The main objective of the periodic visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was to examine the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty, notably as regards persons apprehended and detained by various police agencies at the State, Entity and Cantonal levels. The visit was also an opportunity to evaluate the measures taken by the authorities to implement the Committee’s recommendations from previous reports, in particular that of 2021.
Moreover, the CPT delegation focused on the treatment and conditions of detention of sentenced and remand prisoners held in several prison establishments under the jurisdiction of the State and Entity Ministries of Justice. The treatment of residents in three social care homes in both Entities was also examined as was the situation of foreign nationals deprived of their liberty under migration legislation.
In the course of the visit, the delegation held consultations with senior officials from the relevant Ministries of Security and Interior at the State, Entity and Cantonal levels, the Ministries of Justice at State and Entity levels as well as the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy of the Federation of BiH. In addition, meetings were held with the President of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, and the Presiding Ombudsperson notably on the establishment of the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), as well as senior advisors to the Presidency of BiH. The delegation also met with representatives from the Delegation of the European Union and Office of the UNHCR as well as various non-governmental organizations active in the field of the CPT’s mandate.
At the end of the visit, the CPT delegation presented its preliminary observations to the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The visit was carried out by the following CPT members:
- Therese Rytter, 2nd Vice-President of the CPT (Head of Delegation)
- Slavica Dimitrievska
- Ömer Müslümanoğlu
- Slava Novak
- Karin Rowhani-Wimmer
- Aleksandar Tomčuk
They were supported by Christian Loda and Sebastian Rietz of the Committee’s Secretariat and assisted by Richard Kirk, Clinical Director, Healthcare in Prison in Northern Ireland, United Kingdom (expert).
The delegation visited the following places of deprivation of liberty:
Police establishments:
- Judicial Police Headquarters of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Detention Unit of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Sarajevo
- Police Station “Dom Policije” of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Sarajevo
- Sarajevo Judicial Police Headquarters
- Detention Unit located in the premises of Novo Sarajevo Police Station (Sarajevo Canton)
- Headquarters of the Special Police Unit (Sarajevo Canton)
- Tuzla Central Police Station (Tuzla Canton)
- Kalesija Police Station (Tuzla Canton)
- Banja Luka Central Police Station (Republika Srpska)
- Detention Unit Zalužani (Republika Srpska)
- Doboj Police Administration Headquarters (Republika Srpska)
- Doboj II Police Station (Republika Srpska)
- Višegrad Police Station (Republika Srpska)
Prison establishments :
- State Prison of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Tuzla Prison (Federation of BiH)
- Zenica Prison (Federation of BiH)
- East Sarajevo Prison (Republika Srpska)
- Banja Luka Prison (Republika Srpska)
- Doboj Prison (Republika Srpska)
Social care homes:
- Institution for Social Care and Healthcare Drin, Fojnica (Federation of BiH)
- Institution for Social Care, Healthcare, Upbringing and Education, Pazarić (Federation of BiH)
- Home for Persons with Disabilities, Višegrad (Republika Srpska)
Immigration detention establishments:
- Holding rooms of the Border Police and holding area at the Restricted Zone of Sarajevo International Airport
- Immigration Detention Centre, Lukavica
The CPT and Bosnia and Herzegovina
