Mission MAG 16.qxp - European Union Police Mission in Bosnia ...

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Events"Be my friend" celebratesdifferences, promotes equalityAjnur Suljovi} is a young boy withDown's syndrome who can hardly walkor talk. However Ajnur still enjoys aparty, so he joined hundreds of kidsfrom all over the country on Saturday,March 31, at the largest charity entertainmentshow for children with specialneeds in BiH, "Be my Friend". This publiceducation and advocacy event wasorganized for the fifth time in Dom policijein Sarajevo, this year under theGrand Patronage of the European UnionPolice Mission.Kids and BiH celebrities, supportedby a lively audience and the local policewho traditionally take part in this event,performed a special program to advocateequality, and inclusion of childrenand young people with disabilities intoBiH society. A fashion show, a hairstylingexhibition, and a play, framed bydancing, singing, and many other activities,were organised to present varioustalents of kids with disabilities."The main aim was to promote theprocess of inclusion of kids and youngsterswith special needs in life of BiHcommunities", said Haris ^au{evi},director of NGO "Light", who organisesthe event every year.Generally speaking, there is a lack ofunderstanding and empathy towardspeople with disabilities in BiH. "Be myfriend" aims to contribute to breakingtaboos and providing Ajnur Suljovi},together with the other 165,000 peoplewith disabilities in BiH, with an opportunityto be included in various aspects Ajnur Suljovi}of social life without prejudice. And as2007 is the "European Year of EqualOpportunities for All", EUPM, togetherwith other participating law enforcementagencies, aspired to promote thefundamental European values of"Equality for all in the eyes of the lawand the right to a life without discrimination".By Asim SahinpasicEUPM OpportunitiesNational Staff Training Program - FAQNational staff members again this year,have an opportunity to enjoy the benefitsof the National Staff Training Programme(NSTP). The program has beendesigned to additionally motivate nationalstaff to develop new skills and knowledgeor build upon existing ones.Tamara Brajkovic- Pataki, National StaffCounsellor, answered the most frequentquestions about NSTP.What is the amount of the annualstudy grant?The maximum amount of the vocationalgrant is approximately 330 Euros.This was determined by the budget availablefor the current year and the numberof National Staff serving with the EUPM.To be eligible for the full amount ofNSTP, a EUPM staff member must holda minimum six-month contract. TheMission will reimburse 80% of the vocationalcosts (up to330 Euros), while therest of the costs would be covered bystaff members themselves.Does training have to be related tothe current occupational profile of theemployee?The training does not have to be relatedto the current occupational profile ofthe employees. NSTP covers any kind ofvocational training that could be for anindividual employee's benefit. For example,university studies - majority of ourNational Staff undertake part time studiesdue to their employment status and workinghours.How do you assess the interest ofnational staff into the program so far?The interest is very high when it comesto the university studies, computer andlanguage training. Unfortunately thereare not many vocational training opportunitieswhich can be acquired in BiH. Iam also very pleased that the NationalStaff Members are exploring possibilitiesfor training outside the country. By Sladjana Lizdek4www.eupm.orgEuropean Union Police Mission
EUPM in the Field Volodymyr Zhminko, CJIU Advisor, Jari Kinnunen, SIPA Deputy Chief Advisor,Per Guldbrandsen, Operational Advisor to DhoM, Jose Maria Travesi, Senior FinancialAdvisor, Poul Engmann, Operational Advisor ACU and SIPARoad Show onFinancial InvestigationSeveral EUPM HQ specialists recently started an initiativeaimed at giving the participants an overview of the legal andfinancial framework for conducting the financial investigations.Named simply "Road show on Financial Investigation", thisproject was created to assist EUPM international police officersand national staff throughout BiH in building skills to motivatetheir local counterparts in conducting financial investigations inparallel to the criminal investigations.The initiative emerged as a result of observations made byEUPM members in the field, who noted that local police are nothappy conducting the financial investigations related to theorganised crime cases, suggesting that this might be due to a lackof knowledge and skills amongst the local police when it comesto this particular type of inspection. EUPM's specialists on financialinvestigation thus constructed a flexible training road show."It is of the utmost importance that criminal and financialinvestigations are done in parallel, as that is the only way to getefficient results in fighting organised crime," emphasised PerGuldbrandsen, Operational Advisor to Deputy Head of Mission.Local police who have seen the training, have already enquiredwhether it could be translated into local language, as they woulduse it as a handbook.The first round of the road show, covering Sarajevo, Tuzla,Banja Luka and Mostar, has been finalised in March. However,the road show group emphasizes that they are flexible and canform an ad-hoc team at short notice, should there be furtherrequests from the field for additional training."We are always listening and are ready to respond to the needsof our colleagues in the field in order to help them cooperatemore efficiently with their colleagues in the local police forces,"said Deputy Head of Mission, Ari Sarjanen. By Amna KurbegovicCurrent CasesPolice brutality casedue in court in AprilThe public stirred in February when a video clip of three policeofficers beating young man was posted on the web and aired onTV. The beating, caused by the alleged theft of one of the policeofficers' bulletproof vest, occurred in October 2006 in Sarajevo.However, the victim, well known to police as a drug addict andresponsible for a number of thefts, was allegedly too scared toreport the beating. When his mother eventually obtained thevideo of the beating, filmed by one of the police officers usinghis own mobile phone camera, she took it to the police andreported the case. Police officers of Canton Sarajevo Ministry ofInterior have been accused of the beating.Canton Sarajevo MoI suspended the three policemen andInternal Control Unit conducted a disciplinary investigation. Inhis interview for Hronika 122, Chief of Canton Sarajevo MoIInternal Control Unit, Munib Kasapovic, said that he wasappalled when he saw the footage."All professional and honest police officers are without doubthorrified and express grief over this. As in every profession, onecannot be sure that there are no individuals who can jeopardizeand tarnish honest work of others," said Kasapovic, adding thatCamo's case was a typical example of abuse of police authority.Canton Sarajevo Prosecutor has brought an indictment againstthree police officers for physical abuse and misuse of power. Ahearing will be held at the Sarajevo Municipal Court on April 6.EUPM has been monitoring the case closely."In general - until now - it is 'a best practice' case," saysRegional Human Resource and Internal Control Advisor, Jan vanGelder. "Crime and internal investigators did a fine job from thestart, informed the right people and the Cantonal organisationtook firm steps against such behaviour, giving the right signal topolice, press and public. The Chief of PSU organised the internalinvestigation in a way that there could not be a conflict ofinterest between the crime and internal procedures."As the case has not been finished yet, the EUPM will continueto monitor "from the top", adds Van Gelder. By Selveta HotPolice in BiHReduced number ofassaults on police officersThe Federal Ministry of Interior has announced that the number ofassaults on police officers dropped by 19 or 12.8 % in 2006 comparedto 2005. A total of 130 assaults on police officers were reportedin 2006."The majority of assaults on police officersoccurred while they were trying to maintainpublic peace and order (61), during trafficcontrol (20), and whilst carrying out otheractivities," reads the FMoI statement.The consequences of these assaults werethat five police officers were seriouslyinjured and 84 slightly injured, which is 41or 31.5% less than recorded in 2005. The Mission Mag is produced by the EUPM PRESS AND PUBLIC INFORMATION DEPARTMENT (PPID)Editor-in-Chief: Kilian Wahl, e-mail: kwahl@eupm.org, phone: + 387 33 752 766, fax: + 387 33 752 759Editor: Ann Vaessen, e-mail: avaessen@eupm.org, phone: +387 33 752 760, fax: +387 33 752 759
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