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The International Community views with serious concern the many criminal
problems and safety issues associated with the so-called "Arizona Market",
located in Brcko District. Criminal activities there have grown steadily,
including: prostitution; trafficking in women; abetting and exploiting the
flow of illegal immigrants; trafficking in drugs; trafficking in stolen and
illegal goods.
The authorities in both Entities and the Brcko District, including their
respective police forces, support strong and sustained action to clean up
the Arizona Market.
Gary Matthews, the Deputy High Representative and the Supervisor of Brcko,
recently participated in a meeting with the following heads of international
agencies: Wolfgang Petritsch, the High Representative; LTG Michael Dodson,
COMSFOR; Jacques Paul Klein, the United Nations' Special Representative to
BiH; and Robert Barry, head of the OSCE mission to BiH. They agreed to take
the following action:
- A wide-ranging clamp down on all criminal activities connected with
the Arizona Market. The relevant laws of the Entities and of the Brcko
District will be applied, together with such Supervisory Orders as
Ambassador Matthews may deem fit to issue.
- The Brcko District will develop and put in place a regime of
regulation, licensing, fees and taxation which will apply to all enterprises
located in the Arizona Market, just as this regime applies to enterprises
located elsewhere in the Brcko District. The Supervisor of Brcko will ensure
that this regime is effectively enforced and is specifically authorized to
declare null and void any land use allocations which interfere with the
regime.
- The more than 2,000 stalls at the present Arizona Market are located
in an area which lacks necessary facilities such as water, sewage, garbage
removal, electricity, communications, public health and fire safety
regulations. Accordingly, the Brcko District and the Supervisor of Brcko
will initiate and carry out a plan for the phased relocation of the main
market area to an alternative site which will be prepared with the necessary
facilities and safety features by June 2001.
- Until this area is ready for use, all existing operating licenses
for stalls and other market activities in the Arizona Market will be subject
to revalidation and reissuance by the Brcko District government in
connection with phased relocations to the alternative site. All of this will
occur in a transparent and objective manner in order that all concerned will
benefit equally and fairly.
The present Arizona Market represents significant commercial activity in the
northeastern part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Legitimate business owners can
only benefit from rule of law and a proper health and safety regime.
All the above elements are effective from today's date.
Joint OHR, SFOR, OSCE and UNMiBH Press Release, Sarajevo, 26 October 2000
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