ABSTRACT
In the 1990s, police reform has become an essential pre-requisite for the success of post-conflict peacebuilding missions. The promotion of good governance, lasting peace and development depends, to a large extent, on breaking this history of police bias, intimidation and brutality. Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is one of the many examples that confirm this trend. This chapter provides an assessment of the international-led police reform efforts in BiH. It suggests that the UN Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and its International Police Task Force, have undoubtedly made a positive contribution to the political and economic reconstruction, and social rehabilitation, of post-war BiH. The chapter focuses on the evaluation of two UN programmes – the minority police recruitment policy and the certification process for all Bosnian police officers – which were developed with the aim of contributing to the broader peacebuilding agenda in BiH.
