Seventh Conference of the Ministers of Justice in BiH and Presidents of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH and Judicial Commission of Brcko District of BiH

Seventh Conference of the Ministers of Justice in BiH and Presidents of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH and Judicial Commission of Brcko District of BiH was held yesterday in Sarajevo. The Conference was attended by Ministries of Justice at all levels and Presidents of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH and Judicial Commission of Brcko District of BiH 

29.02.2012. - Seventh Conference of the Ministers of Justice in BiH and Presidents of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH and Judicial Commission of Brcko District of BiH was held yesterday in Sarajevo.

The Conference was attended by Ministries of Justice at all levels and Presidents of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH and Judicial Commission of Brcko District of BiH.

The Conference has considered and adopted the reports on BiH Justice Sector Institutions and Civil Society Organizations about the results achieved on implementation of the Action Plan Strategy for Justice Sector Reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina, including reports on the implementation of the National Strategy for War Crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Draft Strategy for Transitional Justice in BiH, the preparatory works of the State Prison and donor projects in the justice sector in BiH, with emphasis on the most important problems identified so far in implementing , as well as the priority activities for the next reporting period.

Among the mentioned Reports the conference has also adopted the Revised Action Plan, Revised Financial Plan for BiH JSRS implementation, the Communication Platform for the implementation of the Action Plan Strategy for Justice Sector Reform in BiH, preliminary recommendations of the second meeting of the Structured Dialogue on the Judiciary, the donor funding priorities and the Calendar of Activities 2012.

The most important results in the past year were activities which have been undertaken with aim to find better ways on financing of judicial institutions in BiH and on the harmonization of legal regulations, as a prerequisite for judicial independence and equal treatment of citizens and legal entities.

In the past year, considerable attention is devoted in finding appropriate solutions to reduce the backlog of court cases and operational issues related to the work of courts and prosecutors in BiH, such as the computerization and the reconstruction of the judicial institution building, which contributes to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the judicial system in BiH.

A prerequisite for establishing the rule of law in BiH is to strengthen the accountability and professionalism of judges. To accomplish this goal, in 2011 it was taken a number of actions and measures especially towards training of judges and prosecutors.

Notable results were achieved last year in the providing mutual legal assistance and in the improvement of judicial cooperation, including judicial cooperation with neighboring countries.

In 2011, relevant attention is dedicated to access to justice issue and the introduction of free legal aid for poor population groups throughout the country. There has been increased interest in the work of judicial institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the civil society organizations which are involved in process of monitoring and evaluating.

In the past year the scope of mediation, as a means of peaceful settlement of disputes between conflicting parties has been increased, issues related to land registration and economic disputes have also been at the center of attention.

The competent institutions of the justice sector have made significant efforts to improve the management system for the enforcement of criminal sanctions in BiH, tackling the issue of overcrowded institutions and ways of improving the current situation, which includes greater use of conditional release, pardon, work in community service and other alternative sanctions, and the expansion of institutional capacity, including the preparatory work on the construction of the central institution.

BiH has been progress in the implementation of international standards in the field of execution of criminal sanctions. The intention is that the Psychiatric Clinic Sokolac put soon into operation.

The conference participants have firmly committed to proceed with the reforms already started and to take action on strengthening capacity for strategic planning, aid coordination and european integration in the BiH justice sector institutions, also including the review of the current JSRS in BiH.