The Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina on May 29 annulled a series of laws passed in February by the Republika Srpska entity, which the court ruled were either unconstitutional and threatening the state’s sovereignty or incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, a statement from the court said. 

The legislation, adopted by Republika Srpska lawmakers following a first-instance verdict against Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, was deemed an attempt to undermine Bosnia’s central authority.

The laws included measures to block the functioning of state-level police and judiciary within Republika Srpska's territory, as well as the so-called “foreign agents” law, which imposed restrictive oversight on NGOs and independent media.

The court found the foreign agents' law incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, stating that it “does not meet a ‘pressing social need’ and is not necessary in a democratic society”. The other provisions were found to violate Bosnia’s constitutional framework by attempting to transfer state powers to a regional entity—an action that can only be taken by the central parliament.

The controversial measures triggered what observers have described as Bosnia’s most serious political crisis since the end of the 1992–95 war. The laws were provisionally suspended in March, pending the court’s final ruling.

In response to the Republika Srpska National Assembly’s endorsement of the legislation, the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina launched an investigation in February into what it labelled “an attack on the constitutional order”.

Arrest warrants were subsequently issued for Dodik, Republika Srpska Prime Minister Radovan Višković, and Assembly Speaker Nenad Stevandić, all of whom failed to appear for questioning on two occasions.

Dodik, who initiated the legislation in parallel to his legal proceedings, was initially sentenced in February to one year in prison and barred from holding public office for six years. Both he and the prosecutors have appealed the verdict, with a new hearing scheduled for June.

Dodik remains wanted by the central judiciary, as the legal and political standoff continues between Republika Srpska and Bosnia’s state institutions.