Report
on the state of Women’s
human rights
in Bosnia and Herzegovina
January – December
2001
I. Introduction
In the first
year of the new millennium, modern woman of Bosnia and
Herzegovina got to know that her role and power in a family,
public, political, economic and legal-executive life was
marginal, and that the discrimination and inequality of gender
in creating and passing decisions was, in fact, the issue of
realisation and enjoyment of the fundamental human rights and
freedoms.
Bosnia and
Herzegovina has taken over the Convention on Elimination of
all Forms of Discrimination and integrated it into its legal
system in compliance with the Constitution of BiH (Annex I,
Additional Covenant on Human Rights to be applied in BiH) and
ratified it in 1993, which has been confirmed by the General
Framework Peace Agreement for BiH. It obliges all levels of
authorities unambiguously and clearly to determine the
behaviour of the overall society toward women.
This report
follows the implementation of the Convention in Bosnia and
Herzegovina in 2001.
This report
consists of:
-
Survey of political and economic situation in BiH;
-
The articles of the Convention relating to the
legislation of the state and entities and the state in the
field, including proposal of measures;
-
Summary of estimates of implementation of the
Convention.
2. Survey
of political and economic situation in BiH
The current
situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina is marked with four
transition phrases that are taking place simultaneously: 1.
From war time to peace time, 2. Privatisation of socially and
state owned property, 3.
From being dependent on assistance to sustainable
economy, 4. From traditional ethic, moral, ecological and
other norms of 20th century toward new democratic
society, market economy, rule of law and protection and
observance of human rights and gender equality.
Politically
and socially speaking, Bosnia and Herzegovina has been divided
and disunited. The state of Bosnia and Herzegovina has two
entities. One entity, Federation of BiH, is divided into 10
cantons. Bosnia and Herzegovina has 13 Constitutions, and a
huge number of political parties with various ideological
options, where belonging to some ethnic group is particularly
highlighted. It is extremely difficult to reach political
agreement in issues relating to unified state, unified
economy, concept of education, sport. It is common to all
leaders that they, in their public addresses, declaratively
promote their engagement in protection of human rights and
equality of gender and rule of law, while in practice there
exists obstruction in affirmation of the proclaimed aims.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is the state that had a number of
elections since 1990 (the first multi-party elections and
victory of national party); from 1992 to 1995 – war time;
1996 elections – consolidated national parties and
furthermore strengthened the three national components in
legislation, judiciary, police forces and the army; in 2000,
the Alliance for Changes led by the Social Democratic Party
ended a decade long power of national parties in BiH. With the
assistance and support from the international community, there
are on the scene first steps in synchronisation of social,
political and law processes in the state.
Utterly
difficult economic and social situation in the country and big
unemployment caused full economic dependency of women and put
them to the margins of social life. The ambience of transition
brings corruption, criminal actions, develops grey economy,
trafficking in human beings and drugs, which all negatively
affect the position of women and obstruct an equal approach to
all resources.
The newly
elected authorities, led by the Alliance, have offered the
Project of economic stability for quick recovery of the state
and for combat against poverty in BiH, reform of legislation,
building of institutions of authorities and have speeded up
accession of BiH to the Council of Europe, membership to the
Pack of Stability and partnership relation with the
international community. One of the conditions for
implementation of designed aims, apart from the Election Law,
is the Law on Gender Equality in BiH, which are to open real
possibilities of rearrangement of power between genders and
elimination of all the forms of discrimination.
Women are
particularly interested in the implementation of these aims,
since the economic growth and reduction of poverty
significantly affect the position of women in the family.
According to
the statistical data, the biggest numbers of households earn
200 DM monthly, which is double less than the cost of
consumer’s basket for a four-member family. There is an
evaluation according to which 70% of the population in RS and
46% in the Federation of BiH do not succeed in providing money
for one consumer’s basket, that is, they live below the
threshold of poverty. The difficulties in surviving of a
family-women-mother and children, are limiting activities of
women.
Finally and
most important is the fact that the present authorities do
understand that the level of mechanisms for protection of
human rights and equality of gender is an indicator showing
the achieved level of democracy in any society.
Four year long
war (1992-1995) made great social and economic changes with
dramatic consequences. Under such war situation, the women
were most burdened and most vulnerable group.
In 1991,
Bosnia and Herzegovina had 4,377,000 inhabitants, out of which
there were 2,193,000 women. The national income per capita
amounted to 2,400 US$. Public services, especially health
services, education, social protection and culture had very
well developed infrastructure and capacities.
During the
war, 258,000 BiH inhabitants were being killed or disappeared;
816,000 were being displaced; 1,200,000 left the country*
(1). It is estimated that 25,000 to 30,000 women were raped
and up to 15,000 children killed; 25,000 to 30,000 people are
registered as missing persons out of which about 13% of women
and 3% of children) - this is the statistics of the State
Commission, journal “Express” of 4 October 2001).
Direct
material and economic damage are evaluated to be 50-60 billion
US$, out of which 20 billion US$ stands for the damage caused
on the production facilities. Bosnia and Herzegovina is now
the second country in poverty in the region*
(1), industrial production has fallen to 10% as compared to
the pre-war level, and income per capita to 1,000 US$.
In the same
period, public services completely broke down in terms of
organisation, capacity, equipment, staff and finances; the
system of administration – authorities, legislation, and
judiciary was destructed; there was a complete interruption in
revitalizing knowledge and technology; there has been constant
outflow of highly skilled personnel, which has not stopped but
has been increased.
During the
war, women completely took over the responsibility and care
for the survival of their families, engaged in the work of
public institutions, organised and established many
associations. The official leadership accepted such women’s
activities, but only as needed and ordinary physical and moral
support during the war, maintaining for them the right to pass
decisions.
Many century
long tradition of multi-ethnic, inter-religious tolerance and
co-existence in BiH experienced complete erosion and decay.
The country went out of the war completely divided, not only
by administrative inter-entity border, but also by the borders
of distrust, fear and hatred among the people.
The women were
the first who noticed the dangerousness of the newly created
situation and they, together with some renowned individuals
and non-governmental organisations, established the
inter-ethnic dialogue and co-operation in the struggle for
true peace and development of democracy, for future of their
children.
The 1995
Dayton Constitution defined BiH as a complex, democratic
state, member of the United Nations, composed of two entities:
Republika Srpska and the Federation of BiH that continued to
exist as the state on the basis of the international law and
recognised border. BiH has formally and legally recognised all
relevant international conventions and covenants from the
field of respect for human rights and freedoms and gender
equality.
In addition,
the BiH authorities - formally and legally - built into the
majority of their own laws the recommendations and obligations
from these Conventions, however, legal and other implementing
mechanisms that would enable and force the authorities to
implement the taken over obligations, have not yet been set
up. This means that the level of awareness of gender equality
has not been raised; the statistical organisations and
institutions do not give data divided by gender; there are no
study researches on the issue of the gender equality,
especially in the economy and social processes in passing
decisions; there is an inadequate media promotion of gender
equality. The Ombudsmen of BiH have preconditions for creation
of a body that will monitor application of the international
and domestic instruments for promotion of gender equality.
It is
incredible that the BiH trade unions, the task of which is to
protect workers regardless of the gender, do not notice
second-class position of female working power in their
programs and actions. The
trade union in its documents relating to the policy toward
women stands for “equality in the right to employment, the
same salary for the same work, to be represented in all the
spheres of life”.
Finally, newly
elected authorities, following the pressure of the
international community and non-governmental sector in BiH, as
well as its own orientation, has undertaken first necessary
steps towards the realisation of the obligations from the
Convention on Elimination of all forms of Discrimination
against Women and the General Recommendations No. 19 as well
as Beijing Platform and Plan for Action. The authorities set
up the Commission for Gender Equality on the state level. The
Government of the Federation of BiH has established the
Parliamentary Commission and Gender Centre as institution; in
Republika Srpska, Parliamentary Commission has been set up,
while the establishment of the Office for Gender Equality is
in course; the establishment of the Commissions for Gender
Equality in all cantonal assemblies is in course. In 1994, BiH
had an obligation to submit the report to the UN Committee for
Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, however, due to
the war the submission of that report was postponed. The
report on the realisation of the obligations of the state
taken over from the Beijing Declaration and Plan for Action
has never been made.
Many reports
on human rights in BiH made so far did not incorporate
detailed estimate on the state of women’s human rights,
therefore we are looking forward with optimism to receiving
them from this new infrastructure. On the basis of these
reports, necessary laws and legal regulations will be passed,
ensuring also that these significant issues are built in the
relevant legislation.
Implementation of the Convention on
Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women,
Articles 5,6,7 and 11
Article 5
Domestic
laws:
The
Constitution of BiH, Article 2, Paragraph 3b (abuse,
inhumane and degrading treatment, punishment, paragraph 3e,
right to fair treatment in civil and criminal proceedings; paragraph
3f, right to private and family life. This approach offers
protection against abuse and insures the highest level of
internationally recognised human rights and fundamental
freedoms.
The Constitution of BiH, Article2 – it is the
obligation of the Federation to forbid torture, brutal or
inhumane treatment or punishment (item b), to insure
protection of a family and children (item j)
The
Constitution of Republika Srpska, Part II, Article 13
– protects human dignity, bodily and mental integrity,
privacy, personal and family life and highlights that they are
inviolable, and Article 14, paragraph 1 refers to
prohibition of torture, brutal and degrading treatment or
punishment. Article 36 particularly emphasises family
and marital relationships, and special protection of mothers
and children.
The Criminal Code of the Federation of BiH*
in the Article 178, Paragraph 2, sanctions inflicting of
bodily injuries to a spouse or to a person living in
concubinary, however, paragraph 4 of the same Article
regulates that persecution for this criminal act can be
undertaken on the basis of private suit.
The Criminal
Code of RS,
Article 198... “Whoever endangers peacefulness,
physical integrity or mental health of a member of his/her
family or a family community through violent, offensive or
cruel behaviour, will be sentenced with fine or at least
one-year imprisonment”. Criminal act will be prosecuted by
official duty.
The Family Law has been taken over from the
legislation of former Yugoslavia and is applicable both in the
Federation of BiH and in the Republika Srpska.
*This
Law regulates: in the II Part, Chapter I. entering into
marriage; Article 42, personal rights and duties
of spouses – equality of spouses; the III Part
regulates cessation of a marriage, item 2 of the same
chapter, the way of divorce while Article 85 deals with
the way of supporting the children by parents with equal
rights.
According to the Constitution of BiH and the
International documents, which are incorporated into our
Constitution, and the Convention on Elimination of all
Forms of Discrimination Against Women, it is the exclusive
duty of the state to act on the elimination of violence
against women. The state is obliged to protect victims of
violence, regardless of the sphere of life in which it takes
place.
Present situation
BiH is a
multi-ethnic and multi-religious country where the tradition
and culture make influence on the behaviour of both women and
men, and which are deeply rooted into the collective
consciousness. Keeping together family, upbringing and
education of children are the priority tasks in the mind of
traditionally educated woman, and are in the sphere of
absolute privacy. The myth about man, having authority in the
family, holder of family property, that is, men’s principle
as determining principle for each relationship between woman
and man, are being handed-over from generation to generation.
Any kind of disturbed relationship within the family is being
experienced as personal defeat and disgrace of woman, and that
is why it is difficult for women to publicly speak of domestic
violence and discrimination.
In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, especially after the war and due to difficult
social and economic situation, domestic violence is on the
increase. There are no official researches published anywhere
relating to this issue so far. Nevertheless, NGOs, in their
programmes and researches, point at the issue and warn of the
increasing problem of all forms of domestic violence.
On the basis
of the researches conducted by the NGO*
Women to Women about the violence against women, on a sample
of 160 interviewees (24% of men and 76% of women), on the
question “What is the level of violence against women in
BiH?” the replies given were: 49% - average; 44% alarmingly
above average; 4% low; 3% did not know.
On the
question: “According to you, what are the main reasons for
such level of violence”, the answers were: 25% - patriarchal
system of the society (and its consequences on the mind of the
people), traditionalism; 13% - psychological problems
(illness), influence of alcohol and narcotics, as well as the
problem of character; 20% overall bad situation in the society
(low standard of living, low level of democracy, badly
constituted legal system); 14% - generally poor education of
the society.
On the
following question: “What do you think, who does make the
violence?” the answers were: 12% educated men; 58%
uneducated men; 30% both educated and uneducated men.
On the
questions: “Who you should addess to call for help and whose
help is most efficient”, the answers were: 26% to the
police, 14% to centres for social work, 11% to
non-governmental organisations assisting women; 13% to SOS
phone line; 9% to the court, etc...and 19% did not know the
answer.
On the
question “Which laws are to be changed in order to improve
the state with violence, that is, to stop the violence””,
the answers were: 26% criminal code; 19% family code; 45% all
mentioned; 7% other.
In several
places in BiH, the SOS phone lines were opened as well as
shelters to offer help and support to women, victims of
violence, but they cannot meet the needs since such cases are
on the increase. The non-governmental organisations
themselves, without designated governmental programs and the
strategic actions, cannot solve this problem.
Although the
police forces do not have enough instruments for taking
actions in a situation of domestic violence, they have good
co-operation with the shelter for women when SOS phone calls
them.
NGOs organised
many seminars, round-tables and workshops with the intention
to encourage the women and to give them support to publicly
speak about all forms of violence. As the result of such
actions, the initiative was launched to judiciary and
legislation bodies to change and amend the laws and to
synchronise the legal regulations.
According to
the Family Laws in both entities, parents jointly conduct
their parental rights in mutual agreement regardless of the
fact whether they have marital, extramarital or adopted
children. However, it is in tradition and culture of Bosnia
and Herzegovina that the responsibility for proper education
of children is utmost on the women, and in the case of divorce
children mainly stay with mothers while men, apart from making
contacts with their children, are to provide material
assistance in the percentage determined by the court. The
court practice is that for one child 20% of a salary is to be
allocated, but in the majority of cases, in view of the
difficult economic situation in BiH and unemployment, this
kind of care is realised in few cases.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. That the
entities agree to make unified family and criminal laws at the
level of the state.
2. To pass the
state programme for the prevention of all forms of violence in
the family.
3. To
introduce the mechanisms of protection and carry out the
education of employees in the police, social services,
judiciary and other subjects with whom victims of violence
come into contact.
4. To raise
awareness of the society on the problem of domestic violence
and especially to raise awareness of the women on their life
without violence and on their legal rights.
Article 6
Domestic laws:
The
Constitution of BiH, Article 2, paragraph 1 – Obliges to
the “highest level of internationally recognised human
rights and fundamental freedoms, and the Article 3,
paragraph 3b regulates that “the general principles
of international law are constituent part of the legal system
of Bosnia and Herzegovina and entities”
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is no special law
regulating trafficking in human beings, but the Criminal
Code of Federation of BiH contains regulations that can be
used in combat against trafficking in human beings, such as Articles
167 – slavery; Article 184 – kidnapping; Article
185 – hard labour; Article 187 – unlawful
detention; Article 225 – rape.
In the Criminal
Code of the Republika Srpska, Article 188 sanctions
alluring, procuring for prostitution or selling a person for
prostitution or being an agent for a prostitute.
The Law on
Immigration and Asylum,
Article 10, paragraph 5, regulates entry of foreigners and
purpose of their stay and the Law on Employment of
Foreigners,
Article 7, regulates conditions under which work permits
are to be issued, thus directly influencing the combat against
trafficking in women.
Present
situation:
Trafficking in
human beings and prostitution of women is on the increase in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. Geographic position (East-West) and
“leaky” borders go in favour of trafficking in human
beings and prostitution.
This problem
cannot be considered as the problem of Bosnia and Herzegovina
itself, but in the context of economic profit and organized
domestic and international criminal.
For the time
being, Bosnia and Herzegovina is considered as the country of
transit and of trafficking in women and prostitution, however,
there are some indications showing that it can become the
country of origin.
After the
implementation of the electoral results, the Government of
BiH, that is, the Ministry for European Integration
established the Work Group for the issue of trafficking, which
passed a National Plan of Action. The Plan incorporates
protection of victims, prevention, legal issues, giving
information to the public, etc. The Ministry for Human Rights
has joint the Ministry for European Integration in combat
against trafficking. The Ministry for Human Rights, together
with the UNHCR, made a draft project that was presented at the
meeting of the Stability Pact in Vienna at the end of April.
Only the
non-governmental organisation “Lara” from Bijeljina is
giving shelter to victims of trafficking. Unfortunately,
nobody can approach women in the brothels and we can say that
victims receive little or no help at all.
The campaign
of raising awareness on the most horrible crime of XXI century
under the name: Stop trafficking in women”, initiated by
this non-governmental organisation, and results obtained
seriously warn domestic public and the authorities of
balefulness of this appearance.
Namely,
registration and opening of nightclubs is on increase, in
which prostitution takes place and where so-called dancers,
waitresses and nightclub hostesses offer sexual services.
Clients do not think of possible health consequences,
spreading of sexual transmissible diseases. The number of
victims of trafficking is constantly increasing. There is
closer connection of international criminal circles with
domestic groups. There are information speaking of involvment
of police, state border service in it, judiciary is corrupted
and 70% of users of such services are local people and 30%
foreigners. According to the existing information, a number of
victims of trafficking in BiH come from Moldova, Ukraine and
Romania. Until now, only two cases from BiH were registered.
In the recent
action of the UN IPTF, 177 victims of trafficking in women
were saved.
Until now, 260
nightclubs were registered in BiH, being suspect of
trafficking in human beings. In the last 4 months, more than
200 police raids were performed. 329 women were accepted in
two centres for acceptance of women, led by IOM, of which 10%
are under age (Dnevni Avaz of 27.07.2001). Until now, neither
our police have any training for the issue of trafficking, nor
the workers of social services, prosecutors, judges, border
services.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. To
implement State Law Against Trafficking in Human Beings and to
oblige the entities to mutually co-operate for the purpose of
combating unlawful trafficking in human beings and sexual
abuse, and to harmonise it with the international documents
relating to fight against the international crime.
2. Through
public campaign, to warn the public of the issue of
trafficking and to educate the officers of the State Border
Services, police, judiciary, health and social workers on the
way of treatment with persons victims of trafficking and
prostitution.
3. To engage
in the international and regional network for combating
unlawful trafficking in human beings (implementation of signed
agreement on co-operation between the bodies for application
of the law on combating illegal immigration and organised
crime: the agreement was signed by the Ministry of Internal
Affairs of Republic of Croatia, Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia, Republika Srpska, Federation of BiH and State
Border Services of BiH.
4. To assist
and support the non-governmental sector in the realisation of
the National Plan of Action for Combating and Preventing
Unlawful Trafficking in Human Beings.
Article 7
Domestic
Laws:
The
Constitution of BiH (Article 2), the Constitution of FBiH
(part 2) and the Constitution of RS (Article 25) have
fully and unambiguously established the rights of women as
their own norms, which are defined in the Articles 5 and 7
of the Convention on Elimination of all Forms of
Discrimination Against Women.
The
Election Law of BiH
regulates the issue of the presence of women... in the
Article 4.19
Present
situation:
There is an
estimate that out of the total number of the population of the
country, 60% are women*,
nevertheless, figure does not follow the rate of their
presence and participation in public and political life of the
country. Their presence and influence in public and political
spheres of power is unsatisfactory.
The new
election law passed by the state parliament establishes the
rate of participation of women in the candidate lists. The Article
4.19 of the Election Law of BiH defines that each
political party in the first three seats must have one-woman
representative, for six seats two women, for eight seats three
women. Actually, this has been much better regulated by the
Election law in relation to rules and regulations given by PEC
of the OSCE, which had organised the recent elections.
We are giving
hereinafter an illustration of the position of women in the
political and public life in the last ten years:
- In 1990, in
the first multi-party BiH Parliament, out of total 240 elected
deputies there were only 7 women or 2,92%, and at the local
level, out of 6,299 seats women took 315 or 5% of the seats in
the municipal assemblies.
- In 1996,
according to the information of the OSCE, in the BiH House of
Representatives, out of 42 seats one was taken by woman or
2,38%. In the House of Representation of the Federation of
BiH, out of 140 seats, women took 7 seats or 5%. Two seats or
1,89% took women out of 106 seats in the People’s Assembly
of the RS.
- At the local
elections held in 2000 and implemented in 2001, according to
the official data of OSCE Mission in BiH, a proportional
electoral model – of open lists – was applied; 1,6 million
of citizens or 64,4% of voting body totally voted. There are
only 2 women or 7,14% out of 42 deputies elected for the BiH
Parliament. It is interesting to note that in spite of the
regulations prescribed, out of 16 political parties that have
their deputies in this Parliament 14 parties have no woman as
representative in it.
There is a
somewhat more favourable situation with the House of
Representatives of the FBiH where out of 140 deputies 24 or
17,14% are women; out of 83 deputies in People’s Assembly of
RS, there are 14 women or 16,86%.
These data
relating to the presence of women and their political power
lead to the general conclusion that there is domination of men
in the political and legislation power of the country.
When speaking
of executive power, both at the state or entity level, the
situation is almost similar: in the Council of Minister, there
is only one woman Minister of 6 ministerial seats; Women took
two ministerial seats in the Government of the Federation of
BiH, and only one in the RS. In the lower levels of
authorities, women took only four seats – they are
Presidents of municipal councils.
Another
illustration is important and unusual relating to the
women’s participation in the bodies of authorities.
Participation of women is less expressed in executive than in
legislative bodies. As for the judiciary, in the municipal
courts, it is unusual that women carry out more than 50% of
court power. When speaking of higher courts, presence of women
is less expressed. At the beginning of 1999, at the
Constitutional Court of BiH, one woman was nominated as Deputy
and it took place only after the man judge had resigned, and
in 2001, she became a President of the same court; There is no
woman in the BiH Human Rights Chamber that is composed of 14
judges (six of them are local judges). The Constitutional
Court of the BiH Federation and of the Republika Srpska has
one woman each. This shows that as higher the level of court
power the lower participation of women. Thus, there are almost
no women at the levels from which they can exert influence on
policy and political parties.
These data are absolute indicators of the real
relationship of the political parties towards the
possibilities and demands to share “their men’s” power
with women.
Apart from
these numbers that speak as an illustration of the
participation of women in authorities, it is necessary to take
into account another fact: physical (expressed in number)
presence of women in the bodies of authorities is not an
indicator of their active participation in the authority
because:
a) A number of
women in the legislative bodies of authorities neither have
enough political experience or habit for public expression,
with the exception of rare examples of those who have.
b) Woman, as a
party disciplined person, almost blindly listens to the
president of the deputies’ club of her party.
c) In the
executive bodies of authorities, women are presented in
inadequately number and consider themselves as being obliged
to implement exclusively the policy of their own parties that
have candidated and brought them to certain position.
The political
reality and the overall social movement in Bosnia and
Herzegovina have directly contributed to the fact that
citizens started associating into the non-governmental sector
to publicly express and warn at many irregularities and
unlawfulness in the work of public and state institutions and
officials. Women and women’s organisations are those that
express their greatest interest in the work relating to the
education in the field of human rights, rendering of
psychological assistance to the female victims of war and
violence, assistance to refugees and displaced persons and
children. They are also being organised in women’s networks
aimed at promoting private entrepreneurship and alleviation of
poverty.
However, the
non-governmental sector is not yet the partner to the bodies
of authorities, but it is still only the service and the
building of this relationship is to be continued, primarily
through creation of adequate legal framework at the level of
the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Having become
aware of this problem, the OSCE Mission – department for
Democratisation – together with non-governmental sector in
BiH has been undertaking many activities for elimination of
such position through various programmes.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. To
consistently implement the regulations of the Election Law and
to pass the Law on Associations and Foundations.
2. To make
statistic data transparent about the participation of women in
the public and political life and to respect for the Law on
Access to Information.
3. NGOs
should, through public work and campaigns, sensitise the
public for gender equality issues and encourage the women to
engage more in the political and public life of the country.
4. There
should be greater co/operation between NGOs and women
politicians in the country as well as c/operation at the
regional level / Stability Pact.
Article 11
Domestic
Laws
The
Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina gives to the
entities the competence to deal with the issues relating to
the labour relations, education, social and children’s
protection.
The
Constitution of the Federation of BiH, Part III, Article 1,
paragraphs c and d establishes the exclusive
responsibility of the Federal Government for economic policy
and rules for financing, since both responsibilities have
impact on the regulation of the policy of employment. Part
III, Article 2 establishes joint responsibilities of the Federal
and Cantonal Governments for development of policy in
social assistance. Part II, Article 6 of the Constitution
of the Federation of BiH, directs all courts,
administration services and other governmental bodies of the
FBiH to act in compliance with the international instruments,
mentioned in the Annex to the Constitution.
The
Constitution of RS in Article 39, paragraph 3 reads, “every
person can free select his/her vocation and all work posts and
duties must be accessible to all under the same conditions”.
Article 40 focuses on the conditions of employment and
provides to mothers special protection at work.
The
Labour Act does not exist on the level of the state.
The
Labour Act of the FBiH, Article 5, explicitly
forbids discrimination in labour relations on many bases,
including discrimination on the gender basis. However,
significant characteristics of the forbidden bases affecting
the women are lacking, including the age.
The
RS Labour Relations Act
does not contain exclusive regulations about
non-discrimination. Besides, this Act gives preferences in
employment to certain category of population, primary on the
basis of the service in the Army, which of course presents
discrimination against women (Article 9). Both in the
Federation of BiH and in Republika Srpska, there are no
regulations that regulate equal salaries for any of the
genders for performance of the same job.
The
Health Protection Act of the Federation of BiH,
in the Article 8, regulates the tasks performed by the
Federation in the field of health protection, and the Article
9 of the same Act regulates the tasks performed by the
Canton.
Article
16, item 10 of this Act, prescribes, within the measures
of health protection, “insurance of the complete (preventive
and rehabilitation) health protection of a woman with respect
to her family planning, pregnancy, child delivery and
maternity, which are carried out at the level of the Canton.
Health
protection of women during pregnancy and child delivery and
after child delivery, and other women’s needs (Article
20, paragraph 2, item 2), and the care for health and
treatment for all the family members (Article 20, paragraph
2, item 2) is organised within the primary health
protection.
The
Law on Basis of Social Protection, Protection of Civil Victims
of War and Protection of Families with Children
establishes the rights, procedures and conditions for
realisation of social protection and its legal norms equally
regulate the possibilities for men and women, without special
differences and conditions relating to gender. The principles
pursuant to the objectives of the Convention on the Rights
of the Child are built in this Law, relating to protection
of the child through protection of the family and to providing
all the children approximately the same conditions for normal
and harmonious development of their personalities as well as
to assisting the families in fulfilling their reproduction
function and in improving the quality of life.
Article
19, paragraph 2 of the Law on Basis of Social Protection,
Protection of Civil Victims of War and Families with Children,
through regulations of the Canton establishes the
amount of the money for social protection, conditions and
procedures for acquiring these rights and the use.
In
the Republika Srpska, the Law on Social Protection
regulates the social protection. According to that law, the RS
determines the system, establishes the rights and
beneficiaries of social protection and provides financial
resources, while it is the competence of the municipality to
establish municipal institutions for social protection and for
co-ordination at the local level.
Present
situation:
The
economic status of the BiH woman is reflected through a
difficult economic situation in which BiH is now and which
negatively reflects on social and economic status of the
population as the whole.
It
is important to note that there is a big difference between
everyday life practice and present law regulations.
The
data relating to the rate of employment and unemployment in
Bosnia and Herzegovina are as follows:
Up
to 1997, the number of employed persons in the Federation of
BiH did not include the persons employed with the Army and the
police forces. Neither contributions nor taxes were paid for
this not small group of people (which was de facto
employed and receiving salaries). In that period, they were
fully enjoying the rights from health and pension insurance
and from tax obligations.
When
this category of employed persons was finally entered into
registration in 1997, suddenly the number of employed persons
jumped by even 20%.
In
Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is a specific category of
employed persons, so-called “workers on the waiting
lists”. On one side, this category virtually increases the
number of employees (being registered as employees, but not
working) while on the other side, they are, because of poverty
and entirely legally unregulated country, directly and
seriously damaged for not having health and pension insurance,
and only temporary they receive symbolic compensation for
their “being employed”. To mention that according to the
existing legal regulations, the firms at which these people
are “working” i.e. “waiting” are obliged to pay for
them social and pension insurance and to pay them each month
60% of the average salary. Of course, impoverished firms and
economically insolvent do not fulfil their obligations.
Moreover, even the workers who work at those firms have not
received their salaries for the last two to three years. This
particularly refers to the low-accumulation firms, where the
labour force is mainly composed of women, as for example in
the textile industry.
According
to the data of the World Bank and the European Commission, the
official post-war unemployment in Bosnia and Herzegovina is in
between 70 to 80 percent.
Until
the end of 1998, the unemployment rate was reduced and
amounted to 33% in the Federation of BiH and 37% in the
Republika Srpska. Of course, we do not have data indicating
the participation of the “waiting workers” in this
“favourable result” and of whose who work and who do not
receive pay for their work and are registered in the category
of employed persons, as is the case with the police forces,
army, which “entered” the category of employed persons in
that year.
At the end of
2000, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, there were 661,595 employees,
out of which there were 84,597 on the waiting lists. Out of
this number, in Republika Srpska, there were 250,000 employees
and 32,000 on the waiting lists; in the Federation of Bosnia
and Herzegovina, there were 411,595 employees and 52,597 on
the waiting lists.
Out of total
number of work capable population 60% are women while
participation of women in the total number of employees in the
Federation of BiH is 33,3% and in the RS 41%. If we look at
the fields of activities, the largest number of women is
employed in education and culture, health and social
protection, trade and of course the least in building and
mining industries.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is another category of
employees, so-called employees “on black”, among whom
there is the largest number of women. There is no information
on the number and there is no official statistics for this
category.
In the light
of these facts and such a reality, looking at the application
of the Article 11 of the Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, the
implementation of the present domestic legislation relating to
the labour acts, seems to be ironic. Each and every regulation
in effect does not allow and condemns discrimination against
women in the process of employment and fully recognises the International
pact on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the European
Social charter; the Convention of the International Labour
Organisations (ILO) of which only two were ratified by
BiH; the Convention No. 111 on Discrimination and the
Convention No. 100 on equal salaries as well as the Protocol
No. 7 pertaining to the European Convention.
It is a
question how to implement under today’s transition
conditions the acts and rules of procedures that were taken
over from the pre-war period, from the period of quite
different social system. It is difficult to implement the new
acts, passed after the war, because they are to the major part
unsaid and without implementing regulations, or there are no
legal regulation to be implemented.
In everyday
life, there are everyday and mass strikes organised by the
workers, men and women, who demand not improvement of work
conditions, right to sick leave or hot meal but demand that
even 20 unpaid salaries be paid to them and that means be paid
for their health and pension insurance. In frequent statements
of the inspection services officials, the work on “black”
is on the increase, the consequence of which is the most
horrible hired labour relations between the employee and the
employer, with 80% of women in it.
The
better-educated women are in worse position than less
educated. The participation of women, with high school,
two-year college and university education, in total number of
unemployed persons in BiH is more than fifty percent. Out of
410,572 unemployed persons registered with the public
employment office there are 183,262 or 44.6% of women. Out of
85,230 unemployed persons with high school education there are
53,000 or 62% of women; there are 4,149 unemployed persons
with two-year college education, out of which 2,977 or 71% are
women; there are 4,425 unemployed persons with the university
education, out of which 2,336 or 52% are women.
In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, public employment office has registered less
unemployment than actual number. The workers are discouraged
to register with this office since they do not receive
regularly or do not receive at all the assistance they should
have received.
In the period
of transformation of economy and privatisation, the opening of
private business is one of the possibilities for employment.
However, women are faced with different obstacles. They do not
have enough information on sources of financing; long-term
loans are not accessible to businesswomen since they are not
holders of property rights on the basis of which they can get
a loan; the process of registration of firms is long and
complex; there is no designated programmes of the government
for development and start-up of private business; business
environment as well as legal regulations do not stimulate
women to start private business in a greater number.
Truly,
recently, positive trend in development of private sector has
been noticed, thanks primarily to foreign and some domestic
non-governmental organisations, which through providing
micro-credits and favourable interest rates stimulate further
development of already started-up businesses. In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, there is no strategy and programmes for
additional vocational training of manpower, which is done by
the Chamber of Economy only against the exclusive request of
some enterprises.
There are
various forms of discrimination against the employees, on
ethnic or religious grounds, origin or relatives’
connections, and gender as well. Now when we are witnessing
everyday firing of workers by their employers, women,
particularly self-supporting mothers, neglect any form of
discrimination or sexual abuse just to preserve their job.
Education
All people
regardless of gender have equal right to education and it
presents crucial tool for reaching equality, for development
and peace. Literacy of women, as well as men, are key factors
in securing and improving health, nutrition and education of a
family and in empowering women to participate more actively in
social process of decision making.
In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, out of total number of population, female
population is between 57% and 60%, which presents majority.
The access of women to education, regardless of legal
regulations, depends also on the efforts invested by the
authorities to ensure primary education through the system of
schools and care of pupils’ standard. Also, there is an
important factor of financial power of each family, which is
to purchase textbooks, clothes and footware and bus tickets,
if a school is further located, which affects the education.
Due to such a
situation, particularly in rural environments, parents less
dicide to education female children, thus today in BiH,
the structure of educated women older than 15 years is the
following: without education 23.1%, incompleted primary
education 23.5%, completed primary education 24.6%, completed
high school 24.9%, etc.
The gender stereotyped textbooks obviously showing female children in the
roles of mothers, housewives, i.e. in the jobs intended for
“more tender gender” while men-boys are miners, engineers,
constructors, etc. largely affect on gender segregation in
future professional orientation.
Because of that, female children today, most often choose to attend
teaching-school, law school, textile school, school of
economics and school of medicine and male children civil
engineering, machine building, mining, traffic, electrical
engineering schools.
Of course, at the time of sofisticated technoligy and telecommunication,
these stereotypes must be overcome and such programmes of
professional orientation should be created for the final years
of primary education, through which disproportion in selection
of vocation between female and male children should be
reduced.
Social
protection
The whole population of Bosnia and Herzegovina is in extremely difficult
material situation. It is a tradition in these territories
that a woman “bears” higher burden in care for social
status of a family, that is, she has to find out the ways and
manners of use of social rights and benefits provided by the
state.
Since the use of social rights depends on economic and financial power of
any society, and Bosnia and Herzegovina is the country in
which over 60% of the population live below the poverty line
(the world standard of 4$ per capita for daily consumption in
relation to hardly 1$ in BiH), then it is clear that the
realization of the social rights of all, including the women,
is met with series of obstacles. The non-existence of unified
legal regulations and social programmes at the level of the
state makes the existing situation even more complex.
Namely, the state of BiH has transferred the care in social protection to
the entities, i.e. cantons and municipalities. Since the
economic and financial situation in these local communities
differs, thus the filling up of the budget for social
protection significantly depends on the level of economic
development of a local community in which women and men using
this form of social protection live.
Of course, the users of social protection, among whom there are refugees
and displaced persons as well as retired people, are the first
category of persons who feel unequal access to social
protection in the entire territory of BiH.
Health
protection
The
preservation and improvement of health and health protection
of women, as well as the whole population, is of vital
significance for demographic development of any country.
Bosnia and
Herzegovina does not have a unified health policy and
organization of health protection. This field of activities,
the same as education and social protection, has been assigned
into the competence of entities, while in the Federation of
BiH it is further decentralized into cantons.
After the war,
the laws on health care allow private medical practice.
Indeed,
organisational disunion and difficult material and financial
situation of the society have a great effect on irrational
consumption of health system funds and on creation of space
for corruption and bribe. The protection of women’s health
in fertile age, and of women generally, and realization of
right to health protection, is conditioned by a series of
special measures. Education and emancipation of women aimed at
raising of level of health culture, humanisation of
relationship between genders, family planning –
contraception, control of pregnant women and expert
assistance, regular check-ups aimed at early discovering of
– i.e. preventing various sexual transmitted diseases are
only some of the measures.
It is
difficult or almost impossible to realise these and other
rights of women in BiH, primarily due to lack of money in the
funds for health protection, non-existence of adequate
services, particularly in rural areas of the country,
inadequate equipment of the existing health institutions, etc.
Woman today,
if she is responsible toward her health, uses health services
of private practice, and puts aside 50 KM for a mamographic
check-up. If she uses health services established at the level
of a municipality or canton, then the price differs depending
on available health funds and it goes from 10 KM to the most
expensive 100 KM. For the use of hospital capacities for one
hospital day, participation amounts up to 20 KM. There are
strikes of health workers because of great internal debts on
the relation between economic and non-economic subjects
towards Funds, i.e. health care institutions, causing
violation of the fundamental human rights – right to earned
wage. If we know that about 18,500 women work in the health
institutions in the Federation of BiH and about 10,600 women
in RS, than it is clear that this part of the female
population, together with their male colleagues, do not have
access to realization of the rights from health protection.
These limiting
factors are obstacles to about 900,000 women in reproductive
age, which is a serious warning for future of demographic
development of the country.
Having
understood the situation in which we are living, for the first
time after the war, the present authorities of BiH have made
strategic programme for combating poverty, and on the request
of the Government of BiH, the World Bank has prepared the
project named “Diagnostic Examination of Corruption in
BiH”, aimed at mobilising all BiH resources for better
economic position of citizens of this country.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. The BiH
Government should prepare unified regulations regulating
labour-legal legislation.
2. The
Governments of the Federation of BiH and Republika Srpska
should provide that by-laws be passed in order to establish
and ensure health protection for women.
3. The
Government of BiH should ensure and establish consistent
social policy and social protection at the state level.
4.
Non-governmental organisations should, through their
programmes, dedicate more space to the education of both women
and men in respect to health of people and to make, through
co-operation with governmental organisations, national
strategy dedicated to health of population and joint basis for
social protection.
Women and media
Domestic Laws
The
Constitution of BiH, Article IV 4 a) The Parliamentary
Assembly of BiH adopted the Law on Free Access to
Information
in BiH, something completely new in the legal-legislation
system of BiH. The legislator proclaimed that the aim of the
said Law was at least threefold: firstly, to establish the
fact that the information that is at disposal of public body
is for public well-being; secondly, to establish the right of
every physical and legal entity to have an access to the
information and to enable every physical person to ask for
change or to give comment on his/her own information that are
at disposal of under control of the public body. This law and
its implementation is monitored by the international
Commission for Media, which has also issued, apart from the Rules
on Definition and Obligation for Public Broadcasting, the Rule
01/1999 regulating the way of making definition of public
radio and TV broadcasting service, their duties and
obligations, duties in respect to making programmes as well as
other obligations, it also issued the Code on Advertising
and Sponsorship for the Radio and TV, adopted on 9 March
1999, where in the part 4 under item advertising,
paragraph 8 racial and sexual discrimination, item b:
“advertisements must not make discrimination of women and
men in their job, education and training possibilities”.
The Code for Press, article 4, Discrimination,
establishes “newspapers and magazines must avoid making
prejudices and offensive allusions for any ethnic group,
nationality, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation,
physical or mental illness or disability”. Article
11, Protection of Children and Under Age Children, “the
journalists must not interview or make photographs of the
children younger than 15 years about the family of the child
if parents are not present or without permission of parents or
tutors”.
Present
situation:
In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, there are state (TVBiH, TVRS) and independent
media. According to incomplete records in BiH, number of media
reaches even the number of 400 – electronic, written, TV
stations. There are even 60% of women employed in the media.
Out of a big number of employed women in this field, the data
show that there are two women on the position of directors and
two women on the position of editor-in-chief (Osloboðenje
and Dani).
On the basis
of the private data from 1998, the journalism has had a
positive trend both in employment and in presentation of
realisation of human rights. The research included 32
journalists from different media throughout BiH; Sarajevo –
8 journalists, Zenica – 4 journalists, Tuzla – 4
journalists, Mostar – Zapad – 4 journalists, Jajce – 1
journalist, Bihaæ – 6 journalists. Out of that, 6 TV
journalists, 10 radio journalists, 6 journalists from daily
newspapers, 4 from periodicals and 2 journalists from news
agencies. The way of financing of the media is different. 21
media outlets belong to dependent media, and 11 are
independent media outlets. This is conditional division. Out
of total number of 32 journalists, 14 are women and 18 are
men. The data received on this sample show that the education
structure is as follows: 11 journalists have high school
education and 21 journalists have two-year college education.
This research was carried with the aim to see the needs for
journalist staff and for their further training; women are
relatively good presented in this field.
However,
globally looking, the education structure of the journalists
is not appropriate. The BH journalism has employed many
journalists without proper training and education, not capable
of working in journalism. There were some journalists who
started working as journalists during the war, according to
the analysis made on the sample of 32 or 34.5% of journalists
that referred mainly to women. 12.5% of journalists were
educated and trained for other types of jobs and started
working as journalists by chance. This speaks in favour of the
fact that media cannot response to requirements in the process
of informing the public on topical political and economic
changes, on realisation of human rights and freedoms and
within this on the realisation of the right to gender
equality.
Special
obstacles to the complete presentation of information and to
positive influence of media are ethnic and regional views that
negatively affect the overall life courses, inaccessibility to
information, closeness of institutions of system and
particularly present self-censorship of journalists,
conditioned by material-financial and political situation.
Generally
speaking, the editing policy of all media is such that it
inadequately treats the complex women’s issues. There are
articles about women only when they are the subjects of
prostitution, trafficking in women or in cases of domestic
violence. The woman is present in media as beauty setting, in
fashion shows and other ways that do not present her as famous
economist, politician, writer, doctor, professor, manager.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1.
Non-governmental organisations, female politicians and
informal women’s’ groups should try harder, through
lobbying and public advocacy, to get more space for serious
programmes in media in the forthcoming period.
2. Media
should, through their editing policy, provide space for
affirmation of women’s human rights and for gender equality,
and affirm woman as politician, scientist, writer, teacher,
policewoman, justice, manager, that is, woman as public
figure.
3. Media
should ensure more programme space for monitoring the work of
the non-governmental organisations, i.e. those programmes that
promote the field of human rights and gender equality.
Women – members of minority groups
The Article
2, paragraph 4 of the Constitution of BiH relates to women
and children-members of minority groups - and it refers to
non-discrimination on any ground such as, sex, race, colour,
language, religion, political or other opinion, national or
social background connected with national minorities,
property, birth or other status, and it reads that all persons
in BiH can enjoy the rights and freedoms foreseen by this
article or by the international covenant mentioned in the Annex
I to this Constitution.
In Bosnia and
Herzegovina, there was no census after the war and there are
no exact indicators on the number of national minorities, but
according to the 1991 census, within the law, the following
were mentioned: Albanians, Montenegrins, Checks, Italians,
Jews, Macedonians, Germans, Polish, Russians, Roma, Romanians,
Russians, Slovaks, Slovenians, Turks, Ukrainians.
Women and
children, as well as men from these communities, are in
unenviable position in everyday life. There is almost no
positive example of protection of language identity in
schools, judiciary system, police, public and private media
outlets and other public services. The minorities are fully
put to the margin in political, economic and public life of
the country. The Roma population is especially affected with
low percent of education of their children and low percent of
Roma people being employed. Moreover, particularly Roma
people, in a communication with other majority ethnic groups
are in discriminatory position. The largest minority groups
are organised through their non-governmental organisations the
purpose of which is to render the humanitarian aid, to cherish
their cultural heritage, especially language.
These
non-governmental organisations closely co-operate with the
Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The BiH bodies
of authorities have undertaken first steps to protect
minorities. Namely, the Law on Protection of National
Minorities is in course of adoption, which will create special
legal framework for realisation of their rights in Bosnia and
Herzegovina.
Refugees and displaced persons
Annex VII of
the Dayton Peace Agreement guarantees all persons displaced
during the war their right to return to pre-war homes in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. In BiH, at the end of last year, there
were 617,350 refugees and about 520,000 displaced persons.
About 730,000, out of which 79.5% in the Federation of BiH and
20.5% in RS, were registered for return to their pre-war
homes.
Unfortunately,
there are no records on women and children refugees and
displaced persons, however, a number of the international
organisations and domestic non-governmental organisations,
specially women’s organisations, through their programmes
are supporting and assisting refugees and displaced persons.
Most often these programmes include humanitarian-social
activities, education in the field of human rights, education
in computers and rehabilitation of the housing fund. The state
Ministry for Human Rights and refugees and Ministry for
Labour, Social Policy, Refugees and Displaced Persons of the
Federation of BiH and the Ministry for Refugees and Displaced
Persons of RS are engaged in the issues of return. The
international organisations: OHR, UNHCR, OSCE, UNMIBH, CRPC
are assisting and supporting these ministries.
The problems
in the process of return relate primarily to obstruction by
the local authorities – long period taken for passing and
implementing decisions; there are no programmes of
self-sustainable return in terms of economic, social, legal
and even physical security. About 20,000 people, with more
than 80% of women, addressed only the Helsinki Committee for
Human Rights in BiH during the year 2000 and in the first half
of 2001. Naturally, all these obstacles heavily exhaust and
discourage refugees and displaced persons who become subjects
of manipulation of national-political parties, which, in
addition, stimulate stay in the places to which they moved
during the war. Thus therefore, return of people and their
property and relationship towards return
