The leader of Bosnian-Encerial

A one -year prison sentence and a six -year ban on a public office may seem like a serious punishment for a politician.

But the leader of Bosnian and Serb Milorad Dodik puzzled the verdict of the court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The president of the majority of the Republic of Serbska in the country told supporters of rally in the regional capital Ban Luka that “there is no reason to worry.”

His verdict on allegations of ignoring the decisions of the international high representative was “nonsense,” he said.

Dodik said he had “learned to deal with more difficult things” and called on the crowd in the actual capital of the Republic of Heart to “be cheerful”.

The sentence was the culmination of the long -standing conflict between Dodik and the international tall representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt.

Schmidt is still the supreme authority in Bosnia, at the age of 30 of the Dayton Agreement, which ended the Bosnian War of the 90s.

The high representative has the power to impose or annul the laws – and the dismissal staff ranging from judges to political leaders.

A former mail holder, Paddy Ashdown, the former leader of the United Kingdom Liberal Democrats, has fired nearly 60 Bosnian and SERB officials for one day in 2004, in repression of their war offenders.

But the powers of the high representative are much more useful in the coming years, as Bosnia’s international supporters have given way to the hope that local leaders will work together to create a viable and prosperous country.

The strategy was not successful. Ethno-nationalist leaders remain rooted in a country that is divided into two “formations”-Memberry-Eersy Republic of the Cars and Federation, where the population is predominantly boosters and Croats.

The central government is weak – and there is a small incentive for parties to cooperate. Instead, their leading philosophy is simple and interested: dividing, governance and profit.

As a result, the country is fighting low salaries, a slow economy and a steady stream of emigration from talented people seeking a better future elsewhere.

“The Bosnians of all ethnic groups are united by their disregard for their own leaders,” says Toby Vogel, co -founder of the Council for Democratization Policy.

“They would like not to vote for these guys, but it is structurally almost impossible to emerge politicians and parties between the community.”

Instead, leaders like Dodik are chosen, time after time. The SNSD party leader had previously been a representative of the Serbs of the National Presidency of three persons and for the first time became Prime Minister of the Republic of Heart in 1998.

A permanent topic of his leadership is the threat to cause the secession of the majority and SRB region.

Dodic and his government are consistently working to undermine the national institutions of Bosnia, introducing a series of laws for the withdrawal of the Republic of Heart by the Armed Forces, the judiciary and the tax system.

Such efforts ultimately pushed the high representative to take action and to cancel the legislation of the secessionists.

Christian Schmidt warned that it was possible to renew the conflict, but he insisted that he “does not sit still while others seek to dismantle (decades) peace, stability and progress.”

Dodik clearly regard this as a challenge. He approved a law announcing that the Republic of Heart would no longer recognize Schmidt’s decisions. The tall representative is already annulled by the legislation – and has made him a crime for contradiction with his decisions.

This led to the prosecutor’s office of the leader of the Bosnian-East-like prosecutors called for a maximum five-year sentence and a 10-year ban on holding a selected position. Dodik warned that he would take “radical measures” if found guilty.

Until now, his conviction has not led to fireworks. At that moment, Dodik insists that he will not appeal. Instead, the government of the Republic of Sorska again proposes the legislation to withdraw from national institutions – including the court that accepted the sentence guilty.

But Dodik faces problems beyond Bosnia. The US and the United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on him and his family for corruption – threatening the unity of Bosnia and Herzegovina – and ties with Russia.

Toby Vogel believes that he is more likely to threaten the leader of Bosnian and Serb than the judgment of the court.

“The conflict with the tall representative will intensify,” he says. “But Dodik may be out of the way.”

“He runs out of money to pay his inflated administration … And he can no longer raise money in international markets. So, he is really in very deep problems.”

None of this will be much comfort for the long -suffering people from Bosnia and Herzegovina. They still endure waiting for prosperity promised by ethno -nationalists like Dodik. This last court battle shows how remote this perspective remains.