Bosnian Judicial Official Given Police Protection

Ruzica Jukic, one of the country’s most senior judicial officials, told BIRN on Monday that she has been given police protection after she was threatened with death on Facebook.

“These threats came from some individuals who called for lynching and hanging. I was granted protection as a preventative measure,” Jukic said.

“I am not afraid of anything, including those threats. The police made an assessment and concluded that protective measures was needed,” she added.

She said the threats began to be made after she had filed a defamation suit against Bosnia’s Security Minister Dragan Mektic. They surfaced in a Facebook group called HAPSI Mektiću, samo HAPSI!!! (ARREST Mektic, just ARREST HIM!!!).

“He [Mektic] should express his opinion regarding this issue. If he does not stand behind all this, he should say it publicly and distance himself from everything,” Jukic said.

There has been an ongoing conflict between Jukic and minister Mektic has been ongoing since they appeared together on Federal Television earlier this year, when they presented a series of accusations against each other.

Mektic told BIRN he thought there was no need for him to distance himself from the comments in the Facebook group, adding he only heard about the group through the media.

“I have never visited the group. I do not know about it. Therefore there is no need for me to distance myself from it,” Mektic said.

He also said that the police protection granted to Jukic was unnecessary.

“A person is granted police protection because somebody commented their work on Facebook. This is awful,” he said.

“Jukic is a totally unimportant person in this system. Whoever granted protection measures to her has made a huge mistake,” he added.

The High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, which is responsible for supervising the Bosnian justice system, condemned the threats made against Jukic and the council’s president, Milan Tegeltija, in the Facebook group.

“We consider this to be pressure on the work of HJPC as an institution that is of particular importance for preservation of independence of the judiciary in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” it said in a statement.

“Furthermore, we would like to point out that the orchestrated and well-planned attacks against the HJPC leadership – aimed at drawing attention from real problems and possible criminal and other proceedings against people who obviously feel insecure – are of particular concern,” it added.

The HJPC said that despite the threats, it will continue its fight against organised crime and corruption in Bosnia and Herzegovina.