Arnaut seeks information on whether BiH Institution officials use foreign travel documents

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Following media reports that officials in the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina used travel documents of other countries on official trips, Member of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH Damir Arnaut requested information from the BiH Border Police and the Ministry of Civil Affairs of BiH on whether these and other BiH officials used foreign passports when crossing the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and if so, whether they were sanctioned in accordance with the Law on Travel Documents of BiH.

"Article 25.a of that Law, namely, clearly stipulates that a fine of 100 to 400 KM will be imposed for the offense of 'A citizen of BiH who crosses the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina with travel documents not regulated by this Law or with an ID card that is not an ID card of a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina'. The same article of the law further stipulates that for this offense, 'the protective measure of confiscation of the travel document, or the protective measure of prohibiting the issuance of a travel document for up to two years, may be imposed'," Arnaut said.
 
Given that this law exclusively regulates issues of 'travel documents of Bosnia and Herzegovina' (Article 1), the specific types of which are prescribed by Article 4 of the Law, it is clear that crossing the BiH border with travel documents of other countries constitutes an offense as stated, Arnaut emphasized. 
 
The Member of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH assesses that such provisions and sanctions are standard in numerous democratic countries and they do not question the right to dual citizenship, but exclusively establish the obligation that citizens of a given country must use its travel documents when crossing the border of that country, not travel documents of other countries. 

In the same parliamentary questions, Arnaut also requested information on the frequency of such occurrences, and whether the BiH Border Police and the Ministry of Civil Affairs of BiH are taking measures to inform their officials, as well as citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina in general, about the necessity of respecting all legal provisions by all persons.