OSCE Mission to Serbia supports regional co-operation in combating organized crime

In March 2003, Serbia lost one of its most promising Prime Ministers to an act involving organized crime and, earlier this year, the editor-in-chief of a leading Croatian news magazine also fell victim to an organized crime conspiracy.

Tragic events such as these are just the tip of the iceberg. Trans-national networks engaged in human trafficking, money laundering and other criminal activities are holding back economic, social and democratic progress in all the Western Balkan states.

But there are signs of hope. A mere decade ago, gathering representatives from South-East Europe in Serbia to discuss the challenges organized crime presents would have been unthinkable. From 27-29 September 2009, Ministers of Justice and of the Interior from the region met in Belgrade at the invitation of the Serbian Government to do just that.

The conference gave a prominent role to the OSCE. The Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia, Ambassador Kypreos, was invited to address around 220 senior-level participants, including Serbian President Boris Tadic and European Commission Vice-President Jacques Barrot.

It was an honour that the Mission has earned over time. For the past eight and a half years, it has been applying its expertise in the field of the judiciary and law enforcement to help create an environment open to a discussion of regional efforts to combat organized crime.

Strengthening rule of law mechanisms

The Mission has provided support to the Serbian judiciary by developing the technical skills of prosecutors, investigative judges and prison staff and reinforcing the efficiency and effectiveness of institutions dealing with organized crime cases.

"Serbia is now capable of conducting organized crime trials in one of the most modern courtrooms in the region," states Ruth van Rhijn, Head of the OSCE Mission to Serbia's Rule of Law/Human Rights Department. "This is mostly a result of joint efforts by the Mission and partners such as the Italian Government and the United States Embassy in Belgrade," she explains.

Moreover, the Mission has helped draft numerous anti-mafia laws, such as the Witness Protection Law, the Law on Organized Crime, the Criminal Procedure Code, the Criminal Code, the International Legal Aid in Criminal Matters Law and the Law on Special Imprisonment Regime. In 2009, it has been directing its efforts towards ensuring proper implementation of the recently adopted Asset Seizure Law, in line with international standards. Seizure of illegally acquired assets is widely seen as an essential tool in fighting organized crime.

Van Rhijn notes that there is still a lot to be done: "For instance, further development of the co-operation with partner prosecutor offices in the states of the European Union and South-East Europe is needed, together with the signing of regional extradition agreements."

Assisting the police

The Mission has assisted the Ministry of the Interior in creating a National Strategy to fight organized crime and continues to support the Ministry in developing an Action Plan. The Action Plan promotes a regional approach to fighting organized crime, including comprehensive measures against drug trafficking and abuse. It foresees enhancing the ability of the Serbian police to collect and manage criminal intelligence using special investigative methods and plans for an increased involvement of civil society.

"The most challenging part is still ahead and this is implementation - a time-consuming process," states Torbjorn Sande, Head of the OSCE Mission's Law Enforcement Department. "The involvement of, and co-operation with, civil society can be of crucial importance in this endeavour."

Future steps

"It is essential that states in the region tackle organized criminal groups by being at least equally organized and co-ordinated, and that they respond to the regional and trans-national nature of organized crime through regional co-ordination of efforts to prevent and to repress these crimes," Ambassador Kypreos told participants at the Belgrade conference.

"The OSCE remains committed to this fight, assisting in parallel the Serbian judiciary in its efforts for a timely response and law enforcement authorities in dealing with such cases," Kypreos concludes.