The East Sarajevo Prosecutor’s Office which was refurbished thanks to the support of the European Union in the amount of €580.000 was opened today. The District Prosecutor’s Office is now fully reconstructed and received an additional floor, enabling better working conditions for employees, and better services for the citizens.
Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina Khaldoun Sinno said that support to the strengthening of the rule of law in BiH has been recognised as one of the long term priorities of the European Union in strengthening the independence, accountability and effectiveness of the judicial and prosecution systems. “We have invested over €20 million to refurbish and build courts and prosecutors’ offices across BiH. It is important because judges, prosecutors and the judicial staff need a good physical environment to work effectively, but the infrastructure alone is not enough. An effective, professional, accountable and impartial judicial system is crucial in ensuring the functioning of a society based on the rule of law,” said Sinno during the official opening of the reconstructed Office.
Sinno underscored that the European Union has been significantly engaged in supporting justice sector reform in BiH, underlining that “All judicial institutions need to be proactive and professional and be able to regulate themselves. As stated in the Opinion, rule of law will be the key area assessed on BiH’s road to the European Union. We will continue our significant support to this sector but we will also be a critical friend – a friend that tells the truth and highlights areas in need of improvement”.
Chief Prosecutor of the East Sarajevo Prosecutor’s Office Anica Vukadin said “Today, we have reason to be happy – our Prosecutor’s Office finally has a building that completely fulfils the needs of this institution. This building is a positive example of development for all the judicial institutions in Republika Srpska and Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will continue to improve our professionalism and efficiency in prosecuting all criminal cases under our jurisdiction”.
Member of the HJPC Presidency Selin Karamehić, remarked that the reconstruction was implemented in line with the highest European standards “The physical conditions of work need to be satisfactory in order to conduct necessary reforms, it is a precondition of the democratisation of our society and strengthening of the rule of law, which is a precondition to our path to the EU and a priority of the HJPC”.
Through multi-annual projects, the Embassy of Sweden funded the development of the architectural designs for EU funded reconstruction projects and the project in East Sarajevo is one of them.
The reconstruction of the East Sarajevo District Prosecutor’s Office is part of a wider assistance package of the EU for the rehabilitation and modernisation of courts and prosecutors’ offices across BiH.
