The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina decided on Friday to ban payments from the Republika Srpska budget for lobbying, including money to finance lobbying contracts related to advocating for the secession of the Serbian entity from the state of Bosnia.
The decision is related to the budget item "Transfers to Republika Srpska representations abroad", foreseen in the budget of this entity for 2026 in the amount of about eight million euros, as well as with the same item in the second budget revision for 2025, where about 25 million euros were foreseen.
The Constitutional Court of Bosnia declared unconstitutional the millions of euros of funds allocated by Republika Srpska for lobbying abroad, including a contract that the Republika Srpska Representation in Vienna had concluded with the Canadian company "Dickens & Madson".
The court simultaneously banned all payments from the budget of Republika Srpska based on this contract, as well as the financing of other lobbying engagements, the purposes of which are contrary to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the state institutions of the country.
The Constitutional Court made the decision following the request of Denis Zvizdić, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In his request, Zvizdić asked the Constitutional Court to resolve a dispute between Bosnia and Herzegovina and its entity, Republika Srpska, regarding millions of euros allocated to this entity's representations abroad, including funds used to finance lobbying contracts related to promoting the independence of Republika Srpska.
Zvizdić submitted the request in April of this year.
"The purpose of my request is for the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina to prohibit all budgetary payments from all levels of government in Bosnia for lobbying for unconstitutional and illegal purposes, which are contrary to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, its laws, decisions of the Constitutional Court and the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina," Zvizdić stated at the time.
He also warned that "the spending of budget money should not be directed towards violating the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina."
Contract with "Dickens & Madson"
According to an investigation by Radio Free Europe, Republika Srpska has paid four million dollars from its budget to lobbyists in Washington to promote the independence of this entity from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
According to data from an American database, analyzed by REL, the latest contract with the Israeli-Canadian company "Dickens & Madson" is part of a multi-year lobbying campaign by the Republika Srpska authorities in the United States.
At least $8.3 million has been allocated for this campaign since 2015. Among its goals were the lifting of US sanctions against the former president and prime minister of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, and challenging the legitimacy of the high international representative, Christian Schmidt.
The United States lifted sanctions against Dodik and his associates in 2025, while Schmidt resigned from his post in May of this year.
The authorities of this entity had also earmarked 54.9 million marks (about 28 million euros) for lobbying activities in the budget review for 2025.
The lobbying funds were approved by the governing majority in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, led by Dodik's Alliance of Independent Social Democrats.
Republika Srpska has no right to secede
According to the current constitutional framework, the entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina do not have the right to secede from the state nor to unilaterally alter its territorial integrity.
In an earlier ruling in 2008, the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina ruled that Republika Srpska could hire lobbyists to promote its interests. The court rejected claims that such an action infringed on the state's exclusive competences in the field of foreign policy.
However, Zvizdić argued in his request that the current case differs, as budget funds are being used for activities directly related to promoting the independence of Republika Srpska, which, according to him, is contrary to the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and previous decisions of local and international institutions./REL
