The civil civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995 ended with the signature of the General Framework Agreement (GFAP) on 14 December 1995 in Paris. This agreement gave NATO the mandate to implement the military aspects of the Peace Agreement through the Implementation Force (IFOR). The position of High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina was also created under the Peace Agreement to oversee the implementation of the civilian aspects of the Agreement.

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The civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995 ended with the signature of the General Framework Agreement (GFAP) on 14 December 1995 in Paris. This agreement gave NATO the mandate to implement the military aspects of the Peace Agreement through the Implementation Force (IFOR). The position of High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina was also created under the Peace Agreement to oversee the implementation of the civilian aspects of the Agreement.

In 1996, IFOR was replaced by SFOR, which worked closely with the UN International Police Task Force (IPTF) to promote local law and order and a lasting peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In January 2003, the European Union Police Mission (EUPM) replaced the UN International Police Task Force. The EUPM’s mission, which ends in 2005, comprises monitoring and inspection of the local police in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the creation of a modern, properly trained and equipped, self-sustaining, professional and multi-ethnic law enforcement agency.

The state of Bosnia and Herzegovina consists of two first-order administrative divisions according to the Peace Agreement; the Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Federation is further divided into ten Cantons. There is also an area in the northeastern part of the country called the Brcko District, which falls under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina but is administered as a separate unit under international supervision. The legal system of Bosnia and Herzegovina is very complex given that each of its divisions maintains a unique legal system and set of laws.

The primary laws regulating police powers of investigation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, such as witness protection and use of surveillance, are the Law on the Protection of Witnesses under Threat and Vulnerable Witnesses of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the Criminal Procedure Code of BiH, the Law on Special Witness Identity Protection in Criminal Proceedings in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), the Criminal Procedure Code of the FBiH and the Criminal Procedure Code of Republica Srpska.

Police powers to maintain public order in Bosnia and Herzegovina are regulated under various legal instruments, including the Criminal Procedure Code of BiH, the Criminal Procedure Code of the FBiH, the Law on the Judicial Police of BiH, the Law on Internal Affairs of Republica Srpska and in the Law on Police for the Brcko District. Police powers covered under these regulations include powers of search, arrest, seizure and force. Police searches of a person’s body is allowable when the search is administered by a person of the same sex and when there is sufficient reason to believe that the person has committed a criminal offense or that the person is carrying objects relevant to a criminal proceeding. Moreover, police searches of homes are only permitted when it is sufficiently likely that a perpetrator or accessory to a crime, traces of a criminal offense, or objects relevant to the criminal proceeding will be found on the premises being searched.

Rules regulating police misconduct, complaints, and disciplinary sanctions for police officers in Bosnia and Herzegovina can be found in the Law on the Judicial Police of BiH and in the Law on Police of the Brcko District. These laws state that a police officer can be temporarily suspended if a criminal or disciplinary proceeding has been filed against him or her regarding a grave violation of duty.

Analysis provided by Maria Bideke, International lawyer and Director of Law Association Justice International.

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