Experts and participants of the workshop "Sexualised violence against women, especially as victims of war and against refugee women". Bosnia and Herzegovina
"Sexualised violence against women, especially as victims of war and against refugee women" was the focus of a workshop on 26 September 2024 in Sarajevo. The topic is highly topical in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is located on the Balkan route and is increasingly not only a transit country but also a host country for refugees.
The event took place within the framework of institutional support and was jointly organised by IRZ and the non-governmental organisation Vaša Prava, which operates a nationwide network for legal advice and representation of people in need and vulnerable groups. The target groups and participants were addressees from all governmental and non-governmental institutions working in the field of "migration and asylum procedures".
Using numerous case studies, the speakers raised awareness of the various constellations in which refugee women experience sexualised violence. Examples included experiences of abuse in the country of origin and during flight, but also in the host country and in the accommodation centres there. They referred to the recognition of sexualised violence as a recognised reason for flight and asylum.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina – as in Germany – it is a major problem for victims to provide evidence when reporting cases of sexualised violence during the asylum procedure, which means that the act of violence cannot always be classified as clearly gender-specific. This can have a negative impact on the determination of a corresponding asylum status.
The public in Bosnia and Herzegovina is not yet sufficiently aware of gender-specific or sexualised crimes, which are often not perceived as crimes. As in cases of domestic violence, victims often do not report the offences out of shame or fear of the perpetrators. Another complicating factor for victim protection is the lack of accommodation facilities, which leads to overcrowding in many places. Imprecise legal provisions, such as the regulations regarding so-called "safe zones" for refugees, are another problem.
The exchange of experiences during the workshop was unanimously recognised by the participants as a further step towards safeguarding the rights of refugee women, strengthening their position in society and thus increasing gender equality in the sense of strengthening human rights.
The speakers in dialogue with the participants. Bosnia and Herzegovina
The train-the-trainer workshop ‘Didactics in judicial education and training’ took place on 6 December 2023 in Sarajevo. IRZ and the Centre for the Education of Judges and Public Prosecutors in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina jointly organised the event, which was made possible by project funding from the Federal Foreign Office.
The starting point were keynote speeches by Dr Robert Jović, Judge at the Court of Appeal of the District of Brčko, Norbert Koster, former judge at the Higher Regional Court of Hamm and the responsible IRZ head of section, lawyer Dr Stefan Pürner.
An intensive discussion began right at the start of the event, in which the participants, who themselves lead further training courses or are intended to do so, contributed their own suggestions and experiences. In this context, they took a critical look at current practice in training events. After an in-depth analysis, they developed tips for better design, ranging from preparation and the selection of a suitable format for the respective needs to the visualisation of legal content.
It became clear that the improvement of further training programmes is a cross-cutting issue, as an increase in quality in this area benefits further training activities in all areas of law – an aspect that plays an increased role, especially in times of scarce resources.
In conclusion, the participants emphasised that the workshop focused on didactics and that the results could therefore be incorporated into a guide for lecturers as part of follow-up activities. They therefore asked IRZ to continue and expand its activities in this area.
Source: Vaša Prava: Participants in the discussions Bosnia and Herzegovina
Issues of equal rights for women in the law: a seminar on this theme was held in Sarajevo on 4 October 2023, organised by the IRZ with the non-governmental organisation, Vaša Prava, which operates a nationwide network for legal advice and representation of persons in need and vulnerable groups.
This event was made possible by project support from the Federal Foreign Office, and the target groups were the lawyers working at Vaša Prava, judges and representatives of other organisations, including the Agency for Gender Equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the non-governmental organisation TRIAL International, which is active in the protection of victims of crime.
A wide range of topics were covered, including the treatment of women in inheritance law in Bosnian-Herzegovinian practice and the experiences in the legal representation of women who were victims of sexual violence during the war. In the latter area, the association recently obtained a landmark decision for one of its clients, who was awarded damages amounting to tens of thousands of Euros.
The situation of women in the area of domestic violence is particularly problematic. Many cases fail to be prosecuted here because the victims refuse to report them through a sense of shame, and also because the police are reluctant to take action, as these cases are internal family matters.
Adisa Zahiragić, a judge at the Sarajevo Cantonal Court, and Ahmet Salčin and Emir Prcanović, two senior directors of Vaša Prava, gave presentations to ensure that the event included both the perspective of the judiciary and that of consulting practice. The situation in Germany was set out by Ms. Ramona Pisal, former President of the Potsdam Regional Court and Vice President of the IRZ Board of Trustees. Her comments on domestic violence and proposals for potential improvement in the legal situation of victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina resonated with all the participants and provoked great interest and formed a basis for some intense discussions.
