EU POLICE MISSION ORGANISED A WORKSHOP ON BOSNIAN PRISON SYSTEM

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (June 16,2008) - The EU Police Mission [EUPM) organised a Workshop on Prison Service Development in Bosnia in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.At the Workshop, the EU Police Mission presented the findings of its analysis of the Bosnian prison system and discussed the way ahead towards developing a sustainable, professional prison service with secure, safe and orderly functions.

“Unfortunately the prison system resembles the fragmentation of most of the structures in this country.We all start to understand the failures of the existing prison system and to think about new solutions.This is only the first workshop. We will help the local authorities establish a system which will allow those who are responsible for the correctional system in Bosnia to coordinate their decisions and make the system work better,” said Brigadier General Vincenzo Coppola, Head of the EU Police Mission in Bosnia, when opening the workshop.

Following the escape of Serbian war criminal Radovan Stankovic from the Foca prison last year, the international community tasked the EUPM to look into ways to improve the correctional system in Bosnia. A prison expert, Claus Andersin, joined the Mission in May 2007 this year and has since then been visiting various detention centres throughout Bosnia.

The workshop gathered representatives of the Bosnian state and entity ministries of justice, directors of all correctional facilities in Bosnia, as well as representatives of the International Community.

“We hope that we will be able to launch an international tender procedure for the construction of a new state prison by the end of this year.This will be the most modern and secured prison in Bosnia and it will meet all the requirements for imprisoning perpetrators of the gravest crime cases,” said Mustafa Bisic,Assistant Minister of Justice of Bosnia.
.