4.5 Mission to Serbia MSC visited a primary school in Zemun as part of the project. Some 100 children from the primary school had the opportunity to hear more about harmful effects of firecrackers use, directly from a police officer, firefighter and paediatrician. By 25 December, children from seven elementary schools in Zemun had the opportunity to participate in this prevention project implemented by Zemun MSC and supported by the Mission. Gender-based and Domestic Violence From April to December, the Mission implemented the project “Promoting prevention and participatory approach to ensuring safety of citizens in Tutin and Sjenica”. The Mission’s implementing partner Impuls from Tutin implemented more than 20 activities raising awareness around combating domestic violence in rural areas, as well as enhancing cross-institutional co-operation between police, local authorities and civil society. The project educated over 80 young participants on human security and gender equality and organized “Four Citizens’ Dialogue”, similar to citizen advisory group meetings, on local safety in Tutin and Sjenica. Overall, the project involved over 160 participants in diverse prevention activities. This project is a part of the Mission’s overall efforts to encourage participatory approaches to ensuring citizen safety. Activities Related to Threats Posed by Criminal Activity Organized Crime On 12 and 13 October, the Mission organized the Third Meeting of the Permanent Conference of Organized Crime Prosecutors2, promoting regional prosecutorial co-operation and information-sharing to tackle organized crime and terrorism in SEE. The two-day conference took place in Rome, involving high-level prosecutors from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, and Slovenia. The prosecutors shared best practice in co-operation and information sharing in the area of serious transnational crime and terrorism. The meeting resulted in the institutionalization of the permanent conference through 2 84 The initiative dates back to May 2016 when the Mission brought together 140 prosecutors and law enforcement officers in an international conference held in Belgrade. On that occasion, the Mission encouraged ten prosecution offices to sign a declaration of intent on regional co-operation in curbing transnational serious and organized crime. This landmark event was followed by a second meeting in November 2016. Thanks to the Mission’s continued efforts, the initiative transformed into the Permanent Conference of Prosecutors against Organized Crime. the establishment of a rotating secretariat that will be hosted by Serbia for the next four years. Financial Investigations, Anti-Money Laundering and Seizures of Criminal Proceeds From 25 May to 14 June, the Mission and the MoI’s Criminal Investigation Directorate co-organized four regional workshops for police and prosecutors on financial crime and asset forfeiture laws in Belgrade, Nis, Novi Sad and Kragujevac. The workshops enhanced the capacities of police and prosecution in investigating and prosecuting financial crime and corruption. 80 police officers from all police districts and prosecutors from Serbia’s four appellate prosecution offices participated in the workshops. This activity is part of the Mission’s broader efforts to develop the capacity of police, prosecution and judiciary to combat transnational, organized and serious crime. On 16 June, the Mission and the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime jointly organized a “Roundtable on the Law on Seizure of the Proceeds from Crime” to discuss the impact of recently introduced amendments to the law. More than 40 court presidents, judges, chief prosecutors and deputies from the supreme court of causation, republic public prosecutor’s office, appellate and high courts and prosecutors’ offices from Serbia, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Justice and the MoI gathered to discuss the challenges in application of the recently amended law. Recommendations were made on how practical problems could be solved and how the legal text could be improved. This activity is a part of the Mission’s overall effort to foster a systemic approach to criminal justice, through co-ordination between law enforcement agencies, the prosecution and the judiciary. Cross-Border Co-operation in Criminal Matters On 25 and 26 January, the Mission and the ICITAP of the US Embassy, co-organized a roundtable for regional senior law enforcement officers on transnational crime and smuggling investigations. Participants shared experiences, best practices and proposed improvements to the existing system of addressing transnational crime. The event gathered eleven senior law enforcement officers and organized crime investigators from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. This initiative is part of the Mission’s wider efforts to strengthen regional co-operation in combating organized crime.