In the exercise of the powers vested in the High Representative by Article V of Annex 10 (Agreement on Civilian Implementation of the Peace Settlement) to the General Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to which the High Representative is the final authority in theatre regarding interpretation of the said Agreement on the Civilian Implementation of the Peace Settlement; and considering in particular Art. II.1.(d) of the last said Agreement, according to the terms of which the High Representative shall  “Facilitate, as the High Representative judges necessary, the resolution of any difficulties arising in connection with civilian implementation”;

Recalling paragraph XI.2 of the Conclusions of the Peace Implementation Conference held in Bonn on 9 and 10 December 1997, in which the Peace Implementation Council welcomed the High Representative’s intention to use his final authority in theatre, regarding interpretation of the Agreement on the Civilian Implementation of the Peace Settlement, in order to facilitate the resolution of any difficulties as aforesaid “by making binding decisions, as he judges necessary” on certain issues including (under sub-paragraph (c) thereof) “measures to ensure implementation of the Peace Agreement throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina and its Entities”;

Considering Article 5 of the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of Individuals with Regard to Automatic Processing of Personal Data, which provides, inter alia, that “Personal data undergoing automatic processing shall be…adequate, relevant and not excessive in relation to the purposes for which they are stored.”

NotingArticle 6(c) of Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Protection of Individuals with Regard to the Processing of Personal Data and on the Free Movement of Such Data, which similarly requires that data undergoing automatic processing be adequate, relevant and inexcessive.

Bearing in mind the need for appropriate identification mechanisms on Identity Cards, to ensure their effectiveness and to prevent possible misuse.  

Having taken into account and considered the totality of the matters aforesaid,the High Representative hereby issues the following

Decision

Imposing the Law on Amendments to the Law on Identity Cards of Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, ashereinafter set out.

The Law which follows shall enter into force pursuant to Article 4 thereof but on an interim basis until such time as the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopts the same in due form, without amendment and with no conditions attached.

This Decision shall come into effect forthwith and shall be published without delay in the Official Gazette of Bosnia and Herzegovinaandin the Official Gazettes of both Entities and the District of Brcko.

Law on Amendments

to the Law on Identity Cards of Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Article 1

Paragraph 3 of Article 6 shall be replaced with the following language:  “The citizen must provide his/her post code and street address.  However, this information will not  appear on the ID Card.”

Article 2

The final paragraph of Article 6, which reads as follows, shall be deleted:

“Name of Entity may be entered in the ID-Card at the request of the person

applying for the ID-Card.”

Article 3

A final paragraph shall be added to Article 6, which shall read as follows:

“Persons applying for an ID Card shall be fingerprinted, and fingerprint data shall be included on the ID Card in computer-readable format in order to assist in authenticating the identity of the ID Card holder. 

The Ministry of Civil Affairs and Communications shall issue bylaws to ensure the appropriate protection of such data, in accordance with the BiH Law on the Protection of Personal Data andthe BiH Law on Central Registers and Data Exchange.”

Article 4 

This Law shall enter into force on the 8^th day from the day of its publication in the Official Gazette of Bosnia and Herzegovina.  It shall also be published in the Official Gazette of the Republika Srpska, the Official Gazette of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Official Gazette of the District of Brcko.

Sarajevo, 28 June 2002

Paddy Ashdown

High Representative