Abuse of detained persons is still a serious problem in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which requires adequate action by BiH authorities, it was stated in the last report of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) of the Council of Europe on Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which at the same time the absence of an effective reaction to its previous recommendations is noted.
During the visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the CPT delegation examined the behavior of various police agencies towards arrested persons, especially in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the effectiveness of prosecutorial investigations into allegations of police abuse, as well as the treatment of detainees in four prison institutions under the jurisdiction of the FBiH Ministries of Justice and the Ministry of State.
The CPT, as during its previous visit in 2019, again received numerous allegations of physical mistreatment by members of the police towards detained persons, especially from members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Sarajevo Canton.
“They mainly consisted of slaps, kicks, batons and butts of official weapons against suspects for criminal offenses, either at the time of arrest or during interrogation,” the report describes several specific individual cases, supported by medical evidence.
The CPT believes that this serious problem requires strong action by the BiH authorities, including a formal statement at the highest political level expressing a policy of zero tolerance towards police misconduct, targeted training activities on professional interviewing of criminal suspects, and the introduction of audio-video recording of all police interviews.
A detailed assessment of prosecutorial and administrative investigations into allegations of abuse revealed that, in a number of cases, such investigations cannot be considered effective, especially given their lack of timeliness and thoroughness, they said in a statement.
The CPT particularly observed the lack of proactive action by the prosecutor in the use of special investigative measures and the approach in communication and cooperation with the police, and the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH was recommended to pass binding acts on the investigation methodology in cases of allegations of police abuse.
Regarding legal guarantees against ill-treatment, measures must be taken to guarantee the right of access to a lawyer from the start of detention and to ensure that medical examinations of detained persons in hospitals are always conducted out of the hearing of police officers.
The committee once again recommended that steps be taken to ensure that all police cells meet minimum requirements in terms of size, cleanliness and lighting. In addition, persons held in police custody should be offered at least one hot meal a day.
The Committee remains concerned about the fact that, with the exception of the State Prison, in other prisons (Mostar, Sarajevo and Zenica), pre-trial detainees were still locked in their cells for more than 22 hours a day without any purposeful activity on offer.
“A gender-specific approach should be introduced for women in pre-trial detention in order to compensate for the long period of de facto solitary confinement they are subjected to,” the report stated, where it was said that little progress had been made in the provision of health care to pre-trial detainees.
In the opinion of the Committee, the Ministries of Justice and Health of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina should cooperate to ensure that every detainee who is newly admitted to the prison undergoes a quick and detailed medical examination, including screening for infectious diseases.
The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) visits places of detention in countries party to the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture to assess how arrested persons are treated with the intention of protecting such persons from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
These places include prisons, juvenile detention centers, police stations, immigration detention centers, psychiatric hospitals and welfare homes. After each visit, the CPT sends a report to the government containing findings and recommendations.
