OSCE trains law enforcement officers in Bosnia and Herzegovina on the protection of human rights in the fight against terrorism

SARAJEVO, 16 September 2011 - The need to protect human rights while countering terrorism was the focus of a three-day training course for law enforcement officers that ended in Sarajevo today.

The training was organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“Combating terrorism and safeguarding human rights must go hand in hand, with human rights protection an essential element of any counter-terrorism strategy,” said Marina Narvaez, ODIHR Adviser on Anti-Terrorism Issues.

The training course provided more than 20 law enforcement officers from relevant ministries and agencies of BiH working on counter-terrorism with a useful guide to the international human rights framework applicable to counter-terrorism. These standards are reflected in the OSCE human dimension commitments, which affirm that responses to the threat of terrorism must not unlawfully infringe upon, damage or destroy the standards, principles and values of human rights, rule of law and pluralistic democracy. 

“We at the OSCE Mission to BiH believe that it is important to review and discuss this very important topic, as the respect of human rights in itself results in greater security for all,” said Victor von Wilcken, the Director of the Department of Security Co-operation of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

These training courses are part of ODIHR’s assistance to OSCE participating States to ensure that human rights are observed in all counter-terrorism laws and practice. Similar training courses have already taken place in over a dozen OSCE participating States.