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Coordinating structures
For the purpose of more
successful fight against trafficking in human beings at the state level, the
Council of Ministers has in July 2003 issued the Decision on the Procedures
and the Way of Coordinating Activities on Anti-Trafficking in Human Beings and
Illegal Migration in BiH and the Establishment of the Function of the State
Coordinator for BiH. On the basis of this Decision, besides the function of
the State Coordinator, coordination structure in the form of the so-called
State Group was created comprised of representatives from several ministries.
With the aim of
ensuring more efficient implementation of the State Action Plan, that is
operation plans in the three year period (2005-2007), besides previously
established State Group and Subgroup for prevention of trafficking in
children, three additional thematic working groups were set up which work on
the implementation of activities defined in the three key segments:
prevention, protection and prosecution. All three working groups are
comprised of representatives of the state ministries and institutions,
nongovernmental and international organisations.
Besides regular monthly
State Group meetings, and bi-monthly meetings of the Subgroup, for the
purpose of monitoring trends relating to trafficking in human beings,
assessment of the situation and planning of particular measures for
implementation of the Operational Plan, regular meetings are held with
Liaison Officers from all police structures in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SIPA,
SBS, entity and cantonal ministries of interior, as well as Brcko District
Police). The meetings serve as information sharing platform on general human
trafficking trends but also specific cases and potential problems in the
implementation of the relevant legislation and cooperation with prosecutors
and aliens' inspectors, as well as for planning of joint activities.
Memorandum of
Cooperation signed between the State Coordinator and Head of the Strike
Force, has established responsibilities between these two institutions in the
process of data collection, exchange and use of information as well as models
of joint actions on prevention and suppression of human trafficking and
illegal migration. This cooperation covers activities relating to protection
of trafficking victims, development of a database on trafficking in human
beings as well as implementation of joint research projects and various forms
of professional development.
In order to ensure
better coordination of activities between the Office of the State
Coordinator, nongovernmental and international organisations, regular
quarterly meetings between these actors are held. Referral meetings are a
platform for exchange of information about implemented and planned
activities, coordination and harmonisation of these activities in order to
avoid duplication of activities and projects, and parallel spending of
resources.
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Legislation
In the mid 1990s, trafficking in human beings appeared as a very
serious and complex problem in Stability Pact countries, and so it did in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. When Bosnia and Herzegovina first faced this problem,
solving it proved extremely difficult due to non-existence of legal framework
which recognised trafficking in human beings as a criminal offence,
transnational character of this form of organised crime and generally poor
knowledge of the phenomenon of trafficking in human beings at that time.
The authorities worked at accelerated pace towards creation of a
legislative framework which would enable processing of this and related crimes,
as well as provision of assistance to victims of trafficking. As part of the
legislative reform, it is important to emphasise enactment of new laws and
by-laws which regulate:
- criminal
offences related to anti-trafficking and related crimes as well as
smuggling in persons (which have been entirely harmonised with provisions
of UN Convention against Translational Organised Crime and its Protocol to
prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons and Protocol against
the smuggling of migrants by land, sea and air),
- movement
and stay of aliens,
- protection
and assistance of human trafficking victims,
- program
of witness protection, including victims of human trafficking who appear
as witnesses before the courts,
- control
and surveillance of state borders (which created adequate legislative
basis for efficient prevention of illegal migration, and consequently
prevention of human trafficking).
The process of legislative reform, relating to trafficking in
human beings is more thoroughly explained in the Annual Reports of the State
Coordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings and illegal Immigration
in BiH, for 2004 and 2005. Some of the mentioned laws and by-laws are available
on this web page.
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