 |
| INTERPOL Secretary General Noble speaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s commitment to international policing, demonstrated through their extensive use of INTERPOL’s databases. |
Sarajevo: At a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of Bosnia and
Herzegovina’s membership of INTERPOL, Secretary General Ronald K. Noble said
that the country’s dedication to international law enforcement collaboration
had placed it on the frontlines of global policing.
Senior officials assembled at the Directorate for
Coordination of Police Bodies to mark the creation of INTERPOL’s National
Central Bureau (NCB) in Sarajevo in 1992 heard that the anniversary provided an
opportunity for underlining both the country’s and region’s importance in the
global fight against transnational crime.
The Deputy Minister of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Mladen Cavar, underscored his country’s close cooperation with INTERPOL, saying
that Secretary General Noble’s visit to mark the 20th anniversary of NCB
Sarajevo represented ‘a new page in the enrichment of cooperation with the
world police body’.
“As a young country, joining INTERPOL 20 years ago gave
Bosnia and Herzegovina the opportunity to more effectively address international
crime issues such as smuggling, human trafficking, money laundering, computer
crime, terrorism, child abuse, corruption and other security challenges
confronting humanity today,” said Cavar.
Secretary General Noble said Bosnia and Herzegovina had shown
a resilience and a commitment that make it a major player in the fight against
transnational crime.
Noble recalled how, in 2003, NCB Sarajevo belonged to the
first wave of NCBs to become connected to INTERPOL’s global communication
network, I-24/7. Today all 55 international border crossing points in the
country, covering 1,551 kilometres, are connected to the system.
In this respect, another major step was taken today with the
beginning of the expansion of INTERPOL’s network to the security agencies of
the country’s cantons. The first such agreement with the Ministry of Interior
of the Herzegovina-Neretva canton saw it connected to INTERPOL’s global police
communications network, leading the way for enhanced cooperation between
INTERPOL and all cantons in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Parties to the agreement
included Himzo Selimovic, Director for the Coordination of Police Bodies.
The audience at the ceremony heard how Bosnia and
Herzegovina ranks among the top 10 INTERPOL member countries in using the world
police body’s databases, performing so far in 2012 alone 22 million searches,
compared to six million in 2010. The country is also a key member of the
Southeast Europe Police Chiefs Association which has been cooperating with
INTERPOL since its creation in 2002.
With INTERPOL’s General Secretariat headquarters in Lyon,
France, hosting from 20 to 22 November the 5th International Expert Meeting on
War Crimes, Genocide and Crimes against Humanity, Mr Noble welcomed Bosnia and
Herzegovina’s attendance at the conference. He underlined how international
cooperation was crucial in identifying,
locating and arresting suspected war criminals such as Aleksandar Cvetkovic, wanted by the Bosnian
authorities for genocide and subject of an INTERPOL Red Notice. Cooperation
between INTERPOL and the authorities in Israel and Bosnia and Herzegovina led
to the fugitive’s arrest in Jerusalem in January 2011.
“The 20th anniversary of NCB Sarajevo serves as a sobering
reminder of the dramatic events the Balkans went through back in the
1990s. Bosnia and Herzegovina is not at
war any more, but it won’t be at peace until justice is done. Let me thus
congratulate countries of southeastern Europe for their involvement in the
arrest of the 161 individuals indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia,” said Mr Noble.
The Head of INTERPOL said that the existing 27 Red Notices
for internationally-wanted persons issued at the request of Bosnia and
Herzegovina for war crimes remained a priority for INTERPOL.
“We have entered into a new era in how we address the
challenges posed by transnational crime. And INTERPOL will remain at your side,
as we did the past 20 years, to confront those criminals that have hampered the
future of Bosnia and Herzegovina for too long,” concluded Secretary General
Noble.
During his mission to Sarajevo, Secretary General Noble also
visited the International Commission on Missing Persons where he held talks
with its Director General, Kathryne Bomberger.
Noble also met with 13 year-old Adnan Mevic, symbolically
declared the world’s 6 billionth citizen by the United Nations when he was born
in October 1999. With the world today counting more than seven billion
citizens, the meeting with the former war-torn country’s child amidst a soaring
global population underlined the importance to INTERPOL for tomorrow’s citizens
to grow up in a safer world.