The Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Goran Salihović, met with a representative of the Association of Women Victims of War, Ms. Bakira Hasečić.

During the meeting, there was a discussion on the activities of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina related to the prosecution of war crimes cases, and in particular cases involving rape and sexual violence of victims.

The Chief Prosecutor informed the representative of this Association that, in the past months, the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina had invested intensive efforts into prosecution of cases referring to war crimes of rape and sexual violence, which had resulted in issuing several indictments for such crimes committed in the territories of Odžak, Mostar, Višegrad, Kotor Varoš and other parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

In these cases, perpetrators of war crimes committed against victims of all ethnicities and of both sexes were indicted, and some of their victims were underage persons.

Also, a larger number of cases related to this type of criminal offences is in the investigation phase, and indictments in these cases can be expected in the period to follow.

Ms. Hasečić expressed the support of the Association of Women Victims of War to the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Chief Prosecutor in the process of establishing the rule of law and punishing the perpetrators of war crimes committed in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and she also added that an intensification of the work on war crimes cases had been noticed in the past period.

These activities are in line with international and diplomatic efforts being invested in Bosnia and Herzegovina and worldwide to punish war crimes of rape and sexual violence in armed conflicts, which was the central topic of the great international conference held this June in London, as well as with the activities and efforts of international and non-governmental organizations in the Western Balkans region, for the purpose of a more efficient prosecution of these criminal offenses.