Civil society organizations sent a reaction from the RS Ministry of the Interior due to the violation of constitutionally guaranteed rights

You can read the reaction of civil society organizations to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republika Srpska below.

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Dear All,

Civil society organizations monitor all events related to the right to public assembly and freedom of expression, and from the media they are acquainted with the announcement of your Ministry from 13.05.2020. which states: “The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic reminds citizens that public gatherings of citizens must take place only in accordance with the Law on Public Assemblies, whether they are organized by citizens, citizens’ associations or political parties. In recent days, gatherings of activists of the political party “Movement of Justice” have been evident in the center of Banja Luka, and they have been warned that such gatherings can only be held in accordance with the existing law. “Political parties are obliged, like all other citizens, to report their public gatherings to the competent police station in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Public Assemblies, and all other public gatherings outside the legal procedures will be sanctioned.”

Also, some web portals published the answer of the spokesperson of the Police Administration of Banja Luka, Ms. Danijela Mučibabić, in which she, to the statement of journalists that members of the police tonight (13.05.2020) warned certain citizens who sat on public benches or stood on the promenade to could not be there, she replied that “these are not individual citizens who sat on public benches, but a public gathering that was not reported in accordance with the Law on Public Assembly, and that police officers noticed that members and activists of the political The “Justice Movement” parties gather in front of the Church of Christ the Savior at the same time every night, and it follows that this is a public gathering of political party activists, and not “sitting of citizens on public benches”.

Having in mind the announcement of your Ministry, the views of the spokesperson and chief of the Banja Luka Police Administration, and the activities carried out by police officers on the ground, one gets the impression that citizens who are members and sympathizers of political parties do not have the right to gather and stay in public. each of their public appearances and meetings with other persons must be planned in advance and notified to the competent authorities. At the same time, we are concerned about the views of the Banja Luka Police Department spokesperson, who distinguishes between citizens sitting on benches and members of the Justice Movement political party who also sit on benches, which means that “ordinary citizens” can sit on benches political parties “Movement of Justice” cannot do that without the approval of the competent body.

We remind you that Bosnia and Herzegovina has incorporated into its Constitution the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, according to which everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, including the right to form and join trade unions. interest. No restrictions shall be placed on the exercise of these rights, other than those prescribed by law and necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, to prevent disorder or crime, to protect health or morals, or to protect the rights and freedoms of others. International human rights standards say that even if unregistered gatherings take place, as long as the assembly is peaceful, its ban or interruption due to non-registration is a disproportionate interference with the exercise of the right to free assembly, even if there is no such provision for spontaneous gatherings in law.

The Constitution of the Republika Srpska in Article 10. prescribes that the citizens of the Republic are equal in freedoms, rights and duties, are equal before the law and enjoy the same legal protection regardless of race, sex, language, nationality, religion, social origin, birth, education, wealth, political and other beliefs , social status or other personal characteristics, while in Article 14. The Constitution states that no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Having in mind all the above, we demand that the RS Ministry of Internal Affairs stop discriminating against citizens who are members of the “Justice Movement” political party and violate their constitutionally guaranteed rights to peaceful assembly and organization.
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Signatories:

Transparency International BiH

Civil Right Defenders

Banjalučki centar za ljudska prava

Helsinški parlament građana Banja Luka

Oštra Nula Banja Luka

Centar za mlade Kvart Prijedor

Asocijacija za demokratske inicijative Sarajevo

Sarajevski otvoreni centar

Centar za životnu sredinu Banja Luka

Dopis za MUP-maj 2020