Foreword OSCE participating States have undertaken a number of significant commitments to comply with a set of rules and principles in the administration of criminal justice. Foremost among these is the commitment to ensure the right to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time before an independent and impartial tribunal. In order to effectuate this commitment and others relating to fair trials, OSCE states have agreed to permit trial-monitoring. Trial-monitoring is widely regarded as a powerful tool to support the process of judicial reform consistent with domestic and international guarantees of a fair trial. It is used across the OSCE area today by a host of programmes staffed by professionally trained monitors, both domestic and international. By systematically gathering reliable information about how trials are conducted, these programmes aim to assist participating States in developing functioning justice systems that adjudicate cases consistent with the rule of law and international fair-trial standards. Like any other tool, trialmonitoring has its advantages and limitations. Understanding them will help organize trial-monitoring programmes that deliver useful and reliable results, and avoid poorly conceived activities. This manual is intended for practitioners involved in trial-monitoring. It accumulates the OSCE experience for the benefit of professional communities within and beyond the OSCE region. Anyone interested in setting up and running a trial-monitoring programme, or simply learning more about trial-monitoring, will find here useful information, advice, and lessons learned. The concept of this manual began to take form at several trial-monitoring meetings organized by ODIHR between 2002 and 2005. These meetings focused on monitoring methodologies, common operational dilemmas, and specific strategies to assist OSCE field operations and institutions define and achieve their trial-monitoring objectives. The experience of these meetings was that, while programmes operated in different domestic contexts, the operational challenges involved in running effective trial-monitoring programmes were often much the same. This manual has taken stock from these meetings. It also relies on a detailed assessment of several OSCE trial-monitoring programmes, provides examples of common approaches to operational issues, and contains many good practices. The manual includes information available through March 2008. As always, ODIHR is looking forward to receiving feedback and input that would help us improve this publication. ODIHR would like to express its appreciation to Thomas Chaseman, the key expert responsible for drafting this manual. The assistance of Katy Thompson is also appreciated. ODIHR would like to thank the OSCE field operations for continued assistance and support in relation to this undertaking. Finally, ODIHR is grateful for the gener- Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners 9