The principle ne bis idem in the European Court on Human Rights Practice with Reference to Bosnia and Herzegovina Cover Image

Načelo ne bis idem u praksi Evropskog suda za ljudska prava sa osvrtom na Bosnu i Hercegovinu
The principle ne bis idem in the European Court on Human Rights Practice with Reference to Bosnia and Herzegovina

Author(s): Sunčica Hajdarović
Subject(s): Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, EU-Legislation
Published by: Правни факултет Универзитета у Источном Сарајеву
Keywords: Ne bis idem principle;Duplicity of procedure;Engel measures;Nature of the felony;The identity of the felony;Criminal charge;
Summary/Abstract: The ne bis in idem principle is enshrined in Article 4 of Protocol No. 7 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and falls within the principles with conventional and constitutional importance. It is a principle which at the national level prohibits the duplicity of trial or punishment in criminal proceedings for an offense for which the accused has already been convicted or released before a national court in another procedure (misdemeanor, administrative or disciplinary). The European Court of Human Rights has discussed in numerous judgments about the violation of this principle. Significant position of this court regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina has been formulated in the Muslija v. Bosnia and Herzegovina case, which concerns the prohibition of double trial in misdemeanor and criminal proceedings. Following this judgment, the ECtHR found that the jurisprudence of the courts of BiH was not in line with the standards required by the Convention on the Prohibition of Double Trial and Punishment, and on this basis, the Court called on BiH to bring its practice into line with those standards. Since BiH is obliged to follow the instructions given to it by the Court regarding compliance with the standards prescribed by the Convention, BiH has drawn up an Action Plan for the implementation of general measures in the judgment of Muslija v. BiH.Also, when presenting the protection of legal values proclaimed by Article 4 of Protocol No. 7, it is important to emphasize the importance of the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in the cases of Zolotukhin v. Russia and A. and B. v. Norway, which represent two major milestones in the development of the judicial practices related to the ne bis in idem principle.