SDP PARTY URGES BOSNIAN MINISTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND REFUGEES TO RESIGN

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (January 25,2008) – The Social Democratic Party (SDP) delegate at the Bosnian Parliament's House of Representatives and a member of the Commission for Human Rights, Rights of Children, Youth, Immigration, Refugees, Asylum and Ethics Denis Becirovic, sent an open letter yesterday to the Bosnian Minister of Human Rights and Refugees Safet Halilovic, asking him to resign, for, as stated, non-efficiency in the protection of human rights of the Bosnian citizen Ilija Jurisic.

”As a delegate at the Bosnian Parliament's House of Representatives, I asked several questions to Bosnian state institutions, related to the arrest of Ilija Jurisic at the Belgrade airport, May 11 2007, for I am of the opinion that the arrest is illegal”, Becirovic stated and added that this event has no precedent in international relations and international legal assistance.

He emphasized that the event is also painting a picture of internal relations in Bosnia, as well as the relation between our country and its neighbours, or between Bosnia and any other country on the planet Earth. Other countries’ can, apparently, arrest Bosnian citizens “the way they want to”, for they have no protection whatsoever.

Becirovic stated that everyone should bear individual responsibility for the actions he or she could have taken but did not.

”As the Bosnian Minister of Human Rights and Refugees, you were obliged to insist on full respect of international standards from the sector of human rights and liberties. Instead of doing so, you seem to have “slept over” the past eight months of Ilija Jurisic’s struggle for human rights”, the letter states.

Becirovic reminded Halilovic that he, as delegate, asked him a question on all the past activities taken in the process of releasing Ilija Jurisic. He also asked Minister Halilovic to state whether or not he has visited Ilija Jurisic.

The letter also states: “Also, in your opinion, ‘the very fact that a person is held in detention is not the reason enough to trigger a reaction on the basis of the international standards you mentioned’”.

”I am writing you this, for I am disappointed with a fact I have heard in Belgrade recently – you have visited Ilija Jurisic not a single time for all the eight months of his imprisonment. You have not even formed a delegation on behalf of your ministry to visit our citizen”, the letter states.

"Minister, keeping in mind the fact that you have done nothing in eight months to efficiently and concretely protect and help Ilija Jurisic, I hereby call you to make the only moral act possible – irrevocably resign," the letter Becirevic sent to the Bosnian Human Rights and Refugees Minister Safet Halilovic states.

Ilija Jurišić is a Bosnian patriot who participated in defending the Bosnian city of Tuzla from the Serbian aggressor,during the 1992-1995 Serbian aggresion against Bosnia.Jurišić has been arrested by the Serbian aggressor and has been in a prison in Belgrade since 11 May 2007.