Newsroom
OSCE Mission to BiH reaches out to citizens through the "Access to Justice" campaign
SARAJEVO 22 June 2005
SARAJEVO, 22 June 2005 - A country-wide public awareness campaign to enable citizens, particularly returnees, in Bosnia and Herzegovina to understand how to access social services was launched today in Sarajevo.
Through the "Access to Justice" campaign, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the BiH legal aid society, Vasa Prava, hope to assist BiH citizens better understand what social services are available and how they, as citizens, can access them.
Seven brochures that target issues ranging from accessing utilities, inheritance benefits, reconstruction assistance, and health insurance will be distributed throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities, the Federation of BiH (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS).
"As mandated by the Dayton Peace Agreement, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina has been monitoring the human rights situation in BiH for the past ten years," said Ambassador Douglas Davidson, Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"Today, a range of institutions and non-governmental bodies exist in BiH with a mandate to protect human rights. The problem is in closing the gap between citizen and government to ensure the existing protection framework is accessible and effective for everyone," said Ambassador Davidson.
Within that framework the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina is focusing its efforts to ensure that citizens are empowered to know, demand and defend their rights in order to be able to realize them to the fullest possible extent within the available resources.
Leaflets will be available throughout OSCE and Vasa Prava offices, and relevant BiH institutions. They will also be circulated to more remote, rural areas of BiH by the 60 Vasa Prava mobile teams.
"There are 60 mobile teams that cover 120 locations. Our aim is to get clear, readable information to the beneficiaries in order to inform them of their rights," said Vasa Prava Executive Director Asja Roksa-Zubcevic said.
"Knowing what social rights, such as how to access healthcare, is key to enable returnees to rebuild their lives in a secure and sustainable way," said Ambassador Davidson.
Through the "Access to Justice" campaign, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the BiH legal aid society, Vasa Prava, hope to assist BiH citizens better understand what social services are available and how they, as citizens, can access them.
Seven brochures that target issues ranging from accessing utilities, inheritance benefits, reconstruction assistance, and health insurance will be distributed throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities, the Federation of BiH (FBiH) and the Republika Srpska (RS).
"As mandated by the Dayton Peace Agreement, the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina has been monitoring the human rights situation in BiH for the past ten years," said Ambassador Douglas Davidson, Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"Today, a range of institutions and non-governmental bodies exist in BiH with a mandate to protect human rights. The problem is in closing the gap between citizen and government to ensure the existing protection framework is accessible and effective for everyone," said Ambassador Davidson.
Within that framework the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina is focusing its efforts to ensure that citizens are empowered to know, demand and defend their rights in order to be able to realize them to the fullest possible extent within the available resources.
Leaflets will be available throughout OSCE and Vasa Prava offices, and relevant BiH institutions. They will also be circulated to more remote, rural areas of BiH by the 60 Vasa Prava mobile teams.
"There are 60 mobile teams that cover 120 locations. Our aim is to get clear, readable information to the beneficiaries in order to inform them of their rights," said Vasa Prava Executive Director Asja Roksa-Zubcevic said.
"Knowing what social rights, such as how to access healthcare, is key to enable returnees to rebuild their lives in a secure and sustainable way," said Ambassador Davidson.