Draft Law on Secret Services: Civilian Supervision Reduced

25 May 2006

Yesterday, in Zagreb, the Centre for Peace Studies organized a round-table discussion on the draft-Law on Security and Intelligence System of the Republic of Croatia. The draft has already passed the first reading at the Sabor (Croatian parliament), and the text is now in the process of preparation for the second reading. CMS estimates that there are several disputable points and, yet, there was not wider public debate on the proposal.

Josko Badzim, Assistant Director of POA (Counter-Intelligence Agency); Sime Lucing, Vice-Chairman of Sabor's Committee on Internal Politics and National Security, SDP Member of Parliament; Tin Gazivoda from the Centre for Human Rights and Member of the Security Services Supervision Council; Vesna Terselic from CPS and Documenta organization, participated in the discussion.

One of the major defficiences of the Draft, according to NGO representatives, is the fact that the Civilian Supervision Council loses its current competence to directly supervise and monitor the secret services, and the supervision is filtered through the Sabor Committee or the National Security Council. Therefore, the Council is reduced to the role of mediator in the communication between a secret service and a citizen who complained of violation of his or her rights.

"Glas Istre" daily reports that Josko Badzim completely eliminated the possibility for the new Law to lower the level of supervision for the Civilian Supervision Council. Badzim said that it simply brings in more order in that segment of intelligence services supervision, which is visible from the new criteria for membership in the Council. Council members, namely, will not need certain level of expertise in a variety of fields, but will be elected from the ranks of prominent public persons that proved themselves for their fight for human rights.

In addition, the draft prescribes that the Sabor's Committee on National Security will be chaired by an MP from the strongest opposition party, which will completely eliminate any possibility of abuse.

Sime Lucin emphasized that the civilian supervisiona can't be truly replaced and compensated by expert and parliamentary supervision, especially if the parliamentary supervision is politicized.

"I find this draft unacceptable, since I believe that it lacks proper balance between security and freedoms, while checks and ballances for prevention of abuse are not well designed", he said.

Tin Gazivoda noted that security services now receive the task and authority to conduct surveilance and wire-tap communications without proper warrant issued by the Supreme Court. Gazivoda also said that surveilance (tailing and recording) of a person can hardly be considered a mild measure for clandestine collection of information that could be undertaken upon internal orders of the head of the respective service.

Vesna Terselic from the CPS reminded the gathering that many areas of the Law will have to be further regulated, once the Law passes in the Sabor, with by-laws and regulations that will be considered confidential. She proposed that the Constitutional Court must confirm their constitutionality and legality prior to adoption.

CPS submitted its comments on the said Draft (the comments are available at the Centre's website) to all the competent institutions.