The Federal Prosecutor’s Office has submitted a notice to the Commission for Human Rights and Freedoms of the Tuzla City Council regarding the proceedings on the criminal complaint for the commission of the criminal offense of inciting national, racial and religious hatred, discord and intolerance, filed on the occasion of the event in front of the Cathedral in Tuzla on January 5, 2025.
According to the content of the criminal complaint, during the celebration of Christmas Eve at a public event, songs with Greater Serbian and nationalist lyrics were broadcast, including the nationalistically altered national anthem of Montenegro and songs by artists known for content that glorifies war crimes and incites hatred. This caused unrest among the citizens of Tuzla and threatened the foundations of multicultural coexistence, which is what Tuzla is known for.
The notification of the Federal Prosecutor’s Office stated:
“Federal Prosecutor’s Office of FBiH on 07.01.2025 received your criminal report – Report on suspicion of a committed criminal offense dated January 7, 2025. year, filed against an unknown person, due to the criminal offense of inciting national, racial and religious hatred, dissension or intolerance from Article 163 of the FBiH CC”, and yes “We forwarded your criminal complaint to the Cantonal Prosecutor’s Office of the Tuzla Canton for competent action.”
Broadcasting songs that incite national and religious hatred is, according to legal provisions, a criminal offense, and judicial practice in BiH clearly indicates that such behavior is inadmissible and punishable by imprisonment. Specifically, the judgment of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, based on the criminal report of Mirnes Ajanović in the case of the Ravnogorsk movement from Visegrad, confirms that the mere spreading of hatred, regardless of whether an incident occurred, entails criminal responsibility, and the organizers were sentenced to five months in prison.
The Commission for Human Rights and Freedoms of the Tuzla City Council expects the Cantonal Prosecutor’s Office of TK to take urgent measures in accordance with the law in the investigation and prosecution of persons responsible for inciting national, racial and religious hatred, and to ensure the protection of multicultural coexistence in Tuzla.
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