PROTOCOL ON COOPERATION OF BIH AND CROATIA IN PROSECUTION OF WAR CRIMES PERPETRATORS SIGNED

Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH - Goran Salihović and State Attorney General of the Republic of Croatia - Mladen Bajić signed the Protocol on Cooperation in Prosecution of Perpetrators of War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity and Genocide, in Sarajevo

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The Protocol signing ceremony was held in the building of the European Union Delegation to BiH and attended by H.E. Ambassador Peter Sorensen, Head of the EU Delegation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and EU Special Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Following the signing of the Protocol on cooperation with the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia, which took place on January 31, 2013 in Brussels, the signing of the Protocol with the State Attorney’s Office of the Republic of Croatia is another important step in the cooperation of the countries of the region in the fight against impunity for war crimes.

This protocol will enable a more efficient prosecution of war crimes perpetrators located both in Bosnia and Croatia who have, thus far, evaded criminal responsibility due to dual citizenship.

The signing of the Protocol will allow for the prosecution of war crimes perpetrators, regardless of the country in which they are located, which will help establish the rule of law and bring justice to victims of war crimes.

The Prosecutor’s Office of BiH is working on a number of cases that can not be prosecuted at this time, because the suspects are in Croatia and hold the citizenship of that country.

The signing of the Protocol will help overcome this problem.

The Prosecutor’s Office of BiH continues its activities with the aim of signing a similar protocol with the Office of the Prosecutor of the Republic of Montenegro.