On this day 24 years ago, the Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina was established

(Patria) - The BiH Border Police was established based on the Law on the State Border Service of BiH, which, in accordance with its authorities, was enacted by High Representative Wolfgang Petritsch on January 13, 2000.

At its 66th session, held on February 9, 2000, the Presidency of BiH adopted the Decision on the appointment of the first director of the State Border Service and his deputies.

Also, at its 69th session, held on March 8 of the same year, the Presidency of BiH adopted the Decision on the basic principles of the organization, functioning, and jurisdiction of the State Border Service and the Decision on the transfer of part of the authorities for the implementation of the Law on the State Border Service of BiH.

The BiH Border Police began operational work on June 6, 2000, with the formation of the first unit at Sarajevo Airport. Therefore, the Day of the Border Police is celebrated on this date.

The process of taking over the tasks of border surveillance and control from the entity and cantonal Ministries of Internal Affairs was carried out in stages and was completed on September 30, 2002, with the inauguration of the State Border Service Unit Strmica.

The UN Mission in BiH, led by the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the UN Mission in BiH, Jacques Paul Klein, accredited the State Border Service of BiH on December 30, 2002, as meeting the basic standards of democratic law enforcement.

Since then, the entire border of BiH has been under control and surveillance, which is carried out in a significantly more organized and functional manner.

It should also be noted that the State Border Service was formed before the Ministry of Security of BiH.

With the adoption of the new Law on the State Border Service in October 2004, this police agency was defined as an administrative organization within the Ministry of Security of BiH, with operational independence, established to perform police duties related to the surveillance and control of the BiH border crossing and other duties prescribed by law.

By amendments to this Law, which entered into force on April 18, 2007, the State Border Service of BiH was renamed the Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In its work, the BiH Border Police primarily applies the basic laws: the Law on Border Control, the Law on Police Officers of BiH, the Law on the Movement and Stay of Foreigners and Asylum, the Law on Civil Service in the Institutions of BiH, etc.

Among the most significant recent documents, it is important to highlight that by giving consent to the Council of Ministers of BiH in 2013 for amendments to the Rulebook on the Internal Organization of the Border Police, new positions for police officers were enabled in the Doljani Border Police Unit, which is responsible for the new Bijača International Border Crossing, positions for strategic planning and European integration, protection of classified and personal data, and for the employment of a smaller number of civil servants by establishing a new Office for Internal Audit.

In addition to this, with the adoption of the new Rulebook, the Joint Risk Analysis Center was established as an internal organizational unit within the General Office of the BiH Border Police, according to the website of the BiH Border Police.