Former Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik is banned from running in the elections tomorrow, but as he walked into a packed sports hall alongside his chosen replacement, the only name the crowd chanted was his.
Swamped by well-wishers during the campaign rally last week, Dodik, an ardent nationalist, retains undeniable political stature in the statelet, Republika Srpska (RS), despite being removed from office months ago.
“He will always be our president,” 52-year-old supporter Biljana Kuvelja said. “He is the bulwark defending the Serb people and Republika Srpska, a true leader, the one we need.”
Photo: Reuters
Dodik, 66, was removed from the presidency in August after being convicted for flouting rulings by the international envoy who oversees the peace treaty that ended the Bosnian War in 1995.
Bosnia has been split between Serbian and Bosnian-Croat political units since the end of the war, in which tens of thousands died. The country is held together by weak central institutions.
As part of his conviction, Dodik was banned from holding public office for six years.
After decrying the sentence and threatening to block elections, he reluctantly picked Sinisa Karan, a close ally, as his successor.
Surrounded by tricolor RS flags at the rally in the entity’s east, Dodik — or “the boss,” as his supporters call him — strode out in front, warmly shaking hands with supporters.
“They wanted to get rid of one Dodik, but now they’ll have two Dodiks!” Karan told the crowd.
Rally attendee Spiro Pljevaljcic said he stood by the former president despite some “bad policies” that drove his own children to seek work abroad.
“He fears no one,” he said.
On the other side, the opposition has entered the presidential race with a near-unknown, Branko Blanusa, an electrical engineering professor who has promised to govern differently and accused Dodik of dividing society.
“On one side, we have the wealthy members of the ruling regime. On the other hand, it’s you, the people, who live very modestly,” Blanusa said during a rally.
Gavro Mandic, an 86-year-old opposition supporter, said Blanusa’s lack of profile did not matter after nearly two decades of Dodik’s party being in power.
“Blanusa will win, because the people are fed up and want change.”
East Ilidza Mayor Marinko Bozovic, a fierce Dodik critic, said he sees the snap election as “an opportunity for RS to take a new path.”
Dodik’s term had been marred by “corruption” and scandals, he said, adding that “if his mission since coming to power was to weaken RS, then he has accomplished it well.”
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