Project Description: The Croatian criminal justice system does not prescribe institutionalized service for the provision of support to witnesses and victims in courts. A 2007 survey of judges and witnesses carried out by UNDP has shown that organized support to victims and witnesses is practically non-existent and that such support is required. Witnesses as well as judges find it important to improve witness support organisation in courts. The improvements undertaken in the last four years (adoption of Criminal Procedure Act amendments, establishment of Department for Support to Witnesses in War Crime Trials within the Ministry of Justice) represent the first steps in the establishment of a witness support framework and show the Government's awareness of the importance of the issue and its commitment to a solution. However, the improvements were mainly focused on the physical well being of threatened witnesses and a gap still exists in witness support outside physical protection (e.g. psychological, legal, inside the court room or any other support) for all witnesses. In addition, the newly established war crimes witness support department within the Ministry of Justice deals only with war crime trials and not with common domestic crime cases. With limited capacities of the Department and without courts' witness support offices, the provision of support to beneficiaries is questionable. The project builds on the achievements of already existing initiatives and institutional arrangements and plans to initiate facilitation and support for witnesses and victims in all criminal trials. In cooperation with the UN agencies and national counterparts the project will determine priorities for further development of a witness/victim support system, aiming in the first place at major crime cases (corruption, organized crime, murders, rapes etc.), as well as supporting war crime trials. Piloting the system in selected pilot courts will help the project identifying and improving any shortcomings before it is introduced in the Croatian criminal procedure. The main project results will be: (1) the development of strategic management for the witness-victims support system;
(2) the establishment of a victim-witness support system in courts;
(3) the improvement of public awareness of the rights of victims and witnesses. Objectives The overall project objective is to strengthen the criminal justice system in Croatia through the introduction of a modern policy toward support of the witnesses and victims in criminal proceedings. This policy, when fully developed and implemented, will ensure enhanced treatment of witnesses/victims during criminal trials, which will contribute to a more efficient and effective criminal proceedings. Outcome 1: Strategic management of witness-victims sup port system developed
Outcome 2: Victim-witness support system in courts established
Outcome 3: Improved public awareness of the rights of victims and witness. |
