EU annual report: Human rights protection in BiH remains uneven, pressure on journalists continues

In the section concerning Bosnia and Herzegovina, the report states that the country still lacks a comprehensive policy framework, including nationwide strategies on human rights, non-discrimination and minority protection, FENA reports from the EU.

The EU again highlights the need for urgent constitutional and electoral reforms to ensure that all citizens can effectively exercise their political rights, including aligning the Constitution of BiH with the European Court of Human Rights’ case law in the Sejdic-Finci case.

The report also notes that the Herzegovina-Neretva and Central Bosnia cantons continue to fail to implement the 2014 and 2021 rulings of the Supreme Court of the Federation of BiH requiring the abolition of the “two schools under one roof” practice and the provision of inclusive and non-discriminatory education.

The EU identified as a positive development the adoption of the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence and Violence against Women in the Federation of BiH in March 2025, as well as amendments to the FBiH Criminal Code in July of the same year, which improved alignment with the Istanbul Convention and the EU acquis.

However, it assessed that the institutional response to femicide remains insufficient.

Regarding media freedom, the report warns that political influence over public broadcasters has continued, while their financial sustainability is threatened by the failure to adopt a new public broadcasting system law.

Political pressure, verbal attacks, intimidation and threats against journalists also continued.

According to the EU, the functioning of democratic institutions in 2025 was hampered by discriminatory elements of the constitutional system, frequent abuse of entity vetoes for political purposes, and increasingly intensive systematic attacks from Republika Srpska on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s legal and constitutional order.

Parliamentary oversight of the executive branch remained weak, while civil society organizations operated in a restricted environment.

The report particularly highlights a law adopted in Republika Srpska in February 2025 that labeled civil society organizations as “foreign agents.” The EU said the legislation threatened fundamental rights, and the Constitutional Court of BiH annulled it in May.

In 2025, Bosnia and Herzegovina ranked 86th in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index, 70th in the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law Index and 109th in Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.

In 2025, the EU continued to fund projects in Bosnia and Herzegovina focused on human rights, the rule of law and democratic governance. These included a new €7.5 million program to combat gender-based violence, €6 million in support for civil society and independent media, and €4.5 million through the EU-Council of Europe Horizontal Facility.

The report also concludes that BiH’s cooperation with international human rights monitoring bodies and implementation of their recommendations remain insufficient.