Information Note on the Court’s case-law No. 102
November 2007
Karanović v. Bosnia and Herzegovina - 39462/03
Judgment 20.11.2007 [Section IV]
Article 6
Civil proceedings
Article 6-1
Access to court
Non-enforcement of a decision of the Human Rights Chamber: violation
Article 46
Article 46-2
Execution of judgment
Individual measures
Enforcement of the Human Rights Chamber's decision: transferring the applicant to the federal pension fund and paying him EUR 2,000
Facts: In 1987 the applicant was granted an old-age pension from the pension fund of the former Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1992 he left Sarajevo and moved to what is now known as Republika Srpska. He began receiving his pension from that entity. In 2000 the applicant returned to Sarajevo, which is part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina – the other entity within the country – and attempted to resume drawing his pension from that entity's pension fund (“the Federal Fund”). Pension legislation has not yet been harmonised between the two entities and pensions are generally lower in Republika Srpska than in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As the applicant's request to be allowed to draw pension from the Federal Fund was unsuccessful he complained to the Human Rights Chamber for Bosnia and Herzegovina. In a decision of 10 January 2003 the Human Rights Chamber held that the applicant had been discriminated against in his enjoyment of his right to social security, as guaranteed by Article 9 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. It ordered the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to take appropriate legislative and administrative steps with a view to ending such discrimination and to pay the applicant the difference between the amount of pension he had in fact received and the amount he should have received from the Federal Fund. However, even though he obtained some remuneration from the Federal Fund, the applicant's pension continued to be paid by Republika Srpska.
Law: Article 6 § 1 – Four years had passed since the decision of the Human Rights Chamber had become final and the applicant had still not been compensated in full or transferred to the Federal Fund. Consequently, the essence of his right of access to a court had been impaired: violation.
Articles 46 and 41 – The Court held that Bosnia and Herzegovina was to secure the enforcement of the Human Rights Chamber's decision by transferring the applicant to the Federal Fund and paying him EUR 2,000. It also made a financial award in respect of non-pecuniary damage (EUR 1,500).
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This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.
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