There are currently 12 weapons laws in force in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are partially aligned with the EU Weapons Directive. Some of them envisage the possibility of legalizing weapons, which means that citizens can surrender them without being criminally liable.
The chairman of the Coordination Committee for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) Ermin Pešto said, speaking about the work of that committee, campaigns aimed at reducing illegal weapons in BiH, the amount of registered and seized weapons, and raising awareness about the possession of weapons.
He pointed out that the Law on Arms and Ammunition of the Una-Sana Canton (USC) is currently the most harmonized with that directive and that it serves as a model for harmonization in other cantons, the Brčko District and the Republika Srpska.
Pešto said that Bosnia and Herzegovina has adopted a strategic framework for the control of small arms and light weapons (SALW) for many years, starting in 2006, and that the Strategy for the control of small arms and light weapons for the period 2021 is currently in force to 2024. year.
He emphasizes that the Coordination Committee for SALW, which was established by the Decision of the Council of Ministers of BiH, is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Strategy and the Action Plan, and that it reports on this to the Council of Ministers of BiH once a year. The activities provided for in the action plan are implemented by state, entity and Brcko District bodies.
Pesto says that in 2022, a total of 348,692 weapons were registered in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“When it comes to the seizure of weapons and ammunition, in 2022 a total of 1,234 weapons, 49,889 pieces of ammunition, 31 pieces + 10.8 kg of mine explosives were seized,” he said.
He also added that in the course of 2022, with the support of UNDP, weapons and weapon parts were destroyed in the “Ilijaš” Ironworks.
“More precisely, on November 21, 2022, 2,490 weapons and weapon parts were destroyed. The destruction was preceded by a visit by members of the Coordination Committee in front of MVTEO BiH, to the police agencies of Lukavac, Brčko, Sarajevo, Goražde, Mostar, Livno, Bihać, Banja Luka, and in connection with the verification of small arms and light weapons prepared for destruction,” he emphasized.
Pesto stated that within the implementation of this program goal, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Central Bosnia Canton independently destroyed 104 weapons and 15 ammunition containers. The destruction was carried out on 19.12.2022. in the company CIBOS Zenica.
As part of the implementation of the aforementioned strategy, he added, several important projects are being implemented in Bosnia and Herzegovina in cooperation with international partners (UNDP, OSCE, SEESAC, UNODC).
“Thus, through the “Project for the prevention and reduction of the presence of illegal weapons in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the PILLAR project,” which is implemented in cooperation with the UNDP office in Sarajevo, we are currently working on a comprehensive action with the aim of raising the population’s awareness of the dangers of illegal possession of firearms and education on ways of recognizing individual and collective security threats,” said Pešto.
In addition, he emphasized, this project aims to contribute to behavior change and general awareness of the threats that weapons pose to families, communities and society as a whole.
During 2022, he explained, the competent authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNDPBiH), through the activities of the PILLAR project, implemented a targeted campaign to raise awareness among the population of younger men, as the most frequent perpetrators and victims of the use of firearms. weapons, and younger women, as frequent victims of the use of firearms, entitled “Guns do not protect, guns kill!”.
“The campaign was carried out in secondary schools throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was carried out by 12 police agencies, ten cantonal police agencies, the MUP of Republika Srpska and the Police of Brčko District of BiH. It aimed to raise awareness among the younger population about the dangers and consequences caused by the use of firearms,” he said.
Pešto points out that data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Bosnia and Herzegovina show that accidents caused by firearms are equally common in all parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, including the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska and Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
