The court has, for the third time, upheld the lawsuit filed by the Center for Environment (the Center) against the Ministry of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Srpska (the Ministry) for refusing to provide the Feasibility Study for the Banja Luka–Prijedor highway construction project.
This time, the court independently made the decision in what is known as a full jurisdiction dispute, meaning the court ruled on behalf of the ministry, which is now obligated to provide the document to the Center for Environment.
Among other things, the court established that there is an undeniable public interest in having full access to and knowledge of whether favorable conditions were negotiated for the Republic of Srpska and its citizens, and whether those conditions align with the public interest. This would allow a comparison to determine whether better terms could have been negotiated than those contained in the Feasibility Study — which is particularly important given the current increase in the project’s value.
“This is just further proof of how crucial the proper functioning of the courts is, as well as the speed of their decisions. With this ruling, we gain another piece of the puzzle that should reveal the extent of the RS Government’s failure in embarking on such an uncertain venture. Along with this document, there remains another important set of documents related to this project. These are the documents titled ‘Vehicle Counting on the Road Network of the Republic of Srpska,’ which haven’t been published since 2018, and are important because they will show the complete economic irrationality of the RS Government’s actions and the handing over of the Republic’s budget to a Chinese company,” said Tihomir Dakić, president of the Center for Environment.
Redžib Skomorac, legal advisor at the Center for Environment, emphasized that the court’s decision is particularly significant in terms of ensuring the effectiveness of legal remedies available to the public.
“The court’s role — to not only correct but, when necessary, take on the responsibility of making substantive decisions — is a very positive development. We welcome this kind of precedent and encourage the court to use its available powers in other cases as well,” said Skomorac.
It is worth noting that the District Court in Banja Luka has ruled multiple times on access to documentation related to this project. So far, a total of eight verdicts have been issued in favor of the Center, and the court has also ruled in favor of other parties. Based on several lawsuits filed by the Center, the Government of the Republic of Srpska finally adopted a resolution to publish the Concession Agreement for the project, excluding the Financial Model (Annex 23).
In connection with this matter, the Center filed its most recent lawsuit in February of this year, due to the ministry’s continued illegal refusal to provide data and its protection of the investors’ private interests based on mere assumptions.
“We expect the court to again independently decide in this case and order the disclosure of the financial model. That would finally provide a legal resolution to this case, which the public rightfully deserves, and would relieve the judiciary of outdated practices,” Skomorac concluded.
