to respond to developments within the Organization, in human beings and to ensure a co-ordinated re- in particular, to the appointment of the OSCE Special sponse that puts the rights of victims first. The ODIHR Representative on Trafficking in Human Beings, and to develops and implements anti-trafficking programmes focus on its areas of strength such as protecting the that focus on awareness-raising and on building NGO human rights of trafficking victims. capacity to provide counseling and direct assistance to victims. By assisting in the creation of National Referral Mechanisms, the ODIHR seeks to establish a co-operative framework through which state obligations to pro- Thematic areas of work tect the rights of trafficked persons and to organize
Rule of law: The ODIHR is engaged in a broad range support are co-ordinated with services carried out by of technical-assistance projects designed to foster the civil society. development of rule of law. Through its programmes in the areas of criminal-justice reform and fair trials,
the ODIHR provides practical assistance and training, movement and enhance respect for the rights of mi- for example, to lawyers, judges, prosecutors, and gov- grants, the ODIHR facilitates regional and sub-regional ernment officials, as well as to civil society. The ODIHR co-operation and exchanges of experience between also carries out legal-reform and legislative-review the OSCE participating States, assists in the introduc- projects to assist states in bringing domestic laws into tion of population-registration systems that are in line line with OSCE commitments and other international with international standards, and raises awareness on standards. migration issues among policy makers and the public in Freedom of movement: To promote freedom of the OSCE participating States.
Democratic governance: The ODIHR takes a comprehensive approach to strengthening democratic prac-
tices, targeting both government institutions and civil port, the ODIHR provides legislative assistance to par- society. The Office’s strategy is to complement other ticipating States that usually involves a review of programmes aimed at strengthening institutions, legal draft legislation in areas covered by the human di- reform, and promotion of the rule of law by putting mension to ensure compliance with international the emphasis on strengthening democratic processes standards, particularly OSCE commitments. The Office through enhancing transparency and expanding par- also maintains a free-of-charge online database ticipation in policy-making. (www.legislationline.org) that contains more than Legislative support: In the area of legislative sup- 5,000 pieces of domestic and international legislation Gender equality: To promote gender equality, the related to the human dimension, such as human ODIHR carries out targeted programmes and integrates rights, elections, gender, and rule of law. Together gender aspects into all its work. Current programmes with comments by the Office’s experts, they comprise concentrate on three key areas: developing women's an important source for law-makers throughout the leadership and increasing the role of women in deci- region.
sion-making; preventing and combating violence against women, especially domestic violence; and building local gender expertise.
Trafficking in human beings: The ODIHR is at the forefront of international efforts to prevent trafficking 20