Sarajevo, 11 February 2008

REPORT ON THE STATUS OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
(Analysis for the period January – December 2007)

Sarajevo, 17 January 2008

PRESS RELEASE
Six years after deportation of the Algerian Group

Exactly six years’ ago, the Bosnian authorities at the time, extradited illegally the so-called “Algerian Group” to the US authorities. Since then, members of this group have been detained in the Guantanamo base prison.

Many international institutions, governmental and non-governmental, including bodies of the European Parliament and the Council of Europe, have indubitably concluded that the act of extradition of the Algerian Group represented a harsh violation of human rights and freedoms. Bosnia and Herzegovina violated the international conventions it had previously committed itself to respecting, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civic and Political Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms, and the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. The harshest violations committed at the time were the arbitrary and illegal dispossession of citizenships and extradition to a country with the death penalty and a threat of torture and other inhumane and degrading treatment. Moreover, Bosnia and Herzegovina has not fulfilled its obligation of ensuring release and return of these persons to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina expresses concern with the fact that the process of dispossession of citizenships in a way non-responsive to the international law and human rights standards has continued. We also condemn the announced extraditions, which are not in line with the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms and the Convention on the Rights of a Child, which have, along with other standards, been seriously brought into question.

The Helsinki Committee appeals to the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina once again to take all action necessary for protection of human rights of members of the so-called Algerian Group, and create such mechanisms for revision of citizenships and deportation from the country that are based on respect for human rights and freedoms, and respect for international conventions binding for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Srđan Dizdarević
Chairman of the Helsinki Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina

No.: 05-01/2008
Sarajevo, 17 January 2008

Sarajevo, 10 December 2007

Public debates: "Constitution of Bosnia
and Herzegovina between individual and
collective human rights"

With support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation – Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina organized a series of public debates in the year 2007 on the topic “Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina between individual and collective human rights”. The debates were held in Foca, Bugojno, Livno, Doboj and Sarajevo, and they were attended by representatives of non-governmental organizations, legislative and executive government, and media. The participants of these public debates have adopted the following

 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

1.     Democratic debate on constitution change with participation of the widest circle of civil society actors, including representatives of non-governmental organizations, scientific institutions and citizens is supported. We particularly advocate discussions within assemblies and other institutions of the system with full respect for the principles of publicity and transparency of work;

2.     The debate should aim at achieving harmonization of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms and other relevant international standards in the field of human rights;

3.     Adoption of changes with the aim of affirmation of citizens – individuals and their individuals human rights is recommended. An assumption for this is consistent respect for ethnic equality and equality of citizens on the whole territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina;

4.     It is necessary to change provisions of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina depriving any citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina of the passive voting rights regardless of the place of residence. It is also necessary to change provisions reserving posts of speakers and their deputies in the Bosnian Parliamentary Assembly houses exclusively for members of the three constituent peoples;

5.     It is necessary to insert changes in the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina that would guarantee rights of members of national minorities and those citizens that are not members of either constituent peoples or national minorities.

No: 07-12/2007
 

Sarajevo, 9 December 2007

PRESS RELEASE
On the Day of Human Rights

Expressing discontent and concern with the general state of affairs in which the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina have had growing difficulties exercising their rights, the Helsinki Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina would like to use the occasion of 10 December, the Day of Human Rights, to particularly stress the issues in the fields of social protection, education and environment.

Implementation of the Mid-Term Development Strategy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was adopted at all levels of government in March 2004, should have been implemented by the end of this year. Over 50 non-governmental organizations have monitored in a coordinated manner the activities of Bosnian authorities on ensuring conditions for self-sustainable and harmonized development, reducing of poverty and speeding up the process of integration into the European Union. These three goals have constituted the fundamental contents of the Strategy.

The performance of authorities in achieving the said goals is best reflected in the overview and analysis of implementation of measures and activities in the fields of social protection, education and environment, particularly from the aspect of respect for human rights.

In brief, the NGO sector has concluded with supporting arguments that “progress was not achieved, nor serious steps taken for achieving of any of the goals” in any of these segments – social protection, education and environment.

There has been no progress in implementation of recommendations of the UN Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights from January 2006. The European Social Charter has not been ratified yet. Legislation that would define a minimum of social protection in an appropriate way was not adopted. There is no social map of the population or initiative of the state to implement projects in order to deal with needs of around 50 per cent of population living below or on the poverty line. Around 500,000 people are unemployed, and the official estimated unemployment rate in Bosnia and Herzegovina is around 46 per cent. The Association of Independent Trade Unions of Bosnia and Herzegovina has warned that the average cost of living is 2.5 higher than the average salary, and even five times higher than the average monthly pension.

Discrimination and politicisation are still present in the field of education. Education is increasingly becoming a mechanism for expression of divisions in a multiethnic society. Discriminatory practices are still present, particularly in the system of the so-called “two-schools under one roof”, the access of Roma children and socially vulnerably children to primary, secondary and tertiary education has not been promoted sufficiently, which had been recommended by the UN Committee and the Council of Europe. This contributes to a long-lasting, systematic strengthening of nationalisms and ethnic intolerance in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Bologna Declaration and the Lisbon Convention should have been implemented for a long time already, but the condition for this was adoption of the Law on Higher Education in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was adopted as late as August 2007.

Implementation of existing legislation in the field of environment protection is poor, and the awareness about environment is low. It is generally observed that despite the Mid-Term Development Strategy, the National Plan for Environment Protection and Revised Mid-Term Development Strategy, the state does not have a clear vision for development of this sector. The Law on Environment Protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina has not been adopted yet, despite the fact that it has been seen as the condition for implementation of a series of other measures and activities planned.

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Bosnia and Herzegovina urges all representatives of the government at all levels of authority to take all necessary measures under full responsibility and secure conditions for effectuation of all citizens’ rights, as guaranteed by the Constitution of this country and international documents that Bosnia and Herzegovina has agreed to implement.

Srđan Dizdarević
Chairman of the Helsinki Committee in Bosnia and Herzegovina

No.: 02-12/2007
Sarajevo, 9 December 2007