TI BiH: Controversial Expansion of Police Powers

BANJA LUKA, (Patria) - Transparency International in BiH (TI BiH), together with a group of non-governmental organizations, has submitted its comments on the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Police and Internal Affairs (Draft) which will be on the agenda of the 4th regular session of the National Assembly of Republika Srpska starting tomorrow. The withdrawal of the Draft Law from the agenda has been requested.  

The Draft was prepared by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of RS (MUP RS), along with other controversial drafts, such as the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Public Order and
Peace.

The civil society comments emphasized that the proposed solutions significantly expand police powers regarding summoning persons, taking statements, and deprivation of liberty, as well as regarding the implementation of special investigative actions, through provisions that are not sufficiently clear. This in practice enables the application of excessive discretionary powers of police officers. If this is linked to recent events in Banja Luka, where a number of citizens reported abuses of police powers, for which TI BiH also filed criminal complaints, it rightly causes concern among citizens. The Draft does not clearly state the reasons for adopting the controversial amendments.

The controversial Draft belongs to a group of regulations considered in recent days, which the public has recognized as regulations whose sole purpose is to deny civil rights and freedoms. It is particularly controversial that police powers are being expanded contrary to criminal procedure provisions, and at the expense of systemic laws, such as the Law on Criminal Procedure (ZKP). Thus, it is envisaged that undercover investigators can be any persons, while the ZKP stipulates that they can only be authorized officials. TI BiH calls on the professional and academic public to speak out, and calls on the Government of RS and the MUP RS to withdraw the Draft for revision of the controversial solutions.