Bosnia and Herzegovina needs a modern and professional State Intelligence Agency that will enable it to meet its obligations in the fight against organized crime, international terrorism and other threats to the State. Reforming BiH’s intelligence services has been identified as one of the key tasks to be accomplished if BiH is to move towards EU integration. Moreover, as recent events have shown, BiH can no longer afford to have an intelligence-security sector effectively operating outside proper State control.
In early autumn 2003, The Expert Commission on Intelligence Reform for BiH, which was established by the OHR, created a draft Law on the Intelligence and Security Agency.
The Centre for Security Studies Sarajevo (CSS) and the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), with the support of the Office of the High Representative for BiH (OHR), co-organised a seminar which provided the first opportunity for the draft law to be discussed publicly. In attendance were members of Parliaments, parliamentary staff, government officials, representatives of the international community, the media, independent experts and academics. The High Representative incorporated some of the outcomes of the seminar on the draft Law on the Intelligence Agency, which was held on 27 – 28 November 2003 in Sarajevo.
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