Induction course for newly hired war crimes legal support staff in Bosnia and Herzegovina concludes in Sarajevo

An induction course for newly hired war crimes legal support staff in courts and prosecutors’ offices, organized by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and the Judicial and Prosecutorial Training Centre of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, concluded on 23 June 2017 in Sarajevo.

Some 37 legal associates, advisors and investigators, hired through the European Union-funded project ‘Enhancing War Crimes Cases Processing in BiH’, learned about a range of topics related to war crimes processing that were presented by judges, prosecutors, experts and representatives from the Ministry of Justice of BiH and the BiH High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council. The course aimed at enhancing participants’ practical and theoretical knowledge of all elements of war crimes processing.  

“The engagement of additional staff will assist in processing war crimes cases and contribute to building a strong, independent and effective judiciary in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” said Francesco De-Sanctis, Head of the OSCE Mission’s Rule of Law Section. “The increased capacity of the BiH judiciary is crucial for more efficient war crimes processing, as BiH still faces a backlog of around 900 war crimes cases.”

The course, which lasted from 14 to 23 June 2017, was organized as part of the War Crimes Capacity-Building Project implemented by the OSCE Mission to BiH and financed by the Governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, Switzerland, Germany, Italy and Austria.