2019 Annual Report on the results of the activities of The Institution of The Human Rights Ombudsman of Bosnia and Herzegovina Banja Luka, March 2020 BOSNA I HERCEGOVINA БОСНА И ХЕРЦЕГОВИНА Institucija ombudsmena/ombudsmena Институција омбудсмена/омбудсмана za ljudska prava за људска права Bosne i Hercegovine Босне и Херцеговине _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 2019 ANNUAL REPORT ON RESULTS OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE INSTITUTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Banja Luka, March 2020 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Sjedište Institucije Banja Luka, Akademika Jovana Surutke 13, 78000 Banja Luka, BiH,tel./faks: +387 51 303 992; e-mail: [email protected] Područni ured Sarajevo, Dubrovačka 6, 71000 Sarajevo, BiH, tel.: +387 33 666 006, faks: +387 33 666 007; e-mail: [email protected] Područni ured Mostar, Kneza Višeslava b.b., 88000 Mostar, BiH, tel./faks: +387 36 334 248; e-mail: [email protected] Područni ured Brčko Distrikt, Trg mladih 8/1, 76000 Brčko, BiH, tel./faks: +387 49 217 347; e-mail: [email protected] Terenski ured Livno, Gabrijela Jurkića bb, 80100 Livno, BiH, tel.: +387 34 201 911, faks: +387 34 203 237; e-mail: [email protected] INSTITUTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Print: TMP Društvo za zapošljavanje slijepih i slabovidnih lica doo, Sarajevo Circulation: 80 2 ANNUAL REPORT ON THE RESULTS OF THE ACTIVITIES OF THE INSTITUTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA CONTENTS I INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 5 II SUMMARY ............................................................................................................................... 8 III STATISTICS ON THE ACTIVITIES OF HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA IN 2019 ................................................................................ 15 IV CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS .................................................................................... 17 4.1. Free access to information .................................................................................................. 18 4.1.1. Legislation .................................................................................................................... 18 4.1.2. Legislative amendment initiatives ............................................................................... 19 4.1.3. Complaints lodged to the Ombudsman ....................................................................... 20 4.1.4. Special report on experiences in implementation of the Law on Free Access to Information in Bosnia and Herzegovina ................................................................................ 23 4.2. Property relations ............................................................................................................... 24 4.3. Police .................................................................................................................................. 26 4.4. Inspections .......................................................................................................................... 28 4.5. Governmental and ministerial appointments ...................................................................... 29 4.6. Migrations and asylum ....................................................................................................... 31 4.7. Public documents ............................................................................................................... 33 4.8. Media and freedom of information .................................................................................... 34 4.9. Free legal aid ...................................................................................................................... 35 4.10. Freedom of assembly ....................................................................................................... 35 V JUDICIARY AND ADMINISTRATION ............................................................................. 38 5.1. Judiciary ............................................................................................................................. 39 5.1.1. Enforcement from public budgets ................................................................................ 40 5.2. High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina ............................... 42 5.3. Prosecutor's offices ............................................................................................................. 43 5.3.1. Actions of the Prosecutor's offices in cases of domestic violence ............................... 44 5.4. Administration .................................................................................................................... 45 5.4.1. The right to an efficient legal remedy .......................................................................... 47 VI ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS........................................................ 48 6.1. Labor relations .................................................................................................................... 49 6.1.1. Severance pay in the Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina ................................................................................................................................................ 52 6.2. Pensions .............................................................................................................................. 53 6.3. Utilities ............................................................................................................................... 54 6.4. Social protection ................................................................................................................. 55 6.5. Health care .......................................................................................................................... 56 6.6. Education ............................................................................................................................ 58 6.7. Ecology and environmental protection .............................................................................. 60 6.8. Public revenues .................................................................................................................. 61 VII RIGHTS OF PERSONS DEPRIVED FORM LIBERTY ................................................ 63 7.1. Notion of torture and establishment of a preventive mechanism in Bosnia and Herzegovina ................................................................................................................................................... 63 7.2. Monitoring of the rights of persons deprived from liberty ................................................. 64 7.2.1 Special report on the situation in detention facilities in some police administrations in Bosnia and Herzegovina ........................................................................................................ 65 7.3. Rights of persons deprived of liberty ................................................................................. 66 7.3.1. Health care ................................................................................................................... 66 7.3.2. Accommodation conditions and prison staff ............................................................... 68 7.3.3. Benefits out of the establishments ............................................................................... 70 7.3.4. Prison labor .................................................................................................................. 72 3 INSTITUTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 7.3.5. Education ..................................................................................................................... 73 7.3.6. Status rights of convicted persons ............................................................................... 74 7.3.7. Transfer and conditional release .................................................................................. 75 7.3.8. Communication with outside world ............................................................................. 77 7.3.9. Visit to Public Health Institution “Psychiatric Hospital Sokolac” .............................. 79 VIII THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD ....................................................................................... 81 8.1. Best interest of the child..................................................................................................... 82 8.2. Violence against children ................................................................................................... 82 8.2.1. Special report on the ban of physical punishment of children in Bosnia and Herzegovina ........................................................................................................................... 84 8.3. Children on the move ......................................................................................................... 87 8.4. Protection of children in administrative and court proceedings ........................................ 88 8.5. Health care of children ......................................................................................................