Tag: Bosnia and Herzegovina

An agreement between BIRN BiH and OSCE has secured funding for the production of a series of eight radio programmes covering the issue of war crimes justice and transitional justice before lower-level judicial institutions.

This will expand BIRN BiH’s current presence on the radio-waves of Bosnia and Herzegovina which previously consisted of brief reports about the trials taking place before the state Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The programmes to be recorded September through to December will be aired on partner stations at the beginning of 2008.

To find out more about this project or to subscribe to Justice Report, please visit www.bim.ba or write to BIRN BiH director Nerma Jelacic at [email protected]

Around 15 girls from the San Domenico School in California talked to BIRN
BiH director Nerma Jelacic about Bosnia’s struggle to deal with the legacy of the 1992-1995 war.

The students – who have read a number of Jelacic’s articles “as a core component of curriculum” – also discussed the role of the media in conflict  and reconciliation.

The successful cooperation which began in 2005 with a programme that raised public awareness of war crimes trials continued with the setting up of BIRN’s Justice Report news agency.

The Swiss government and BIRN BiH on July 10 signed an agreement which will enable Justice Report to continue publishing until the end of 2008.

Justice Report is the only daily bilingual publication dedicated to the coverage of war crimes trials before the local courts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the process of transitional justice in the country.

To read or subscribe to Justice Report, please visit www.bim.ba. To find
out more about our transitional justice programme, please write to BIRN BiHdirector Nerma Jelacic at [email protected]

The project, also known as Bosnia’s Book of the Dead, was presented by the Research and Documentation Centre in Sarajevo, four years after its work began.

The day-long event in Sarajevo attracted leading representatives of non-governmental organisations, civil society, victims groups, international community and local political parties.

Jelacic moderated the discussion of the possible future use of the database.

Speakers included Zeljko Komsic, member of BiH Presidency, and council of ministers chair Nikola Spiric, as well as academics, demographic experts and representatives of the state prosecutor’s office.

Apart from discussing the current good and bad practises in this field, the conference, under the name of “Countries of the Region: Competitors or Allies in Investments”, sought to improve dialogue between regional economic and investment experts and the media.

Five journalists from the region and five from Bosnia and Herzegovina had an opportunity to speak with leading names in the business and investment sector as well as with representatives of the country’s two stock exchanges.

The first part of the conference looked into the stock exchanges in the region and their stimulation of foreign investments.

Panelists were Almir Mirica and Darko Lakic of the Sarajevo Stock Exchange and Banja Luka Stock Exchange, respectively, Almir Begic, an investment consultant, and Ahmed Hodzic of FIMA International Investment Company.

Panelists agreed that local investors lost out during early stages of investment in listed stocks mainly due to lack of understanding and education about this field.

Mr. Begic added that currently many foreign investors in the stock exchanges are speculative investors and that the two exchanges have to work on attracting serious long-term foreign buyers.

Asked if there was any movement on the initiative to merge the two stock exchanges, Mr. Hodzic said that such issues would be out of the question for as long as political interests outweigh economic interests.

The second panel at the conference looked into regional cooperation needed for the growth of Balkan economies. Speakers included Maida Becirovic, FIPA, Haris Mesinovic, World Bank, Nermin Zukic, FIC, and Prof. Dr. Anto Domazet, Economic Institute, Economic Faculty, Sarajevo.

The discussion revealed a number of fields in which the countries of the region can cooperate, including free trade, EU accession, and the development of infrastructure.

“We should cooperate as much as possible and compete only when necessary,” said Professor Domazet.

Organisation of the conference was supported by the Foreign Investments Promotion Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, FIPA.

Eric Jansson, BIRN editor and former Financial Times Balkans correspondent and Gordana Igric, BIRN director and editor-in-chief of Balkan Insight will lead the training sessions on the 17th, 18th and 19th of June, 2007.

The project, supported by the British Embassy in Sarajevo, focuses on fostering a culture of objective and reliable reporting on common economic issues affecting the region.

A special package of reports will be published in BIRN’s regional publication, Balkan Insight, following the training event.

For more information on the agenda and the training session please see this link

The discussion will feature two panels:

– Are BiH stock exchanges doing enough to stimulate foreign investment?
– Competition or Cooperation: Finding an Optimal Balance for the Growth of Balkan Economies.

For the complete agenda and a list of panellists please visit this link

To participate in the event please contact Dusica L.I. Cook at [email protected].

Ahmetasevic spoke of the importance of transparency in the trials, as well as of her experiences in monitoring the court proceedings, and recommendations for best practise.

In her speech, she appraised the conference participants of the work of Justice Report agency and the Association of Reporters of the Court of BiH, and spoke of the experience of many of its members in reporting the work of the court.

Ahmetasevic highlighted the advantages and disadvantages of the existing system and expressed hope that journalists, in cooperation with members of judicial institutions in BiH, will find ways to informing the public of court proceedings with as few problems as possible. This, she noted, was a vital part of trials against war crimes indictees.

Apart from Ahmetasevic, representatives of Ombudsman Office of Republika Srpska, Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in BiH, OSCE and Lawyers’ Chamber spoke about their experiences in working with judicial authorities.

The conference has gathered representatives of all courts from Bosnia and Herzegovina, attorneys and prosecutors.

Justice Report and Association of Reporters of the Court of BiH are products of the Balkans Investigative Network in Sarajevo. For additional information please visit www.bim.ba or write to [email protected]

BIRN BiH will in March together with the Press Council visit four cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to promote the new press code on journalistic ethics.

BIRN’s Association of Court Reporters and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in 2006 approached the Press Council with a view to improving the rules and recommendations to journalists reporting from war crimes trials.

The code has consequently been changed in two areas – covering protected witnesses – and a set of recommendations has been adopted by editors of Bosnia’s major print media.

The changes have been promoted so far in Mostar and Sarajevo on March 15 and 22 respectively with two more events due in Banja Luka and Bijeljina on March 28 and 29.

The Association of Court Reporters will continue with its work in 2007 with the aim of improving communication between the media and local judiciary and ensuring transparent and widely accessible justice for all.

To find out more about the work of the Association or BIRN BiH please write to director Nerma Jelacic at [email protected]