Bosnia and Herzegovina should stop institutionalizing people with disabilities

Last week, Al Jazeera Balkans published a shocking article video of a staff member at the public institution Pazarić, outside Sarajevo, hitting and shouting at a disabled young man. This led to a public outburst in Bosnia –demonstrations were detained and the staff member was licensed.

But the government’s response to the video is also worrying. First, the Minister of Labor and Social Policy of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina threat criminal charges, not only against the staff member, but also against those who filmed the video and released it to the media, in an apparent attempt to expose and help end long-standing abuses at this institution . Threatening criminal charges may discourage others from going public with abuse in the future.

Second, the government has failed to address the root cause of these abuses: the practice of placing people with disabilities in institutions. In fact, in 2019, images from the same establishment revealed children with disabilities. related to furniture, some with their hands tied behind their backs, others in straitjackets, their legs tied to a bed or radiator. Sarajevo Municipal Court sentenced three former directors to a total of 13 and a half years in prison for neglect and abuse.

While public protests against gross rights violations, criminal convictions, and demonstrations are important for accountability, they will not end abuses as long as people with disabilities continue to be returned to institutions such as Pazarić. Institutions create an imbalance of power that can easily result in horrific abuses, including neglect, inhumane treatment, and physical violence. Yet no Bosnian official, in his response to the situation in Pazarić, called for an end to institutionalization of people with disabilities.

The Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a state party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and the authorities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska have an obligation to protect persons with disabilities against violence and neglect and to guarantee their right to live in the community with all others. Investing in community life and services will allow children with disabilities to live with their families and adults to be part of their community rather than behind locked doors.

The cycle of rights violations that took place in Pazarić is repeated every day in institutions around the world. As long as people with disabilities remain locked up, they will continue to be mistreated.

*This item is part of a series marking the 10th anniversary of Human Rights Watch’s Disability Rights Division. Over the past decade, we have advocated for an end to institutionalization of people with disabilities around the world.