Democratization Benjamin Moreau, the Chief of ODIHR’s Rule of Law unit, and Nurlan Abdirov, a Member of the Parliament of Kazakhstan, (l-r) at the Fourth Expert Forum on Criminal Justice for Central Asia, Almaty, 29 October 2012. (OSCE/Shiv Sharma) citizens to exercise civil rights. In those participating States where these services are provided on residence-based criteria, residency registration is used as a tool in planning and delivering services. If citizens are not enrolled in a residency registration system, this impacts their ability to exercise their right to freedom of movement, as well as many other civil and fundamental rights. ODIHR continues to support OSCE participating States in the development of population-registration systems and the promotion of good practices in the area of migrant integration in the OSCE region. 22 ODIHR Annual Report 2012 ACTIVITIES ODIHR’s democratization activities can be divided into three basic areas: II Rule of law and legal reform; II Democratic governance and gender; and II Migration and freedom of movement. Rule of Law and Legal Reform All OSCE participating States can benefit from expert advice and assistance in meeting relevant international standards and OSCE commitments, especially in relation to their institutional and legislative frameworks to address the many challenges in the field of rule of law. ODIHR assists OSCE participating States in the identification and promotion of good practices through a variety of means, including expert meetings and exchanges, monitoring projects and assessments, and the development of policy guidelines, legislative reviews, comments and recommendations. Inclusiveness and a participatory approach form the basis for ODIHR’s activities, which are carried out in partnership with parliaments, political parties, judiciaries, government agencies, legal communities, international organizations and civil society. Independence of the Judiciary ODIHR continues to assist participating States in strengthening judicial independence by promoting the Kyiv Recommendations on Judicial Independence, which form the basis for country-specific discussions with decision makers, scholars and legal communities,