integrating a full course on countering terrorism while protecting human rights into the regular curriculum of key national institutions in Tajikistan. The initial course reflected a key element of ODIHR’s mandate to provide technical assistance and support to participating States in the development and implementation of effective counter-terrorism strategies. It was also good fit for the OSCE OiT police reform activities to foster the skill development of operational managers dealing with counter-terrorism. During this seminar, all participants, together with OSCE officials, brainstormed on the challenges and different approaches to teaching human rights to law enforcement officers in Tajikistan. This workshop was the start of an 18-month long process of developing trainer skills for drafting and implementing a core curriculum on Human Rights and Terrorism embedded in the respective curricula of each training institution. The training builds on momentum gained from various roundtables and workshops held before in Tajikistan by ODIHR and the OiT. On 14 October, ten instructors from the Academy of the MIA, the Police Training Centre and the Higher School of the State Committee on National Security gathered a second time with representatives of ODIHR and the OiT to discuss how to reinforce and build their capacity to understand and protect human rights while countering terrorism. Within the framework of this project, progress since the last workshop was discussed with a focus on the development of the new curriculum on Human Rights and Terrorism. Drug Prevention and Community Policing On 24 June, a “Drug Prevention Campaign” commenced in Dushanbe running until September in the Khatlon and Soghd regions. The Campaign was part of the implementation of the national drug strategy endorsed by the President of the Republic of Tajikistan. The main focus of the Campaign was to disseminate information about drug trafficking and drug abuse reaching out to the communities, with a specific focus on the youth. As a special event during the Campaign, the OiT, together with its partners organized a “Rap against Drugs” concert on 24 June. The event facilitated co-operation between law enforcement agencies, local authorities and community members in identifying community problems, such as drug trafficking and drug abuse, to combat this phenomenon and create a save environment for all citizens. Freedom of the Media and Police The Office contributed analysis, local case studies and conceptual input to the development of a “Public and Media Relations Course” targeting law enforcement government spokespersons. From 24-28 October, the course was implemented by the U.S. Embassy/INL. The course introduced skills to inform and deal with the media in routine and crisis situations and took into account the recent series of conflicts between independent print media and officials from the security sector government bodies (Ministry of Interior, State Committee for National Security). The aim of the course was to professionalize the media relations of these agencies, to raise understanding of legitimate needs to inform the public through the media and to develop tolerance for critical reporting. On 4 November, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, during her first official visit to Tajikistan, addressed the issue of civil law suits against print media filed by representatives of the Ministry, emphasizing the chilling effects of high damage awards in civil cases on free media. She encouraged public officials to show a higher degree of tolerance and not view criticism by the media as personal attacks. She also suggested that the Media Council, a self-regulation institution established two years ago with assistance from the OSCE, could serve as a platform to resolve conflicts. 118