I am informed that Republika Srpska police authorities at the Brcko vehicular bridge are seeking to charge visa fees for vehicles crossing the bridge from Croatia. Issuance of visas and the charging of visa fees by RS entity police is illegal. After consultations with the Commander of SFOR and the Commander of the UN/IPTF, I hereby order that this practice be stopped without delay.
Further, I understand that RS police and customs authorities on the vehicular bridge are seeking to collect road tolls. On 21 August 1997, Ambassador Gerd Wagner, Senior Deputy High Representative, in the capacity of High Representative, and as the final authority regarding interpretation of the Peace Agreement and civilian implementation, sent a letter to President Biljana Plavsic and Prime Minister Gojko Klickovic. This letter notified them that the RS road toll regulations and the practice of enforcing such tolls are in violation of the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina as they constitute unlawful discrimination, obstruct the freedom of movement, and violate the competencies of Bosnia and Herzegovina by establishing foreign policy. Based on the foregoing, I hereby order that all activities related to the collection of road toll charges at the bridge by RS police and customs authorities be stopped without delay.
Robert W. Farrand
Supervisor for Brcko
August 30, 1997
