If you were wondering why for the past few days and weeks, the president of VSTV, Milan Tegletija, has not been addressing the public eye in a way characteristic to him, we all need to show some understanding. After a series of scandals that have been following him and VSTV over this year, he has now gone to writing columns. And to a different kind of defense.  „Such kind of pressure has not been seen since the signing of the Dayton agreement“, he notes in the interview to the Banja Luka’s Glas Srpske given on 24 of July.

The president has responded to the columns with – columns, to critics in public – with the critics of the public. With no reluctance he only attacks the chosen targets: “Certain political and para-intelligence centers of the power from the Sarajevo”, representatives of the international community in Bosnia and Herzegovina (who are “uninformed” and “manipulated”) “gold diggers of the media world”… And he is calling for the “balance of everything in the universe”, which is the recipe for the way out of the political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina?!

Shortly, in the columns of Milan Tegletija there is everything to be found except the solution for the state of the judiciary and in the Supreme Judiciary and Prosecution Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Attack against the judiciary from Sarajevo

In the first column, for example, the president of the VSTV is sending alarming messages about the endangered independence of the judiciary, announcing the so-called conspiracy activities and “in the worst scenario”, he is predicting physical conflicts and the “uncertain fate of the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina”. Not to keep us in a dilemma, already in his first sentence the author discovers who wants to gain the control over the “independent” judiciary. You are guessing right – those are “certain political and para-military centres of power from Sarajevo, helped with the support of certain representatives of the international community in Bosnia and Herzegovina”. “Certain”, but unnamed.

If the front face of Bosnian judiciary system on this way announces a coup on the fundamental state institution, why nobody commented on this, not even after two and a half months. The only answer came from the member of the Supreme court of the Federation,  Goran Nezirović: “As a member of VSTV, I expected an urgent appointment of the session of VSTV or the press conference for the representatives of VSTV. As the citizen I expected a reaction of the OHR, highest local representatives of the the government, media, and organizations of civil societies.”

Nothing happened. The lack of reactions is not unfounded. “As long as he does not present ant credible proof or arguments”, notes the judge Nezirovic, “there is every reason to doubt whether a real conspiracy theory is hidden behind the allegation about the conspiracy.  What is its aim? Preventing an argumentative social dialogue, serious discussion about the state of the judiciary system and postponement of necessary reforms.”

The balance that is “not to be questioned”

In the other column, the president is however dealing with the universe (?!) And he discovers that “the balance is the universal presupposition of everything”, therefore he comes to the conclusion that the “balance between the two entities and three constitutive peoples is in the foundations of the Daytonic structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina”, which is “not being questioned, but presupposed”.

 “In these conditions, the fight for the balance has the natural advantage over the social and economic issues of the daily life and as long as the social balance is constructed in Dayton as the balance between the two entities and three constitutive peoples it cannot be understood properly, and social and economic aspects of its life will be of secondary, and not of primary character”.

Targets of the third column are journalists. Milan Tegletija is commonly referring to them as “self-declared, free and independent”, accusing them for being “political tools for the redirection of the public eye” and that they are fabricating lies and untruths.  His evaluation is based on the Report of the European Comission for 2019, from which he cites the following: “The lack of transparency in regards to the ownership of media outlets and the influence of political and business interests on the editorial politics is making concerns when it comes to the ability of the most of the media to report about the political events unbiased.”

Yes, there really are non-transparent ownerships in media outlets, especially present is the “influence of political and business interests” on the editorial policies. But is this the evaluation of media who criticise VSTV and of those he refers to as “self-declaratively free”? Or is this referred to the media outlets in which political leaders close to him open and close off TV newsreels and who are providing a space for his political clashes and attacks on the journalists…?

Politics takes over

In response to the recent allegation of the president of the VSTV on the TV channel N1, claiming that “the judiciary only divides the fate of the society”, the former president of VSTV and judge of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Branko Peric, wrote the following in his column:

“The state of the judiciary is not the reflection of social crisis. The state in the judiciary can only be a proof that the politics took over it and that through installed and politically suitable individuals the judiciary is weakening down which makes it unable to deal with the rule of the law and serious criminal. The judiciary is being systematically destroyed with a political aim to it.  Only with the destruction of the judiciary system the full incompetence of the ruling powers and their illegally acquired wealth can be accounted for…”

Communication with the public eye through the columns is an excellent choice for people from the judiciary only if they are the part of that institution. What is expected from the president of VSTV are not political analysis of the crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina, discussions about the universe or attacks on the journalists, but answers about the questions opened by the public in terms of the duties and responsibilities of the judiciary and the Council.  For example, to explain the decisions that VSTV changed after the intervention of the head of the EU Delegation and ambassadors, to explain why it hid disciplinary and criminal charges, why it appointed judges in spite of the clash of interests… Shortly, all downfall in the judiciary and in VSTV, whose president is Telgeltija himself. And to stop the political pressures – without creating conspiracy theories.