2. ACTIVITIES OF THE STRATEGIC POLICE MATTERS UNIT Background The primary role of the SPMU is to provide police-related support to the OSCE Secretary General, the Chairmanship-in-Office, and upon their request, to the OSCE participating States. The SPMU’s mission is to support policing in all OSCE participating States as part of the rule of law and fundamental democratic principles and, through assessment and expert advice, to contribute to the development of accountable police agencies that protect and serve the public. The SPMU’s long-term goals aim to provide a democratic vision of policing for the entire OSCE region and put that vision to work by assisting OSCE participating States in police capacity and institution-building and improving police performance within the broader objective of strengthening national criminal justice systems. The vision guides capacity-building aimed at creating competence to tackle transnational threats, including those emanating from organized crime and terrorism. The SPMU explores every opportunity to also include participants from Partners for Cooperation, in particular from Afghanistan, in its capacity-building events. Throughout the year, the Senior Police Adviser and his staff held high-level meetings with the Ministers of Interior, Head/Directors of Police and Police Academies and Directors of Departments of numerous participating States, responsible for ensuring police accountability and the protection of human rights, as well as dealing with public order management and combating organized crime, terrorism, and trafficking in drugs. In 2011, the Unit continued assisting the field operations and participating States in developing police training and in organizing study tours for law enforcement representatives from participating Sates to other countries and institutions where they could observe and learn about other practices and standards in various fields of policing. In 2011, the SPMU also continued facilitating the exchange of information and the coordination of police-related activities among the relevant OSCE executive structures. On 2021 September, the Unit organized a meeting with the Heads of Law Enforcement Departments and Programmes in Vienna to address issues of common interest. Other thematic units from the Secretariat also participated in the meeting in order to enhance the exchange of information between various executive structures involved in police-related activities. In addition, Delegations of the participating States were also invited to the meeting to give them the opportunity to meet the field operations’ representatives in person and to receive insight from the field. The meeting was held in Vienna back-to-back with the “2011 OSCE Annual Police Experts Meeting”, providing the Heads of Law Enforcement Departments and Programmes with the opportunity to meet law enforcement experts from the participating States, Partners for Co-operation, and international partner organizations. Policy Development As a follow-up to its 2010 Report by the OSCE Secretary General on Police-Related Activities of the OSCE Executive Structures up to the End of 20098 and subsequent discussions within the OSCE, the Unit presented a policy paper in 2011 to the participating States on The Role of the SPMU and OSCE Police-Related Activities. The policy paper analyzed the OSCE’s added value and achievements in police-related activities and prioritized future fields of work. The paper served as the basis for the development of an OSCE strategic framework for police-related activities. 8 16 See OSCE, Report by the OSCE Secretary General on Police-Related Activities of the OSCE Executive Structures up to the End of 2009, SEC.GAL/62/10, Vienna, 31 March 2010.