Hundreds of journalists and rights activists marched to the parliament in Banja Luka, the capital of Republika Srpska on July 18 to protest possible amendments to the criminal code of Bosnia-Herzegovina's majority Serb entity that they say that would criminalize defamation and stifle free speech.
The Republika Srpska Assembly has put on its July 18 legislative agenda discussing amendments that would criminalize defamation despite months of protests by domestic and international organizations as well as journalists who have called on the lawmakers to scrap the changes.
The amendments to the Criminal Code were introduced by Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, a divisive figure who is also the leader of the ruling Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD).
"This is not a political issue. This is a matter of freedom of speech for every individual in Republika Srpska," Sinisa Vukelic, the president of the Banja Luka Journalists' Club, told the protesters.
Under the amendments, making malicious or untrue statements about a person is amount to defamation and be punishable with fines.
Legislators adopted the changes in a draft amendment in March that was then subject to a two-month period to allow public debate.
Following turbulent discussions during which journalists and organizations representing civil society accused lawmakers of attempting to bring the media under control, fines for defamation were reduced in the final draft of the law from an initial maximum of 60,000 euros to between 1,000 and 3,000 euros.
The bill foresees fines for public mockery for belonging to a certain race, religion, nationality, or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
Higher fines are possible in situations where defamation appears in the media, on social networks, or at a public gathering.
After the acrimonious debate, the definition of insult was changed to a misdemeanor in a revised version of the draft bill.
However, the provision referring to the "unauthorized publication of other people's files, image, and recordings" which can attract a fine or imprisonment of up to two years, remains.
Dodik, a veteran of Bosnian Serb politics, has been pursuing increasingly nationalist and secessionist policies and has been criticized for policies seen as authoritarian while seeking closer ties with Serbia and Russia.
He has said the aim of the legislation is to protect the interests of Republika Srpska and its government in the face of “special warfare” involving journalists.