Work of Domestic Judicial Institutions Archives

Bosnia’s judicial overseer, the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, must be reformed, experts argued after a report for the European Commission said the country’s judiciary was in crisis and unable to cope with serious crime and corruption cases.

The Steering Board of the BH Journalists Association has sent a strong letter of protest to Bosnia’s High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, HJPC, after its Vice-President on social media likened the work of BIRN BiH to “the Gestapo”.

A third of the war crimes indictments filed by the Bosnian state prosecution this year have been transferred to lower-level courts, sparking criticism of prosecutors for not focusing on more complex and important cases.

Defamation lawsuits against journalists are being increasingly used as a censorship tool in Bosnia, experts say, warning that judges’ lack of expertise on defamation laws is leading to bad verdicts.

Final convictions have been significantly lower in the past two years, and the Bosnian prosecution has not been investing invest time and resources in investigating the most complex cases, said an OSCE report.

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council has elected Gordana Tadic as the new chief state prosecutor, making her the first woman in the country’s history to hold the position.

Croatian jurist and ex-President Ivo Josipovic told BIRN that a Zagreb court’s decision to reduce the prison sentence given to former Croatian Defence Council officer Marko Radic does not reflect the gravity of his crime. The court in October cut Radic’s sentence for committing crimes against humanity against Bosniaks in the Mostar area of Bosnia […]

Bosnian courts and prosecution offices are restricting access to information on cases, making it harder for media to report on war crimes and corruption cases, although the law states that trials are open to the public.

Experts and international organizations oppose the State Court’s call for laws to regulate media reporting on criminal cases – saying it will unjustifiably hinder the media’s work.

The Bosnian state court said that media reporting on criminal proceedings should be legally regulated because of what it described as unprofessional, unjust and prejudiced coverage, particularly of war crimes cases.

Work of Domestic Judicial Institutions

Bosnian Judiciary Under Pressure After Critical European Report

Bosnia Journalists Condemn HJPC ‘Gestapo’ Slur About BIRN

Bosnian Prosecution Criticised over War Crimes Indictments

Rise in Bosnian Defamation Cases Raises Censorship Fears

Bosnian Prosecution ‘Failing on Complex War Crime Cases’: OSCE

Bosnia Appoints First Female Chief State Prosecutor

Zagreb Sentence for Bosnian Croat ‘Inadequate’: Josipovic

Episode 100: Bosnian Judiciary Restricts Information on War Crime Cases

Bosnian Court’s Call for Crime Reporting Laws Criticised

Bosnian Court Wants Legal Rules Imposed on Media

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