Today, the Directorate for Confiscated Property Management of the Ministry of Justice presented an initiative for the conclusion of a regional agreement on the division of seized proceeds of crime, with the aim of enhancing the fight against corruption and organised crime in Southeast Europe. The preliminary text of the agreement was presented at a meeting in Belgrade, organised by the Directorate in cooperation with the Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative (RAI) and the AIRE Centre Advice on Individual Rights in Europe).
The aim of the initiative is to improve the legal basis for the fight against corruption and organised crime, to better coordinate confiscated property management bodies, prosecutor's offices and judges, as well as to comply with the applicable United Nations and the European Union standards.
The initiative should allow the competent authorities to divide the seized assets between the state where the trial was conducted and the country of origin of the sentenced person. The initiative includes Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Republika Srpska. It would be possible for other countries in the region to join this initiative.
The proposed agreement should, among other things, specify the details of the confiscated property, the recovery of cultural property and bit coins and many other issues.
The initiative is supported by the project titled Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures, funded by the British Government.