NED Narrative report July - September 2003, «Promotion, Protection and Monitoring Human Rights in Republika Srpska»
NARRATIVE REPORT
on the activities within the project:
«Promotion, Protection and Monitoring Human Rights in Republika Srpska»
NED Grant No.
2003-104.0
Period:
July - September 2003
Bijeljina,
October, 2003
CONTENT:
1. INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................... 3
2. INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IN
2.1 OHR............................................................................................................................. 5
2.2 UNHCR........................................................................................................................ 6
2.3 SFOR............................................................................................................................ 7
2.4 Council of
3. OPERATIONS OF THE JOINT ORGANS IN BiH............................................... 8
3.1. The Law on the Movement and Stay of Foreigners and Asylum............................... 8
3.2. The Courts of BiH........................................................................................................ 8
3.3. Unified BiH customs service....................................................................................... 9
3.4. The Human Rights Chamber in BiH............................................................................. 9
4. ACTIVITIES OF THE ORGANS IN REPUBLIKA SRPSKA............................... 9
4.1. National Assembly of the Rpublic of Srpska................................................................. 9
4.2. The Government of the
5. ARMY REFORM........................................................................................................ 10
5.1. Common military training of the armies in BiH............................................................ 10
5.2. The Army of the
5.3. Shortened terms of military service................................................................................ 11
6. POLICE OPERATION................................................................................................ 11
6.1. Police academy.............................................................................................................. 11
6.2. Overstepping authorities................................................................................................ 12
6.3. Illegal detention............................................................................................................. 12
6.4. Attacks on the police..................................................................................................... 12
7. JUDICIAL REFORM................................................................................................. 12
7.1. Complaints against the judges....................................................................................... 13
7.2. Obstructions in the operations....................................................................................... 13
8. EDUCATIONAL REFORM...................................................................................... 14
9. THE RIGHT TO RETURN....................................................................................... 14
10. ATTACKS......................................................................................................................... 15
11. SOCIAL ISSUES.............................................................................................................. 20
12. FREEDOM OF THE MEDIA.................................................................................. 21
12.1. Pressures extered on the journalists and the media...................................................... 21
12. FREEDOM OF RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION.............................................................. 22
13. COOPERATION WITH ICTY....................................................................................... 23
14. SEARCH FOR MISSING PERSONS............................................................................ 24
15.1. Identification............................................................................................................... 24
15. TRAFFICKING............................................................................................................... 25
16.1. Night clubs.................................................................................................................. 25
16. CRIME AND CORRUPTION........................................................................................ 26
17.1. Illegal trade................................................................................................................ 26
18. STATEMENT FOR THE PUBLIC....................................................................... 27
19. PRESS CONFERENCES....................................................................................... 30
20. TV SHOWS.............................................................................................................. 31
1. INTRODUCTION
Generally, we can say that the state of human rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina
When we talk about human rights in Bosnia and
Herzegovina , the paremeter should be the European
Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Basic Freedoms, which is the
basis of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina
First of all, the general security of citizens in BH, the security of their
families and their property haven’t been established completely. A huge number
of citizens is still facing various forms of discrimination and violence,
because of their ethnic and religious belonging. The Rule of Law hasn't been
established completely, yet.
The initiated judiciary reforms in BH indicate positive results and significant
improvements (the new Criminal Law and the new Law on criminal procedure), but
the courts in BH are still facing serious personal, technical and material
problems. Therefore, the courts work under difficult cicumstances, which
results by the slow and difficult way of the realisation of Human Rights for
citizens before the authorised courts. An additional burden is the fact, that the
attemps of political parties and local powerful persons to influence on the
work of courts are still very powerfull.
The cooperation between the police, the prosecutor office and the court has
been significantly changed by the new Laws, but the unreadiness and the
insufficient knowledge of the employees within the judiciary to implement the
new Laws are visible. Moreover, we can say that due to the strong engagement of the former IPTF and the current EUPM in the field of the police education, the number of human rights violations committed by the police has been significantly decreased.
The prosecutors offices in BH on the local level, but also the prosecutors office on the state level do not have the needed capacities and face serious personal, technical and material problems such as the courts, which strongly influence on the quality of their work.
The process of forming a State Court of BH with three separate Councils ( one for the fight against organized crime, one for the fight against economic crime and corruption and one council for war crime procedures) goes very slowly and according to the recent estimations, 28 million Euro are needed for the initiation of its work.
The relations between politicians, high officials and the organized crime are still very present and are a threat for economic basis of our country. The huge number of various scandals like the scandal of thousands trucks which passed the border between Croatia and BH, and which were not registered by the BH custom houses or the enormous malversations in the Power Plant companies of both entities ( in the Republika Srpska, about 162 millions bosnian marks were embazzeled), the high level of corruption with the Telecommunication Companies, the abuses within the tax and custom services, but also the lack of criminal procedures against politicians because of the abuse of office show the fragility of the BH institutions.
During the last couple of months, the number of recorded direct attacks and pressures on media has been decreased, but there are new, less visible pressures. By initiating trial processes versus journalists with the intention to receive enormous financial compensations, high political officials, who were criticised for some of their dubious actions, try to intimidate journalists and stop their investigation work.
The legal frame, created by the Law on free access to information, hasn’t been completed within the mechanisms, which should enable the access to the information from the state institutions, so it could be said that practically this Law can’t be realised.
On the other hand, we are still facing hate speech and the lack of professional behaviour within the media. The influence of political parties and their ideologies on certain media is more than visible and it is really difficult to talk about free media in BH.
Reforms, regarding the creation of a free market and the privatisation, are almost finished, but it has been followed by numerous irregularities, disrespect of legal procedures and insufficient transparency. The enormous number of unemployed, long-term strikes of medical workers, teachers and pensioners shows the inability of the BH government to create preconditions for the realisation of the social group of Human Rights.
One of the most significant problems of BH and the region is still the return of refugees and displaced person. In spite of the success within the return of property, the fact published in various statistics are almost untrue. The return of property is not followed by the sustainable return of refugees and displaced persons. Returnees face problems of reintegration, resocialisation and various forms of discrimination. They decide very often, even several months after the return to sell their property and to leave these places again. It is very difficult for returnees to realize their right on health insurance, the access to education, the general security, and it is almost impossible for them to get an employment. The recently signed agreement on the return of refugees and displaced person between BH and
A huge number of suspected for war crimes is still free and enjoy a complete political and material support, especially in the Republika Srpska. The RS has’t shown any serious and concrete attempt to initiate trial procedures versus war criminals. The first trial has recently been initiated versus a group of police officers who were involved in the murder of a catholic pope and his family during the war. In the Federation BH, about 80 trials were initiated versus suspected for war crimes and some of them were already finished.
The religious freedoms in BH are still partially realized, especially in the RS. Especially for the members of the islamic community, it is still very dangerous to practice their religion. The reconstruction of religious buildings, destroyed during the war, is going on very slowly and is followed by serious attacks and threats.
The problem of trafficking and the illegal migration through BH has been reduced significantly during the last year as a result of the establishment of a visa regime for some East European countries, but also as a result of the stronger control of the State Border Service and the engagement of the local police supported by the IPTF and EUPM. Legal procedures versus a person involved in trafficking and prostitution made a contribution to the reduction of this problem.
In spite of the fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina has the obligation to fulfill the international standards of minority rights and in spite of the fact that we have a new Law on Minorities since the 1st April this year, minority's rights are getting strongly and systematically violated. Especially in the Republika Srpska, the minorities face various discriminations in the field of education, employment, health insurance and many other fields.The most jeopardized minority in Bosnia and Herzegovina are still Roma population, who very often do not have the opportunity to realize their basic human rights.
Eight years after the end of the war in
The process of facing the truth, as one of the most important issues within the process of establishing reconciliation, is going on very slowly. It gets clear if you take a look on the fact that the current BH government is formed by those political powers and ideologies which created the war, ethnic cleansing and violation of the humanitarian law. This political powers are still involved in the obstruction of the estimation of human rights and try to fulfill or perserve their war strategies within a peace period such as ethnic clean territories.
Many questions regarding human rights such as the question of sexual freedoms in
2. ACTIVITIES OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IN
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
International organizations in
2.1.OHR
The Office of the High Representative (OHR) is directly included in the fight against crime and corruption and demands that the laws be applied in everyday life.
The High Representative in B&H, Paddy Ashdown, has blocked the accounts of 14 persons from the
The following persons have had their accounts blocked: Aleksandar and Sonja Karadžić (son and daughter of Radovan Karadžić), Ljiljana Zelen-Karadžić and Luka Karadžić (wife and brother of Radovan Karadžić), Zvonko Bajagić, aka Duga Puška, private entrepreneurs from Vlasenica, Bogdan Subotić, former general in the Army of the Republic of Srpska (ARS), Slavko Roguljić, businessman from Banja Luka, Dragan Lalović, general and commander of the Fifth Corps of ARS, Milenko Vračar, former minister of finance of the Republic of Srpska and director of the New Banja Luka Bank, Dragan Spasojević, a co-owner of Privredna banka, Srpsko Sarajevo, and the owner of the enterprise "19. decembar" from Zvornik, Jovan Đogo from Kalinovnik, Žarko Nikolić, businessman from Srpsko Sarajevo, Đojo Arsenović, a representative to the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska from Bijeljina and Dragomir Vasić, businessman and representative to the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska from Zvornik.
The High Representative removed two representatives to the National Assembly of the
In a joint effort, OHR and OSCE have issued a warning to the authorities of the
In the preceding period, OSCE was engaged, mainly, in the implementation of educational reforms. Special emphasis was laid on the activities aimed at the cancellation of the so-called "two schools under a single roof" on the territory of the Federation of Bosnia and
2.2. UNHCR
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) closed a number of its offices. This is the sign that the number of refugees in
2.3. SFOR
The peacekeeping forces of SFOR have been gradually reducing the number of troops in
Illegal armament
In the last three months, SFOR members discovered large quantities of illegal arms which had been hidden in the forests, caves and privately owned estates. All types of arms were discovered - from light infantry armaments to heavy artillery used during the war in
Search for war criminals
SFOR members carry out unannounced controls of various facilities which might be hiding the persons indicted for war crimes.
Italian carabineers and American soldiers controlled certain buildings, roads and vehicles at Pale. The home of Sonja Karadžić, the daughter of Radovan Karadžić, was surrounded and monitored.
EU forces to replace SFOR
Certain European media have announced the replacement of SFOR with the EU forces in 2004. The NATO commander for
2.4. Council of Europe
As a member of the Council of Europe,
3. OPERATIONS OF THE ORGANS OF B&H
The parliaments in B&H are facing important and responsible tasks. In order to implement consistently the Development Strategy in B&H (PRSP) from 2003 to 2007, the representatives will have to pass 160 new laws and amend 115 existing ones. In addition, lower level organs would have to pass 548 measures. These tasks were confirmed in the discussion of the development strategy in both houses of B&H parliament. The passing of these laws and measures, with the application of a normal procedure, would take 11 years. Because of that, it is necessary to pass the majority of the laws with the application of an accelerated procedure.
3.1. The Law on the Movement and Stay of Foreigners and on Asylum
Both houses of the Parliament of B&H have passed the Law on the Movement and Stay of Foreigners and on Asylum. This law defines the conditions of entry and stay of foreigners o the territory of B&H, the reasons for refusing the entry and the stay, the reasons for canceling the stay and expulsion of foreigners from the territory of B&H, the procedure for seeking the asylum, the granting of the asylum and the expiration of the asylum in B&H, the competence of the authorities in the implementation of this Law as well as other issues in connection with the asylum, the movement and stay of foreigners on the territory of B&H.
The Law on the Council of Ministers of B&H, already passed by the High Representative in B&H, was passed following an accelerated procedure.
3.2. The Court of B&H
The newly established Court of B&H should start its operations and process war crimes in B&H in a year. The Court of B&H will receive from the Hague Tribunal 16 indictments against persons suspected for war crimes committed in B&H and take over 45 investigations started by the Hague Tribunal. At the moment, the Court of B&H is facing personnel and technical problems. For a normal and efficient operation the Court needs at least ten more prosecutors and judges, a separate war crimes department and a detention unit.
The Court of B&H should get its own judicial police. It is expected that the establishment of the institution of the judicial police will take a year. Only persons with a previous police work experience and a certificate by the IPTF will be able to take employment in the judicial police. It is expected that the Court of B&H will have a police force of 35 policemen.
3.3. Unified B&H customs service
The Parliament of B&H has passed the Law on the establishment of the Customs Service of B&H and the Directorate for direct taxation at the level of B&H. The Law prescribes unification of the existing customs services in the
3.4. The Human Rights Chamber in B&H
According to some earlier indications, the Human Rights Chamber in B&H should have stopped accepting applications on August 1. However, the Ministry for Human Rights and Refugees of B&H has decided to continue accepting applications even after the said deadline. The reason for this is the uncertainty as to which institution of the common organs of B&H will take over the solving of the existing and the new applications of the citizens. According to some new indications, the Human Rights Chamber should discontinue its operations on December 31 this year. By then, some 10,000 applications should be reviewed and solved in an accelerated procedure.
There are proposals for the activities of the Human Rights Chamber to be continued by the Ministry of Justice of B&H, while some institutions and associations would like to see the mandate of the Human Rights Chamber extended.
4. ACTIVITIES OF THE ORGANS OF THE
4.1. National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska
The Bosniac club in the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska has initiated a procedure to change the Law on Seals, Coat of Arms, National Anthem and Flag of the Republic of Srpska and of the Law on Territorial Organization and Local Self-Government in the Republic of Srpska.
In the explanation accompanying the proposal, it is said that the existing laws on seals and the symbols of the entities endanger the vital national interests of the Bosniacs in the
The representatives to the National Assembly of the
4.2. The Government of the
The Government of the
According to an earlier decision of the Human Rights Chamber, the Government of the Republic of Srpska should pay two million convertible marks ( Bosnian marks) to the Foundation Srebrenica - Potočari for the material damages. This decision was passed on the basis of the charge of 49 families from Srebrenica which have charged the authorities of the
5. ARMY REFORM
As part of the reform of the military forces in B&H, it is suggested for the entity armies to unify and have a single command and the same uniforms and insignia. The civilian and military authorities of the
The reforms envisage a reduction in the number of troops. It is suggested for the Army of the
The general staff of the Army of the
5.1. Common military training of the armies in B&H
The Office of the General Inspector of SFOR has carried out a common training program for 165 officers and non-commissioned officers from the armies of both entities. The training program included instructions on the standards of operations and professionalism in the army, on the laws and regulations of B&H of interest to military personnel and on command responsibility. The training was completed by the members of the 5th Corps of the Army of the Republic of Srpska, the 1st Guard Corps of the Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Croatian component) and the 1st Corps of the Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the Bosniac component)
5.2. The Army of the
The reduction of the number of troops and military locations has created a surplus in the armament. The General Staff has announced an auction for the sale of armament surplus, namely: 105 tanks, more than 42,000 pieces of infantry arms, 98 pieces of artillery, 68 pieces of anti-aircraft guns, 21 anti-aircraft rockets, more than 750,000 pounds of rocket ammunition and more than 12 million rounds of other types of ammunition.
5.3. Shortened term of military service
With the order of the president of the
The regular term of military service in the
6. POLICE OPERATION
Most of the administrative activities concerning the reform of police operation have been completed. Still, police operations in the field face certain difficulties. As yet, the members of the police have not received enough professional training, nor do they have the necessary technical equipment.
One of the biggest problems in the work of the police is low and irregular salaries. The trade union of the police of the
6.1.
At the moment, the
6.2. Overstepping authority
At the Police Station Srbac, which belongs to the
In a police action in a place known as Hajdučke vode, near Doboj, there was some shooting in which Predrag Bijelić, aged 36, was killed and two of his fellow travelers, Srđan Boškov, aged 20, and Milan Pomorac, aged 24, were arrested (August 19/20).
The police announced that this was an ambush set for the arrest of drug smugglers who resisted arrest and shot at the police. The police had returned fire and mortally wounded Bijelić.
The family of the killed man demanded a new investigation and Boškov and Pomorac stated that they had been unarmed and that the police had no reason to shoot. The internal security of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the
6.3. Illegal detention
The police at Prijedor summoned three persons of Bosniac nationality for distributing flyers demanding the solution of the problem of the killed and missing persons during the war. Two persons answered the summons and were interrogated for eight hours at the police station. Such behavior of the Prijedor police was condemned by non-governmental organizations for the protection of human rights and the Society for Endangered Peoples. Eight hours of interrogation at a police station looks more like a forced than an informative conversation, said the NGOs.
6.4. Attacks on the police
In an attempt to arrest two persons for whom arrest warrants had been issued, a police patrol from Bronzani Mejdan (
Three unknown persons attacked the policeman Nebojša Petrović on Banj Brdo, near
Two persons, G. M. (26) and A. P. (26) attacked a police patrol in Petrovo (Doboj municipality) on August 4. The police arrested them and handed them over to the Basic Public Prosecutor's Office in Doboj for trial.
7. JUDICIAL REFORM
The initiated judicial reforms promise positive results and significant improvements in the operation of these organs. The new Criminal Law and the new Law on Criminal Procedures have been passed. The courts in B&H and in the
Although the new laws have considerably changed the relationships between the police, the prosecution and the judiciary, it is still possible to observe a lack of readiness and insufficient knowledge of the judiciary personnel in the implementation of the new laws.
Thanks to the intensive engagement of the international police (earlier IPTF and now EUMP) in the area of police education and insistence on the responsibility of every single policeman, the number of human rights violations has been considerably reduced.
The prosecutor's offices in B&H and in the
The activities aimed at the establishment of the State Court of B&H with three separate departments (1. Fight against organized crime, 2. Fight against economic crime and corruption, and 3. Trials of war criminals) are very slow and, according to the latest information, it will be necessary to invest 28 million euros and almost two years of preparations in order for this court, and all of its departments, to start functioning. So far, the Court of B&H has tried some 20 cases where 12 persons have been sentenced for forgery, drug dealing and smuggling.
7.1. Complaints against the judges
It is the citizens who suffer because of all the shortcomings in the organization and operation of the judicial organs. Their demands are not solved in time; very often, they are faced with corrupt judges. In the last ten months, the citizens have lodged 3,040 complaints against the judges and prosecutors. The complaints have been submitted to the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor with the Independent Judicial Commission. Of all submitted complaints, the Office has reviewed and solved 1,585 cases.
The Citizens Association "Zajedno do istine" (Together at the Truth) from
7.2. Obstructions in the operations
Numerous criminal charges have been raised against a number of present-day or former functionaries of the
Two criminal charges have been raised against former prime minister of the
Center for the education of the judges and prosecutors of the
An identical Center for the education of the judges and prosecutors has been established in the Federation of Bosnia and
8. EDUCATIONAL REFORM
Activities in the area of educational reform in this time period have been numerous. Toward the end of June, the Umbrella Law on elementary and secondary education at the level of B&H was passed. The entities are obliged to harmonize their laws on elementary and secondary education with the Umbrella Law of B&H by the end of the year.
The new school year in elementary schools began on time and in accordance with the new, reformed program, and the increased number of years. The elementary school, taking the European educational systems as a model, will take 9 years (8 years so far). Children will start school at the age of six.
In the curriculum for all the schools in B&H, a common core of 17 subjects for elementary and secondary schools has been adopted whereby great differences in the curricula have been overcome. This will facilitate the entrance of the returnee students into educational systems. Differences have been preserved only in the so-called national groups of subjects (history, geography, social studies) and the mother tongue (Serbian, Bosnian and Croatian).
Specially appointed commissions have reviewed all school textbooks and removed from them all those parts insulting to members of certain nations.
9. THE RIGHT TO RETURN
The officials of both entities assess the return of the refugees and displaced persons through the implementation of property laws, that is, the return of property to its lawful owners. According to the data at the disposal of the Commission for the refugees and the displaced persons, by the end of September, the levels of implementation of the restitution of property in both entities were equal and stood at 88%. On the territory of the Brčko district the level of the restitution of property stands at 96%.
Of the total of 224,000 requests for the restitution of property on the whole territory of B&H, 197,000 requests have been solved. In 46 municipalities, the process of the restitution of property to its lawful owners has been completed. According to the information received from the entity ministries, the full restitution of property should be carried out by the end of the year.
The data on the restituted property do not agree with the data on returnees. In a large number of cases, the owners, although their property has been returned to them, do not remain to live there. This is particularly true of the
The entity and the local authorities do nothing to encourage sustainable return. The returnees are not given assistance for the reconstruction of their housing units, provision of household items (in a large number of cases, temporary users of the units, when they leave them, take the household items with them and devastate the units). The returnees have no chance of finding a job, they have no health insurance, their children face problems with the continuation of their education, they are not free to express their religious beliefs nor the historical and cultural traditions of their nation. In the Republic of Srpska, the names of all institutions, streets and, even, towns and holidays, bear the names and characteristics of one nation (Serb) and one religion (Orthodox) only, which discourages the members of other nations (Bosniac, Croat, Roma) from returning to such an environment.
The return of a large number of families has been made impossible as their property has been completely destroyed and their real estate has been used to build apartment buildings, business offices or religious institutions on. All this influences their decision to leave their homes and their property forever.
This way, the plan of ethnically cleansed territories is being carried out.
10. ATTACKS
The return of the refugees and displaced persons to their prewar places of residence is prevented in a number of ways. The returnees find it difficult to get their property back and, very often, they are subjected to threats and physical attacks. Their property and their religious facilities are attacked with explosive devices, or are set afire. Here, we have in mind, first of all, the return of the Bosniacs, Croats and the Roma to the
Bratunac
In the local community of Voljevic, Bratunac municipality, on the fences surrounding the yards and on the facades of the houses owned by Bosniac returnees, provocative and insulting graffiti addressed at the Bosniac returnees have been written (July 1). The slogans read: ""Mladić, srpski heroj" (Mladić, the Serb hero.", meaning general Ratko Mladić indicted by the Hague Tribunal for crimes against Bosniacs), and "Nož, žica, Srebrenica" (Knife, wire, Srebrenica", an allusion to the suffering of the civilians from Srebrenica and a threat to Bosniacs). This slogan was written in a number of towns in the
In the settlement of Glogovo, near Bratunac, unidentified youths attacked Jovo Krstić (56) and inflicted serious injuries upon him (September 14). It is believed that the attackers were the Bosniacs who had retuned to Glogovo.
Kozarska/Bosanska Dubica
Unknown persons threw an explosive device (on July 6) at the home of the returnee, Hasan Ičanović, in
On the same day, in Kozarska/Bosanska Dubica, another incident occurred when the returnee Zijad Bešić was beaten up. He suffered serious body injuries and was given help in the local hospital.
According to his account, and the account of witness Osman Duraković, the attackers were father and son, Ilija and Slavko Vujičić.
Bešić and Duraković had been at a cafe "Delta", when Ilija went in. He had asked Bešić to come out. When he came out, Ilija and his son, Slavko, began hitting and kicking Bešić. Duraković was prevented from helping Bešić. Finally, Bešić managed to escape to his home and inform the police of the incident. It took six calls to the police to arrive and take Bešić to the hospital where medical assistance was given to him. This is the third time in the last two years that Vujičić had assaulted Bešić. So far, no legal sanctions against Vujičić have been undertaken.
(Bosanska) Gradiška
On a barge dredging sand from the river
(Bosanski) Šamac
The express train shuttling between
Srpsko Sarajevo
At the cafe "Euro" in the settlement of Dobrinja (Srpsko Sarajevo, the
Pale
At the discotheque "Holivud", at Pale, owned by Milorad Rović, two explosive devices were thrown. The first on July 17 and the second on July 28. In both cases, the incidents occurred late in the evening when there were no patrons in the discotheque. Considerable material damage was inflicted on the facility. The police has failed to discover the perpetrators.
Prijedor
Unidentified persons set off an explosive device (on July 31) in front of the premises of "Sector security" agency for providing security of facilities, property and persons. The explosion broke a large number of window panes on the four-storey building and the neighboring business premises. The police examined the crime scene and initiated an investigation and the search for the perpetrators.
An unidentified person broke into the Orthodox
On August 21, in Prijedor, in the explosion of an unknown device, Miloš Ćurčija (75) was killed. It is believed that Ćurčija was hiding illegal arms in his shed and that the explosion was caused by inexpert handling.
Bosniac returnees to Bratunac, N. Č. (35) and
An explosive device of unknown origin was set off in the night of September 9/10 under a Golf car in the Prijedor settlement of Veliko Palančište. The car, owned by N. M. from Prijedor, was incinerated. The police are searching for the perpetrators of this criminal act.
Unidentified persons desecrated the bust of people's hero, Miloš Šiljegović (who fought against the fascists in World War II), which used to stand in front of the elementary school in Ćela, Prijedor municipality (September 29). The bust was toppled and thrown into a nearby, ruined building. That same evening, the poles of the goals from the school playground were broken. The police has started an investigation.
An unidentified person threw a bomb at the house of Milka J. in the
In the
Unknown perpetrators stoned the newly built mosque in the
Three days before the incident, five unidentified persons attacked the returnee Adem Prlja. He was beaten and seriously injured in the head and body. The police is investigating both cases.
In the
(Bosanska) Kostajnica
Unknown perpetrators brought a slaughtered pig to the building site of a mosque in (Bosanska) Kostajnica (August 3). This act is directed against the return of the Bosniacs to Kostajnica and against the reconstruction of Islamic religious facilities destroyed during the war. The police has examined the crime scene and initiated an investigation.
Zvornik
The OSCE Mission expressed their dissatisfaction with the passivity of the local authorities of the
An unidentified person threw a hand grenade between two Roma houses in Kozluk, Zvornik municipality (September 13). The bomb was thrown between the houses whose owners, Husein and Ahmet Nuhanović, have returned to Kozluk from exile. The police examined the crime scene and is searching for the perpetrators. It is believed that the grenade was thrown by a Serb refugee who must leave the Roma house.
In the immediate neighborhood there is a house where the Roma, the married couple Rasema (62) and Murat (68) Nuhanović, live. In April this year, they were attacked by three masked persons, beaten up and robbed of the money they had with them - some 700 euros. The police is still searching for the perpetrators.
At the site of the reconstruction of the mosque in Kozluk, Zvornik municipality, The following night, in the same settlement, an unidentified person threw a hand grenade at the house of the Roma Mehmedalija Suljić. In the incident, light injuries were inflicted upon Suljić, Đorđe Jovanović and Nedžad Hidanović. They were given medical assistance in the
Vojin Lazarevic, from Kozluk, brought a roast pig and large quantities of alcohol near the site, sat down and began eating and drinking with a number of his followers (September 23). Josipovic insulted and cursed the workers digging the foundations. As he had a pistol, the workers were forced to go away and they informed the police. The Bosniac returnees to Kozluk are embittered with such behavior of the Serb extremists and demand a more efficient police protection.
Bijeljina
In the village of Patkovača (near Bijeljina), D. T. (aged 50), threw a hand grenade at a car where Dušan Nikolić (aged 53) was (August 6). In the incident, Nikolić sustained serious injuries and was given medical assistance in the
At a number of places in Bijeljina insulting and threatening slogans have been written against Bosniacs and the reconstruction of the mosque in this town (August 11). At the same time, a flyer was distributed to the citizens where it was written: "Don't let them deceive you again! Let us stop the construction of Islamic facilities!"
An unknown person pointed an automatic rifle at the workers engaged in the reconstruction of the Bijeljina Atik mosque (August 23) and threatened to kill them. The incident occurred in front of numerous witnesses. The attacker then entered his car and drove away. The police has started an investigation into the incident.
In the Bijeljina Roma settlement of Fincov salaš, an unidentified person fired a pistol at Ahmet Suljić (September 22). A number of rounds were fired, but none hit Suljić. The incident occurred around midnight and the attacker ran away. The police were quick to intervene, but the attacker was not discovered.
The following night, in the same settlement, an unidentified person threw a hand grenade at the house of the Roma Mehmedalija Suljić. In the incident, light injuries were inflicted upon Suljić, Đorđe Jovanović and Nedžad Hidanović. They were given medical assistance in the
Derventa
An unidentified perpetrator threw an explosive device into the yard of M. S. in Donja Osina (Derventa municipality) on August 14. There were no injuries in the explosion although the house sustained considerable material damages. The police has started an investigation of the incident.
Unidentified perpetrators destroyed the memorial to the killed soldiers of the Army of the
Trebinje
A group of youths stoned the meglis of the Islamic community in Trebinje (August 27) where the Trebinje imam, Husein Hodžić, lives. Two windows were broken and the youths threatened and cursed the imam. Then ran away. The police has started an investigation. The imam, Husein Hodžić, told the police that the incidents were directed against the Bosniacs in Trebinje, that they occurred rather often and that they were most probably well planned and organized.
Sokolac
In front of the "Karavan" hotel in Sokolac an unknown explosive device exploded (August 28). The explosion left a crater a meter wide and 40 cm deep. The device was brought to the hotel by a guest, a lady who had a fake identity card. On leaving the hotel, she left the device behind, in her room. A hotel employee who later entered the room saw the bag with the explosive device in it. He took the bag outside the hotel and placed it on the lawn in front of the hotel. Soon after that, there was a strong explosion.
Brčko
Unidentified persons threw stones at and broke five windows on the Orthodox church in Brčko, in the settlement of Bijela, and a window in the house where the priest lives (September 15). These windows of this church were broken last year as well, but the perpetrators have not been found.
Unidentified persons broke into the home of the Orthodox priest, Milivoje Nenić, which is situated in the immediate vicinity of the Orthodox church in Brčko (September 30). The burglars forced the door open and entered the house and left it with the money and jewelry.
Foča/Srbinje
M. S., a minor from Srbinje/Foča (17), threw a hand grenade in
11. SOCIAL ISSUES
Most of the citizens of the
With the amount of money they receive, the pensioners cannot buy enough food, nor the needed medicines. Because of that, the mortality rate among the pensioners has been increasing. Last year alone, in the
Unemployment is on the rise so that some 40% of the able-bodied inhabitants are unemployed. With the privatization of former state and socially owned companies, the number of unemployed workers increases. Thus, at the time of the privatization of Pivredna banka, Doboj, of the total of 153 employees, 112 were laid off. Many of them with 20 or 30 years of work experience.
Social institutions in the
People on welfare are not provided with free medical care, treatment and medicines. On the other hand, all of them are obliged to pay for electricity, water, telephone service. If they don't pay, they are left without those services. All this leads to an increased number of the deceased. There are beggars in the streets.
Doctors warn the governments of both entities that the number of persons suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome, or the
Social unrests increase the number of drug-addicts, alcohol consumption, violence in the family and prostitution.
12. FREEDOM OF THE MEDIA
On the
A storm of protest among the media was raised by the fact that
After PINK B&H had bought those frequencies and started broadcasting, the Regulatory Agency for Communications brought a decision banning future trade in frequencies and the possession of two or more media, one of which electronic.
The ban caused further dissatisfaction, particularly among the printed media of the
12.1. Pressures exerted on the journalists and the media
Most media in B&H fail to perform their tasks professionally and impartially. These media are under the influence of certain political parties and in their operations they promote the interests of those parties and their leaders.
The media which try to be impartial are often under the pressure and the threats. Physical attacks on journalists also occur. Influential individuals and functionaries openly threaten the journalists and the media. Dissatisfied with the work of the media which discover their criminal and dishonest activities, these individuals bring legal charges and complaints against the journalists and the media. In the complaints, they demand enormous financial compensations for "having been dishonored". Such charges are unacceptable financial burden on the editorial boards because appeals against these charges require large amounts of judicial taxes.
Nezavisne novine from
The spokesman of the Government of the
A team of TV HIT from the Brčko District was attacked at the time it was trying to film a fire in the settlement of Marković Polje (August 29). The owner of the facility on fire, angry with the firemen, took it out on the TV team. He cursed, threatened to kill them. He pulled Dragan Đukić, a team member, from the car and was trying to pull out Dževida Hukićević. He even pulled out a gun with the intention to shoot at the team. The driver, Dragan Đurić, started the car so that Dragan Đukić had to jump in while the car was in motion. At that time, he suffered a light injury on his leg. The team reported the incident to the police who discovered the attacker and started an investigations.
The cameraman of the Bijeljina Radio and TV BN, Milan Gavrić, was attacked while shooting in Modriča (September 4). While he was doing his job professionally, an unidentified male insulted him and cursed him and then tried to take his camera away from him with the intention of throwing it on the street. Gavrić would not release his grip on the camera so that the unidentified person struck him on the head with the hand and then ran away. The incident was reported to the police immediately.
13. FREEDOM OF RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION
The right to religious affiliation in the
The dispute over the Orthodox church in Konjević Polje (Bratunac municipality) is still unsolved. The church was built, illegally, on a piece of privately owned land whose owner is of Bosniac nationality. For four years now, the owner of the land has been trying, in court, to have the church removed from his land. The court is trying to postpone the trial this way or that, obviously under the influence of political and religious dignitaries.
At the same time, some progress has been recorded in the implementation of religious freedoms. First of all, we have in mind the reconstruction of Islamic religious facilities destroyed, during the war, by the Army of the
In the
The mosque in the
In August, with appropriate ceremonies, the reconstructed mosques in Gomjenica (Prijedor municipality), in Kozarska/Bosanska Fubica, in Teslić and in Brčko District were opened. At the opening ceremonies there were no incidents.
14. COOPERATION WITH ICTY
The authorities in the
Several times, the authorities of the
On this occasion, the Government of the
A few days after the promise, the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that they were unable to search for those accused of war crimes as they had no money for this purpose.
On July 25 this year, it was exactly eight years since the Prosecutor's Office of the Hague Tribunal had indicted Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić. For this, ICTY blames the authorities in the
15. SEARCH FOR THE MISSING PERSONS
The search for the persons missing during the war in B&H continues. According to the data of the International Commission for Missing Persons, in B&H some 17,000 persons are still listed as missing. It is believed that between 10,000 and 15,000 victims are hidden in mass graves.
In the last three months, bodies from a number of mass graves in the area of Podrinje (the eastern part of the
In the local cemetery in the Zvornik settlement of Grbavci, parts of the bodies of some 40 victims, Bosniac civilians murdered in April and May 1992, were exhumed. In another cemetery, Kazanbašča, six mass grave with the remains of 295 victims were discovered and exhumed.
Toward the end of September, the exhumation of the bodies from, so far, the largest mass grave in B&H, was completed. The grave is located on a hill known as Crni vrh, near Zvornik (on the
This mass grave is of a secondary type and was used after the signing of the Peace Agreement. At the beginning of 1996, the members of the Army of the
All the bodies from this grave have been moved to the
The delegation of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in the
15.1. Identification
Identification of exhumed victims is carried out by means of the DNA analysis in the laboratories in
It is believed that in the mass graves in B&H there still are the bodies of more than 17,000 victims, mostly civilians. The locations of these mass graves are as yet unknown. However, it is certain that the military and civilian authorities of the
Exhumations of the mass grave have been carried out on the
Srebrenica
In the settlement of Potočari, near Srebrenica, a Memorial Center has been erected, dedicated to the inhabitants of Srebrenica killed in the summer of 1995 (after the Army of the Republic of Srpska had taken Srebrenica, which was the zone under the protection of the United Nations, some 8,000 innocent civilians were massacred). At the moment, in this
The
16. TRAFFICKING
Following the warning of the US Administration that B&H is one of the key countries along the route used for trafficking in human beings, the competent authorities (the Council of Ministers of B&H) established an Action group for the fight against trafficking in human beings. A Memorandum on Understanding the needs to undertake efficient measures to curb trafficking in human beings, particularly of women and children, was passed.
Together with the previously passed Law on the Movement and Stay of Foreigners in B&H, the conditions were created for the removal B&H from the list of countries which do nothing, or barely anything, to prevent trafficking in human beings.
The Action group for the fight against trafficking in human beings consists of the representatives of the Ministry of Security of B&H, entity ministries of internal affairs, security services, prosecutor's office and the Tax Office.
The Council of Ministers of B&H appointed Almir Džuva the head of the Tax Office.
Every public security center in the
16.1. Night clubs
The number of night clubs in the
With the closing of the night clubs, traffickers in human beings were forced to apply new methods of prostitution. According to the findings of the police, the pimps keep the girls in private homes or hotels. Upon request of the patrons, they bring the girls to the patrons' apartments or hotel rooms. The fight against this type of prostitution is more difficult.
17. CRIME AND CORRUPTION
The fight against crime and corruption in the
Big scandals, like the one in the Electric Power Production System of the
In September another big scandal, this time in the Telekom of the
The parliamentary majority in the National Assembly of the
OHR has failed to react to these decisions of the ruling parties.
Nezavisne novine from
17.1. Illegal trade
Members of the State Border Service at the border crossing Izalić, on the border with
At a night club "
18. STATEMENT FOR THE PUBLIC
July 1st , Bijeljina, The four day seminar on the law applied by the Hague Tribunal which was attended by some 40 judges and prosecutors taking an active part in the trials of the war criminals before the courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina was brought to a close at the Marsal Hotel on Bjelasnica yesterday. The organization of the seminar was a joint affort of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Republika Srpska and the Outreach program of the Hague Tribunal in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The lecturers at the seminar were legal experts from the Tribunal, domestic experts on the trials on war criminals and
At the seminar, the possibilities were discussed of applying the legal institutes used in the trials before the Hague Tribunal to the trials before the courts of
During the seminar a number of conclusions took shape, the most important of which was the one about the domestic judges and prosecutors being in possession of the knowledge and readiness to try war criminals before the courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Still, for the court officials to be capable of adequately engaging themselves in these trials, it is necessary, first of all, to create an atmosphere in the society of Bosnia and Herzegovina where the trials of war criminals will be one of the priorities, together with the economic recovery and inclusion into the European Union. In such an atmosphere, when the indicted war criminals stop being criminals to one side and national heroes to the other and become just what they are, the persons who had violated the law of Bosnia and Herzegovina and of its entities, it will be possible to solve the problems of practical nature, like witness protection, harmonization of legal standards, provision of cooperation between investigative organs and courts in war crimes prosecution, provision of financial means and material conditions for the trials, strengthening of internal capacities of the prosecution and the like.
The creation of such an atmosphere is, primarily, the duty of the domestic politicians, the state and entity officials, opposition leaders and the media. So far, the identified creators of public opinion have used the issue of war crimes exclusively as a weapon in political infighting, ignoring the importance of these trials for numerous victims and the society of
The organizers use this opportunity to thank the Institute for Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the
July 11th, Bijeljina, Branko Todorovic, the president of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Republika Srpska , together with his colleagues and 15 young activists of the Youth group of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in RS, will attend on the commemoration in Potocari, today. Currently, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in RS is collecting contributions, in order to pay a symbolic donation for building a memorial center in Potocari.
“For the reconciliation process and for the development of trust in
July 15th, Banja Luka, The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Republika Srpska is concerned about the superficial approach to the problem of the return of several thousands Serb refugees to Croatia, who are living in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Committee points out that the promises of the Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Račan to construct apartments for the returnees, what has been said in
“The promise of the Croatian Prime Minister Ivica Račan, given yesterday, that the government will ensure apartments for the returnees is calculated and hypocritical and is a deception of the international public,” was said in the announcement of the Committee. The Council of Ministers should stronger require from the Croatian government to ensure all needed prerequisites for a faster and more mure return of refugees to Cratia, was pointed out in the announcement of the Helsinki Committee in RS.
August 11th , Bijeljina, Agency SRNA, The president of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Republika Srpska, Branko Todorović has pointed out today that he is deeply concerned about the fact that the international community still tolerates the systematic activities of the Croatian authorities regarding the prevention of return of Serbs and their property in Croatia.
“The abstinence of principles and equal treatment of all sides in the region is making abuses possible, like it has happens with the exchange of property,1 said Mr. Todorović.
He commended on the declaration of the president of the Republika Srpska, Mr. Dragan Čavić, who said that before the courts of RS there are about 5.000 cases dealing with the return of property, initiated by persons of Croatian and Bosnian nationality, whoa have exchanged their property in Croatia and FBiH with Serbs for the same and similar property in the Republika Srpska. Todorović said that in this case it is necessary that the international community put pressure on the authorities of
Todorović reminded that Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in RS has already pointed out several times that there are weaknesses within the engagement of the international community regarding the return of the property, especially if you are dealing with this issue from the regional perspective.
September 12th, Bijeljina, The delegation of the Helsinki Cemmittee for HumanRights and representatives of the non-governmental organization “Return and sustainable subsistence” have visited the mass grave in Crni Vrh.
Expressing the heaviness of the massacre, which was committed against innocent civilians of Podrinje, Branko Todorović the president of the Helsinki Committee in RS said, that this non-governmental organization will continue insisting on the initiation of legal procedures before the judicial institutions against those, who have created, organized and executed these crimes.
“I think that citizens in the RS should be told the truth about crimes, such as this one at Crni Vrh, and I expect the public of the RS to find strength to chanrge those crimes and perpetrators and to take them in front of the justice,” said Branko Todorović.
19. PRESS CONFERENCES
6th Press Conference
September 19th 2003, Srebrenica
The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Republika Srpska, The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in BiH and the Forum of Tuzla Citizens organized a joint conference entitled “Truth and Crime”.
On the Conference for the Press, organized the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in RS, Mr. Branko Todorović said: “It is going to be an occasion to motivate all, who know something on crimes, mass graves and destinies of missing persons to forward these information to the commissions for missing persons”.
7th Press Conference
September 24th 2003 at the International Press Center in Banja Luka
Court and prosecution offices in the Republika Srpska show no interest
for war crimes investigations, who should be impartial act according to the political will, who do not wish to say in public that war crimes actually happened- said Branko Todorović on the press conference in Banja Luka.
He said that he visited Crni Vrh, near Zvornik, where the biggest mass grave in the BIH was found- more that 600 civilians were exhumed. There are many open questions regarding the responsibility for war crimes.
“Nobody was in front of the Hague Tribunal or the court of BiH and the fact that a huge number of crimes were committed by those who are in the public service or who are involved in the business in the RS, “ said Todorović.
20. TV SHOWS
9th Telecast
Date: 20th October 2003.
Title: "Crime and truth, Srebrenica"
Participants: Vehid Šehić, president of the Forum of Citizens Tuzla
Desnica Radivojević, vice-president of Federation B&H
Slavo Kukić, professor on the university in Mostar
Veran Matić, the editor in chief of RTV B92
Refik Hodžić, ICTY Outreach program coordinator
Mirsad Tokača, Commission for the investigation of war crimes in B&H
Aleksandar Popov, Centre for regionalism Novi Sad
Jakob Finci, Commission for truth and reconciliation Sarajevo
Nataša Kandić, exec. director of the Fund for humanitarian law Belgrade
Hakija Meholjić, returnee in Srebrenica
Amor Mašović, the initiator of the Commission for missing persons B&H
This telecast was produced as a reflection of the round table, which has been organised by the Forum of Citizens Tuzla, with co-organizers Helsinki Committee for Human Rights RS and Helsinki Committee for Human Rights B&H. This round table was created to remind on the crime in Srebrenica, which occured within the war in B&H, and which has motivated the further discussion on crime and truth in general within the whole ex-Yougoslavia region. The participants were mainly the most significant representatives of the NGO sector, and the participants within anti-war mouvement, from B&H and the rest of post-conflict region. Very small number of the authority representatives has responded to the invitation to participate in this round table, especially the representatives of the Ministries of Justice (B&H, and both entities), of which none hasn't come.
Vehid Šehić: As the coordinator and the organizer of this round table, he has done the introductory part within this meeting, which is designed as a sort of discussion on crime and truth about this crime, which is the road towards the process of peace and normalization of interpersonal relations within our post-conflict soceity. “It is hard to feel comfortable in Srebrenica, where serious crime has taken place. Srebrenica is also the motivation for the further discussion on the crime in general, and for finding all the persons, who once had their names and lastnames, and now they are only Jane Does. We should bear in mind another places of crime as well, beside Srebrenica. We should find out and remove the obstacles, which obstruct the discovery of the locations of not only all mass graves, but individual ones as well. At the end of this meeting, the working group will be proposed, which will send a letter to the most responsible persons in this country, without including the international community, because this time we, ourselves have to do something not only regarding discovering the truth, but also regarding ending the lye, which is getting stronger in last period in our country, in the relation to all tragic events in our most recent history.”
Desnica Radivojević: “Everybody in this region, and abroad, has to understand what has happened here, in order to reach the truth. The crime has been planned for a while and the climate of multiple conflict has been created. Everything as culture, morality and humanism has been destroyed. The conflict is ended by compromise, and it is continued in the peace as well. The truth about the crime has been blurred. Delaying the truth is delaying the start of reconciliation and peace in general. There is a need for complete truth for cleaning the road of future for our children.”
Slavo Kukić: “250-300.000 of victims, 2-5 millions of displaced persons, 400 or 450 thousands of destroyed objects. Devastated economy (35% of pre-war potential). What our future looks like? My personal impression is that the conflicts haven’t still been ended. The threat of new explosion is still actual according to often incidents in the people, among the members of different ethnic groups, to skirmishings with nationalistic background between politicians. There are threats of new consequences such as the atmosphere of national frustration, the continuation of demographic discharge. The first step is to face the truth in the eyes. The Tribunal in Hague is also in the function of the truth, but we must not wait for it without acting. The confidence is not enough, because it is impossible without tolerance, willingness to live with differences. There is a need to grasp it as our wealth, our privilegy, and not our deficiency.”
Veran Matić: “Even though I took part in anti-war mouvement, I still feel a need to apologise to the victims’ families. The evil exists in many dimensions. Rocks, trees and all the nature around us is soaked by the blood of this crime. We are in the situation of fatalism and hopelessness. The destiny is what we undertake for our children. The truth is not for the chosen ones, but for all. There is so much information on Srebrenica, but so little of them is accepted. The first book on Srebrenica, written by two Netherland journalists, which is translated from English, has been published in 1996 by B92, and even during the rule of S. Milošević, who was akcnowledged then by the international community as a “confident guarantee of peace”. Every truth is not the healing one. Neverthless, the facts have to be announced.”
Mirsad Tokača: “Revealing the truth about crimes leads to the normalization of the lives in our region. Analyzing victims out of their social background is a true precondition to achieve good results. Truth about the crime is a truth about victims. Obstruction of the truth has being realized slowly, sistematically and consciously. The manipulation with victims performed by media and politicians is in progress: “only my victim is a victim, and every other one is not a victim”. There is a need for openning a public dialogue on events. There is no discussion on purely legal facts. Civil initiative undertakes very little for the investigaton of the crimes. There is a need of courageous civil pressure on the authorities to make them undertake a step towards it. Research and register of victims in the war is starting on 1st October in order to end the manipulation with victims.”
Nataša Kandić: “There is an organized effort in progress in order to deduce the truth on Srebrenica beside the facts (i.e. the report of RS authorities, but it’s not the only exemple). It’s concerning that there were no bigger reactions in Srbija in the time of the first register of victims, which the Commission for missing persons has undertaken. The question of all crimes is also a question of political and collective responsibility. The price for the crime has to be payed. The confessions of high-ranking officers in front of the Tribunal in Hague are very important, beside all denial of them. It’s beginning to manifest the responsibility of the people, who don’t wan’t to live with the truth about the crime. On the other hand, those people, who are witnesses of the crime, don’t wan’t to speak about it in the front of the institutions, because, after it, a danger from all sides is threating to them.”
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