“In May 2014 the Structured Dialogue on Justice was extended to other Rule of Law matters, including the fight against corruption, also as a reaction to justified citizens’ protests against the lack of tangible results in this area. In that regard, a set of recommendations were issued to foster accountability and integrity within judicial institutions, and amongst others, to address the issue of the conflict of interest within the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC) in the first place and judiciary as a whole later on.
While welcoming on one side the swift reaction of the HJPC to implement these recommendations and adopt the Book of Rules on Conflict of Interest for its own members last September, also acknowledged by the European Commission in its 2014 Progress Report on BiH, the EU Delegation to BiH/EUSR is also surprised that that initiatives are launched to reconsider the matter at the next session of the HJPC. The positive efforts made over the past months should not be wasted.
The EU will continue to support the efforts of BiH judiciary to raise the level of accountability and prevent corruption within its own ranks as measures to build the trust of citizens in an impartial and professional justice system. In that sense, a forthcoming technical assistance seminar (TAIEX) on that topic should help overcome any uncertainties and provide basis for further clarifications.”
ST
