CORRUPTION AND ORGANIZED CRIME IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA AND THE NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES

Abstract

Corruption is a socially negative phenomenon that significantly threatens legal safety and the equality of all citizens and legal entities before the law. Organized crime exists in almost all countries of the world and has a ten- dency to increase. Due to the fact that there is a growth of organized crime, countries are faced with the need to prevent and fight crime, as well as negative social phenomena. Organized crime and its contents include organizing, planning, allocation of tasks, discipline and responsibility inside organization in order to generate profits. Characte- ristics of organized crime are: the existence of criminal organization, an organization estabilished on hierarchical basis, flexibility in operation, the tendency of influence and involvement in government, economic and political structures, the use of violence and corruption profit as the ultimate goal.

The organized crime activity includes: drug trafficking, corruption, human trafficking, money laundering and  racketeering and it can be said that terrorism is one of the activities of organized crime. Basic goals of the state in the fight against organized crime are: increasing efficiency of using educional and repressive action and confisca- tion of property acquired through execution of crime, development of international cooperation in the fight against all forms of organized crime with intensive participation in international organizations harmonization of legal regu- lations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The tasks of the state, both in the present and in the future, is to raise the aware- ness of civil society and education of citizens about the risks and consequences that organized crime has on society as a whole. Important task of the state is to strenghten the capacities of human and material subjects involved in the fight against crime.