GORDANA TADIĆ AND SERGE BRAMMERTZ MEET WITH WAR CRIMES VICTIMS’ REPRESENTATIVES FROM ALL ETHNIC GROUPS AND PARTS OF BiH

Information on prosecution of war crimes cases, issues regarding search for missing persons and priorities in work in the coming period were the main topics at the meetings

Gordana Tadić, Acting Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH and Serge Brammertz, ICTY/MICT Chief Prosecutor, together with officials and prosecutors from the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH - Special Department for War Crimes, met with representatives from Associations of Victims of War Crimes from all ethnic groups and areas of BiH.

Expectations of victims regarding the prosecution of war crimes, activities on amending the State Strategy for Work with War Crimes Cases, regional cooperation and issues related to the process of searching for and identification of missing persons in BiH were discussed at the meetings.

Prosecutors working on war crimes cases committed in certain areas for which victims’ representatives expressed their interest also attended the meetings and were able to give more precise answers to certain questions posed by the victims’ representatives.

Top officials from the ICTY/MICT OTP and the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH listened to victims representatives’ requests and suggestions. Of particular importance was the fact that the representatives reiterated the importance of the rule of law, punishment of specific perpetrators of war crimes and the need to promote and strengthen peace and reconciliation in BiH.

Officials from the Prosecutor’s Office acquainted the victims’ representatives with activities of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH and its intensive work on a larger number of indictments expected to be filed by the end of the year.

Serge Brammertz, Chief Prosecutor, stressed out that following the expiry of the ICTY’s mandate the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals would continue its operation and cooperation with the judiciary in BiH in their fight against the impunity of war crimes, in which the MICT OTP would provide support to their colleagues in the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH.