Historical building of the Basic Court in Foča renovated thanks to EU support

The European Union funded the complete reconstruction of the centennial building of Foča Basic Court in an effort to support the strengthening of the work of prosecutors and the judiciary in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Over 320,000 euro was invested in the reconstruction of the Court to enable better working conditions of judges and prosecutors in Foča and provide better services to citizens.

Richard Maša, Head of Cooperation of the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina said that the new, modernised building is now ready for another century of service to the citizens of the region “The reconstruction of the Basic Court in Foča is part of our overall efforts to support the judiciary of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We want to provide judges and prosecutors with quality infrastructure, so they can do their jobs and help the citizens of places like Foča. The priorities of the European Union are very clear and are stated in the European Commission’s Opinion on BiH application for membership of the EU. We want Bosnia and Herzegovina to make progress in the judiciary and we are happy to support the development of infrastructure,” remarked Maša during the official opening of the Basic Court in Foča.

Deputy President of the Court, Branka Grahovac underlined her support to the European Union for recognising the need to provide the citizens of Foča and its judicial staff with suitable working conditions. “Foča Basic Court finally has a building that fulfils all our needs. We are happy that our Court has grown into a reputable judicial institution and we are sure that our judges and colleagues will be additionally motivated to strengthen their professionalism and that this will remain a House of Justice where citizens will be able to fulfil their rights,” said Grahovac.

Member of the HJPC Presidency, Selin Karamehić, remarked that the reconstruction was implemented in line with the highest European standards, with special attention paid to the cultural and historical value of the building “Our judiciary cannot be efficient and work in line with European standards if adequate working conditions are not met so we need projects like these to help us in this regard. Citizens of BiH need and deserve a judiciary that can guarantee and protect their rights,” said Karamehić.

The long tradition of Foča Court was taken into consideration when designing the new building. The original designs were made at the beginning of 1900s by famous architect Karl Paržik, who designed several important public administration buildings during that time across BiH.  The reconstruction of the Foča Basic Court is part of a wider EU assistance package of over 20 million euro for the rehabilitation and modernisation of 24 courts and prosecutors’ offices across BiH.

Europa.ba