BiH Council of Ministers: Priority to strengthen Border Police, most migrants from Pakistan

SARAJevo, (Patria) - The Council of Ministers of BiH was informed about individual reports from the Ministry of Security on the situation regarding migration in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the period of April, May, June, July, August, September, and October 2019. Information prepared by the previous composition of the Council of Ministers on the situation regarding migration will be submitted to the Presidency of BiH.

The Service for Foreigners' Affairs registered 22,211 illegal migrants in the period from January 1 to September 30, 2019. In the same period, 21,157 migrants expressed their intention to apply for asylum, while 455 individuals submitted asylum applications.

The majority of migrants were citizens of Pakistan (8,786 or 39.6%), followed by citizens of Afghanistan (2,359 or 10.6%), Bangladesh (1,939 or 8.7%), Iraq (1,843 or 8.3%), and Syria (1,390 or 6.3%). In August of last year, the Service for Foreigners' Affairs registered 3,206 illegal migrants, which represents a decrease of 23% compared to July, when a total of 4,166 migrants were registered. In September, 3,812 illegal migrants were registered, which is an increase of 19% compared to August.

Among the top priorities are strengthening the BiH Border Police and intensifying the fight against migrant smuggling, as well as supporting local communities where temporary reception centers have been established.

The Council of Ministers of BiH, upon the proposal of the Ministry of Security, also adopted the Strategy for Combating Human Trafficking in Bosnia and Herzegovina 2020-2023 at today's session, through which BiH authorities define their policies for combating human trafficking in the next four years, in line with the recommendations of the European Commission.

The general goal of the Strategy is to ensure a constant, comprehensive, and sustainable societal response to human trafficking by strengthening the system of prevention, prosecution of perpetrators of criminal offenses related to human trafficking, protection and assistance to victims, especially vulnerable groups, and functional linking and capacity building of all competent institutions and organizations.

The Strategy contains five strategic objectives: support, prevention, prosecution, victim protection, and partnership, and its development involved representatives from state, entity, and Brčko District of BiH institutions.

The Strategy incorporates recommendations from international monitoring mechanisms (UN, Council of Europe, US State Department, and European Union), so by implementing the strategically defined policies, Bosnia and Herzegovina will fulfill its obligations arising from international documents in this area.

The Strategy will be accompanied by action plans, as operational strategic documents based on the objectives and measures that will be adopted by the Council of Ministers of BiH for the state level, and the governments of Republika Srpska, the Federation of BiH, cantons, and Brčko District of BiH for institutions within their jurisdiction.