the secrecy of the vote. The Assembly notes that the legal
framework amended in March 2024 to improve the integrity and transparency
of the electoral process is gradually being implemented. It welcomes
the fact that these reforms should bring the electoral law into
line with European standards and, in particular, with the recommendations
made by the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR),
the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and the European
Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission). The Assembly
underlines the importance of ensuring that electoral reforms also
guarantee the political representation of all three constituent
peoples and “Others”, in accordance with the judgments of the Constitutional
Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Court of Human
Rights.
6. The Assembly also notes with satisfaction that the authorities
of Republika Srpska have annulled the entity-level laws adopted
from 2023 to 2025 that were declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional
Court, including: the separate election law for Republika Srpska;
the law on immovable property used for the functioning of public
authorities; the law on non-application of decisions of the Constitutional
Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina; the law on banning the operation
of “extra-constitutional institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina”
in Republika Srpska; amendments to the Criminal Code of Republika
Srpska; and the law on a separate high judicial and prosecutorial
council for the entity. The Assembly calls on the authorities of Republika
Srpska to promptly initiate the procedure for appointing (remaining
positions of) judges to the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
in accordance with the constitutional and relevant legal framework,
with a view to ensuring the full functioning, institutional stability
and effective exercise of the court’s constitutional mandate.
7. The Assembly underlines once again that, upon accession, Bosnia
and Herzegovina committed to reviewing its electoral legislation,
with the assistance of the Venice Commission and in accordance with Council
of Europe standards, and to revising it where necessary. The Assembly
recalls the need for a constitutional reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina
to implement the judgment of the Grand Chamber of the European Court
of Human Rights in the case Sejdić and
Finci v. Bosnia and Herzegovina and takes note of the
Grand Chamber’s judgment in the case Kovačević
v. Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this context, the Assembly
welcomes the creation of a working group for the preparation of
amendments to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the
draft law on amendments to the election law of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Assembly urges the political parties to find an agreement on
these amendments to bring the constitutional and legislative framework
into line with the requirements of the European Convention on Human
Rights (ETS No. 5).
8. The Assembly calls on the political parties to adopt a package
of reforms that would improve the functionality of the State institutions,
including ensuring that the institutional architecture allows for
effective participation and decision making by representatives of
all constituent peoples, in line with the power-sharing model established
by the Dayton Peace Agreement, and to find a sustainable solution
to the issue of State property.
9. The Assembly urges the presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
to complete, in conformity with the requirements of fairness and
transparency, the selection procedure for the post of judge at the
European Court of Human Rights in respect of Bosnia and Herzegovina
and to submit a list of three qualified candidates to the Assembly
without further delay.
10. The Assembly encourages the Bosnian authorities to pursue
their co-operation with the Council of Europe, in particular with
the Venice Commission, and to draw on its expertise in their electoral
and constitutional reforms. It resolves to follow the ongoing developments
in the framework of its monitoring procedure.
