Dalida about her legal work
Roedel An alternative history of Yugoslavia - by Dutch author Guido van Hengel
Guido van Hengel book about historical, cultural, legal, sociological and every other context and aspect of suffering of stray dogs in countries of ex Yugoslavia was published in 2021.
Guido visited my shelter, and it was an honour and a privilege to talk with him about my work as an activist and a lawyer, as well as to share all my experiences with saving of stray dogs, but also with people who had tried to intimidate me and destroy my work. Guido wrote an amazing and a very important piece that would be a record for all people about how stray dogs suffered here.
Interview with Dalida Kozlic L.L.B, in “Tacno“, 8 September 2016
Author: Predrag Blagovcanin
Translator: Jelena Martinelli.
Dogs have become public enemy number one and the lightning rod for a society which suffers from all kinds of problems. If this society thinks about how to kill as many dogs as possible rather than how to make a living, here the problem starts. We are a psychopathic society that suffers from mass aggression and a society that has misdirected its aggression.
What do I do as a rescuer and animal rights attorney?
As a lawyer and a Bosnian animal welfare attorney and rescuer, I try to link both compassion and expertise. By day, I bring justice to corrupt government officials responsible for the widespread neglect at municipal dog pounds and animal abusers. By night, I take care of many sick and orphaned dogs and cats.
For years I have been drawing public attention to the consequences of the non-implementation of the Animal Protection and Welfare Act. For my rescue efforts and hints at financial corruption and the non-transparent public spending with respect to stray animals, I and my family continue to suffer pressures from the local government.
Bosnian Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals is one of the best in Europe but no one is interested in that. Corrupted authorities are often involved in illegal killing of stray and wild animals because of money laundering.
Stray animals are victims of notorious torture. Political eligible persons construct so-called public shelters/illegal public killing pounds for stray animals, which have a purpose of the concentration camps, and they invoice false spay/neuter programs, as well as the food that would never be given to animals, veterinary examinations and treatment, and at the end means for euthanasia. In reality, the stray animals are tortured, and killed in worst possible ways.
It is illegal and represents a series of violations of Criminal law as well as Animal Protection and Welfare Act of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Despite that very same strict and good Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, Bosnian public pounds are far from high standards, and dogs are crammed in kennels and starved to death. This way a lot of money is stolen from the budgets at all levels of public administration, because, if you have legal shelters that accommodate the dogs conforming to the law, there is no possibility to steal money. If, on the contrary, you build a fence around a piece of land, where you put hundreds of dogs, for which you receive money while the dogs die of starvation, and at the same time you bill for many other “services”, then you get rich. This is the main reason why the act has not been implemented – because of organized business crime at the highest level.
Having gone through such a hard life and ill treatment, many dogs are injured, sick or traumatised and rescuers need all possible help to help them recover. Since rescuers don't have any other source of fundraising, only help from sponsors and small foreign charities save lives of stray animals in Bosnia.
Since I am a lawyer, as well as a rescuer, I have been gathering evidences and filling criminal reports against all who are involved in mass torture and killing of stray animals in Bosnia as well as animal abusers.
In 2018 I started creating a rescue centre of my own, which would be a very big cost savings over previous process of having to place each rescued animal into a paid boarding centre while waiting for an adopter. The rescue centre is on the site of an older property which has been renovated for the dogs and it is still being improved. We have renovated the shelter building, expanded playing ground, improved conditions.
The shelter includes a secure building for the dogs to sleep at night and stay safe during bad weather and a big yard for them to play in and the veterinary inspection has stated that my shelter is the only shelter established in my area that completely fulfils all legal requirements and has excellent conditions.
All our rescues have been saved from abuse, diseases, streets and other terrible ordeals and my responsibility and obligation is to provide care for them.
I occasionally repost the expertise that I have done for Assembly of Canton Sarajevo so you can all know and understand why our mission to save dogs and keep them safe is so important in Bosnian circumstances ➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️
Bosnian Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals is one of the best in Europe but no one is interested in that. Corrupted authorities are often involved in illegal killing of stray and wild animals because of money laundering.
Stray animals are victims of notorious torture. Political eligible persons construct so-called public shelters/illegal public killing pounds for stray animals, which have a function of the concentration camps, and they invoice false spay/neuter programs, as well as the food that would never be given to animals, veterinary examinations and treatment, and at the end means for euthanasia. In reality, the stray animals are tortured, and killed in worst possible ways.
It is illegal and represents a series of violations of Criminal law as well as Animal Protection and Welfare Act of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Actual Animal Protection and Welfare Act is absolutely enforceable and functional law and that is not enforced because of political interests and money laundering.
Illegal dog catching service of PE „Veterinary n Novi Grad“ Ltd., which is owned by PE „Lokom“ Ltd. Novi Grad Sarajevo is one of the most notorious examples of organised crime and illegal killing of stray animals in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as Praca shelter.
The problem of overpopulation of stray dogs is a direct consequence of the failure to implement, as well as a series of obstructions and misuse of the Act on the Protection and Welfare of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has been lasting since 2009, when the law came into force.
Act on Protection Act and Welfare of Animals of Bosnia and Herzegovina is a lex specialis (the main legislation) in the field of treating animals in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Act, as well as related by-laws are the main legal framework for all other laws and by-laws that are legislated by the legislative authorities at any level of organisation of authority in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which regulate the relation, keeping and treatment of animals. According to provisions of the Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals every municipality is obliged to establish and finance public shelters for stray animals as well as hygienic services that are obliged to catch and transport stray animals to veterinary stations and shelters
Two very important ordinances were legislated in 2010: Ordinances on both establishing shelters and the conditions that shelters for stray animals and hygienic services must fulfil.
Both ordinances provide very strict and humane ways of establishing and maintaining of shelters and hygienic services. Instead of solving problem with legal solution, authorities have been financing killing of stray animals in illegal pounds for years. Financing of illegal pounds is a violation of provisions of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, as well as a serious crime offense in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
There are many illegal public shelters for stray animals that are established and led by persons who are close to Bosnian authorities. Politically eligible persons construct so-called shelters for stray animals, which have the function of concentration camps, and they invoice false spay/neuter programs, as well as for food that would never be given to animals; veterinary examinations and treatment, and the means for euthanasia. In fact animals are tortured and killed in those shelters constantly. Animals are beaten, cut, clubbed, raped or tortured in many horrific ways and they do not have water, food, accommodation, they freeze or they are exposed to extremely high temperatures.
There are many illegal hygienic services that receive money from budgets of different municipalities. Those hygienic services kill stray animals, but they receive money for food, medications, treatments, catching of stray animals as well as their placement as they are alive.
Failure to implement Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals is the result of a series of abuses and obstructions as well as of dealing of authorities only with consequences and not with causes of the problem, and causes are the abandonment of animals, irresponsible ownership and uncontrolled reproduction.
Increased number of dogs on the streets is always and only a direct result of irresponsible ownership, and failure to implement preventive measures that are provided by the Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, such as punishing those who abandon animals, the full identification of ownership and pets, spay/neuter projects with vaccination and tagging of stray animals in an appropriate form and number, and education and information campaigns which are aimed to raise public awareness about the causes of the problem.
Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals very clearly and precisely provides solutions for dealing with an overpopulation of stray animals in Bosnia. The first legal obligation of authorities is to build shelters for stray animals, which purpose is to care for stray animals until they are adopted. Conditions that all shelters must fulfil are provided by the Ordinance on the establishment and the conditions that must be fulfilled by shelters for stray animals in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Another legal obligation of authorities is the registration of ownership of animals.
State Veterinary Office enacted the Ordinance on registration, micro chipping and identification of ownership of animals Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2017, but a unified register of ownership of animals has not been established yet. Abandoning of animals by their owners is a direct generator of the problem, and the cause of abandoning of animals is the policy of impunity of people who leave their animals.
When the registry of tagged animals and owners of animals is established, it will enable the identification, prosecution and punishment of people who leave the animals. The implementation of repressive measures will directly affect the consciousness of citizens and achieve the functions of general and special prevention and repression. Because of absence of a register of breeders, illegal breeding causes increasing of number of stray animals. Irresponsible or unregistered breeders and breeding contributes to increasing the number of stray animals
Although it is their legal obligation, municipalities and cities refuse to finance construction and maintenance of shelters for stray animals because of poor financial condition, but we witness everyday improper and illegal spending of budget funds. Also false information about the cost of maintaining shelters are published. If violators of provisions of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals are punished, the funds raised from fines ought to be directed to the construction and maintenance of shelters for stray animals.
Also implementation of Act of Protection and Welfare of Animals can be financed by funds collected from legally obligatory vaccination of dogs against rabies. Until shelters for stray animals are built, municipalities can help by financing of feeding of stray animals, and authorities are obliged to implement spay/neuter projects.
If the shelters for stray animals, which must be “centres for treatment and adopting of stray animals,” are built and maintained in accordance with state regulations and ordinance, and if there is an appropriate policy of establishing and managing shelters, the cost will be low. Quality education and raising awareness of citizens are going to get to the increase in the percentage of adoption of abandoned animals.
Hygienic services (dog catching) are directly related to the existence of shelters for stray animals and because of that establishing of hygienic services cannot be independent measure to solve the problem and to decrease population of stray animals. Hygienic services must be established in accordance with the provisions of the Ordinance on the establishment and the conditions that hygienic services must fulfil in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The purpose of a hygienic service is capturing and transport of stray animals to veterinary stations and shelters. Certainly that establishment of legal hygienic services is necessary, but hygienic services cannot exist and work without implementing all other legal obligations of authorities, especially without building of shelters. If hygienic services work without implementing all provisions and measures provided by Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, those services do not solve the problem and they are perfect ground for different abuses and misuses.
Only by full implementation of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, misuse and illegal killing in shelters and hygienic services can be prevented. Also, all responsible authorities such as Veterinary Office, Veterinary inspection, authorised official veterinarians, police, etc., must be involved in implementation of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, and it is their legal obligation. Authorities have failed to fulfil their legal obligations and many authorities that are responsible for implementation of the Act have actually violated the Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals. Such illegal behaviour must be punished and prevented.
Preventing of abuse, which are particularly related to the fact that stray dogs can “my disappear is only possible by consistent implementation of all the measures stipulated by the Act on the protection and welfare of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as the maximum commitment and legal responsibility for the implementation of the Law on the protection and welfare of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and these are SVO, Inspectorates of veterinary inspection, an authorized official veterinarians, police officers and others.
Such engagement is so far absent even in many of the cases coming to violations of the law by those responsible for its implementation which must be prevented and prevented.
The partial and manipulating misuse of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, which has been in practice so far, only makes an even greater and longer-lasting problem. Problem of overpopulation of stray dogs can be solved by registration of ownership of dogs, engaging a certified trainer for the protection of animals to educate people, assistance in developing of a strategy to solve the problem of stray animals and finally obtaining the project and building of self-sustaining shelter for stray animals.
Without complete and consistently implementing of the Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, the problem of overpopulation of stray animals will not be solved. It is important to end illegal practice of partial implementation of the law which is a criminal offense and which causes that the problem is even more complicated and difficult.
Since Bosnian authorities break all provisions of Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, Bosnian rescuers are forced to implement the Act on their own and protect dogs.
Rescuers are forced, at great financial cost, to take their rescues to private boardng shelters or establish their own shelters since they cannot keep a lot of dogs at their home, and many rescuers have also turned their homes into shelters. Also, rescuers are having to catch wounded or abused dogs and take them to the vet on their own; they have to pay veterinary costs and costs of pensions in order to save the lives of stray animals. This is the only way to save stray dogs and cats in this country, and yet all these things are actually the obligation of the Bosnian authorities, but not only do rescuers do the authorities’ job, many of them are actually attacked by the Bosnian authorities because every time a rescuer saves the life of a stray animal, the rescuer is actually preventing the authorities from catching and killing that animal, and preventing them from pocketing money for these illegal actions.
Dalida Kozlic; lawyer
Expertise presented to Assembly of Canton Sarajevo in 2015.
Why do Bosnian dogs need your help?
1) You will save a life. Sadly, Bosnian strays do not have the backing of large charities, and they depend on small rescue groups. So, you will be the sole chance for helping dogs.
2) You will help prevent the vicious dog business/war against the Bosnian authorities (they claim 250 euros for capturing and killing a dog despite an excellent animal welfare legislation. They break their own laws.)
3) Despite that very same strict and good Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals, Bosnian public pounds are far from high standards, and dogs are crammed in kennels and starved to death.
4) Having gone through such a hard life and ill treatment, many dogs are injured, sick or traumatised and rescuers need all possible help to help them recover. Since rescuers don't have any other source of fundraising, only your help saves lives of stray animals in Bosnia.
5) You will raise awareness to the corruption and ill treatment of dogs in Bosnia, which can lead to members of your family or friends supporting or adopting the strays.
6) Bosnian public pound and stray dogs are not humanely euthanised, but are often killed by beating them to death, or simply starving them despite the fact that killing of animals and euthanasia are criminal offenses in Bosnia. Also, many stray dogs are abused, tortured and killed on the streets. You will feel better knowing that you have saved your dog from the hands of barbarians.
Please get in touch with us if you wish to save the life of a dog. If you are unable to adopt, then please consider sponsoring a dog.
Dalida Kozlic
