Chairman of the Joint Human Rights Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina Radovan Kovačević and Committee Member Milan Petković met in Banja Luka with the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders

Chairman of the Joint Human Rights Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina (PABiH) Radovan Kovačević and Committee Member Milan Petković met today in Banja Luka with Mary Lawlor, the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, who is currently undertaking a multi-day working visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Special Rapporteur Lawlor, whose mandate includes promoting the effective implementation of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders through constructive dialogue with representatives of governmental institutions and civil society, expressed interest during the meeting in the legal and institutional framework for human rights defenders in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as the challenges faced by human rights defenders in practice.

The discussions, held at the building of the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska (RS), also covered legislation in RS that addresses these issues.

The discussion further covered the position of human rights defenders engaged in the protection of women’s rights, environmental protection and natural resources, as well as the rights of persons with disabilities.

The possibility of adopting legislation on the protection of human rights defenders at the state level in Bosnia and Herzegovina was also discussed.

Chairman Radovan Kovačević and Committee Member Milan Petković informed the Special Rapporteur about the competences and work of the Joint Human Rights Committee. They also spoke about the Committee’s cooperation with human rights defenders and the mechanisms for their protection at different levels of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Special Rapporteur Lawlor announced that the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina will be part of a regional report on the situation of human rights defenders, which will be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council. (End)