Idrizović and Brammertz: Key regional cooperation to conclude war crimes cases by 2028

(Patria) - Member of the Presidency of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HJPC BiH) and Chairman of the Supervisory Body for Monitoring the Implementation of the Revised State Strategy for War Crimes Cases, Judge Sedin Idrizović, received Serge Brammertz, Chief Prosecutor of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (Residual Mechanism), on a visit today.

Representing the HJPC BiH, the meeting was also attended by Ivana Zovko-Planinić, Director of the HJPC BiH Secretariat, and Lana Šahman, Head of the Project for Improving Work on War Crimes Cases in BiH, financed by EU IPA funds.

During the visit, Judge Idrizović and Prosecutor Brammertz exchanged current information related to the processing of war crimes cases and the implementation of the Revised State Strategy for War Crimes Cases.

On this occasion, Judge Idrizović expressed openness for further cooperation with the Residual Mechanism, considering the role and significance of this body's support in processing war crimes cases.

He also provided information that the Revised State Strategy for War Crimes Cases envisages the conclusion of the most complex cases, where the suspects or accused are known and available to the prosecuting authorities, by the end of 2028.

In this regard, he also pointed out the challenges faced by judicial institutions in cases where suspects are unknown or unavailable to the prosecuting authorities in BiH. In this direction, he expressed the need to intensify cooperation with authorities and judicial institutions, primarily in Croatia and Serbia, but also in other countries.

Chief Prosecutor Brammertz highlighted the advantages of the cooperation so far between the Residual Mechanism and the judiciary of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the problems concerning the processing of war crimes cases before the judiciaries of neighboring countries.

A special focus of the discussion was on issues of effective witness protection and access to the Residual Mechanism's material evidence databases, in the context of the fact that it is entering the final phase of its work.

Finally, the joint commitment to impartial processing and effective conclusion of war crimes cases was emphasized, as a key prerequisite for building peace and long-term stability.

The visit to the HJPC BiH is part of Chief Prosecutor Brammertz's regional visit ahead of the upcoming session of the United Nations Security Council, which will, among other things, consider the issue of processing war crimes cases committed in BiH.