Overview ODIHR Director Ambassador Janez Lenarcˇicˇ addresses a session of NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly at the Sejm, Poland’s parliament, in Warsaw on 16 November. (OSCE/Curtis Budden) Justice Research Institute and OSCE field operations in the region, with funding coming from the European Union. A comprehensive set of recommendations on how governments can advance the independence of their judiciaries was developed at an ODIHR-organized meeting in Kyiv in June, which was attended by experts from 19 participating States. The Kyiv Recommendations on Judicial Independence have since been used as a basis for several country-specific discussions on relevant reform initiatives. The publication of ODIHR’s report on the trials that were held after the post-election violence in Armenia in 2008 was followed by a series of workshops to discuss the recommendations included in the report and integrate them into the work on Armenia’s new criminal procedure code. This is just one example of how ODIHR’s monitoring and assessment activities can lead to concrete co-operation with authorities in strengthening the rule of law and democratic processes. Gender equality and the participation of women in public life continued to be a priority in ODIHR’s work during the year. One of the special OSCE human dimension meetings organized by ODIHR and the chairmanship in 2010 focused on sharing good practices and experiences for promoting women’s political participation. With regard to improving the situation of Roma and Sinti in the OSCE area, ODIHR’s Contact Point focused on promoting the implementation of the 2003 OSCE Action Plan, as well as follow-up to recent Ministerial Council decisions. ODIHR also reacted to troubling developments affecting both migrant and resident Roma in a number of participating States by drawing public attention not only to particular incidents but also to the need for concrete steps to promote integration. The strong reaffirmation of OSCE commitments, including those related to human rights and democracy, at the Astana Summit at the end of the year and the acknowledgement by the heads of state and government of the existing gaps in implementation provide a good basis for ODIHR to continue its work in supporting democratic reform in the future. ODIHR is grateful to participating States for their support and co-operation during the past year and we are looking forward to deepening our engagement with governments and civil society with the aim of turning the promises of the OSCE human dimension commitments into reality everywhere in the OSCE region. Ambassador Janez Lenarčič Director, OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) ODIHR Annual Report 2010 5