The Sarajevo Canton Government unanimously adopted the Draft Law on the Communal Police of the Canton at its session yesterday and submitted it to the parliamentary procedure.
This law envisages the establishment of the Cantonal Administration for Communal Affairs, which introduces a more efficient solution for maintaining communal order and cleanliness.
The adoption of this law is a direct response to citizens’ complaints regarding waste disposal outside the designated places and times, illegal parking on green areas, pollution of roads by vehicles from construction sites, removal of icicles from roofs, illegal posters…
The main novelty is the establishment of professional communal police that will be present in the field 24 hours a day. It is planned that the current communal guards will become cantonal communal police officers with the status of authorized persons. Unlike the previous practice, they will have the legal force to, in addition to preventive action, independently determine the identity of violators and issue misdemeanor orders directly on the spot.
According to the Draft Law, the powers of municipal police officers include: verifying the identity of violators and issuing warnings, issuing verbal orders, stopping and inspecting vehicles and objects, temporarily confiscating objects, and audio and visual recording of the surveillance process. Municipal police officers will first undergo specific professional training with a final exam.
Current municipal guards in the companies “Rad” and “Park”, who do not pass the competition procedure or do not meet the requirements for municipal police officers, will be offered new employment contracts in adequate positions within these companies, thus ensuring the social protection of these workers.
Municipal police officers will be equipped with cameras on their uniforms, and will have official vehicles, recording devices and drones at their disposal. Their cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Canton of Sarajevo will be regulated by a special Agreement, which provides for the provision of police assistance in the field in situations where it is necessary to ensure the smooth conduct of municipal control.
As explained, the current regulations are outdated and not in line with European Union norms, and often allowed perpetrators of violations to avoid responsibility, which is eliminated by the new legal solution.
The new Cantonal Administration for Communal Affairs will unify the work of the previous cantonal communal inspectors and the newly formed communal police, which will eliminate the inefficiency and poor coordination that has existed so far between the wardens of communal companies and inspections.
While communal police officers will primarily be in the field, communal inspectors will carry out professional inspection supervision over the implementation of laws and regulations, issue decisions on administrative measures, and in cooperation with communal police officers, conduct more complex sanctioning procedures.
An interdepartmental working group consisting of representatives of the relevant ministries (municipal economy, justice, internal affairs and finance), the Cantonal Administration for Inspection Affairs, the communal companies “Rad” and “Park”, the Cantonal Police Administration, the academic community, as well as non-governmental organizations and citizens through a public debate process participated in the drafting of the Law on Communal Police.
