impact of reports, as well as the visibility of both organizations. In addition, they demonstrate a sense of partnership and commitment in connection with the subject matter
of the report that gives additional weight to the recommendations.
In the OSCE context, project monitoring programmes, such as those in Central Asia
and Moldova, aim to issue joint reports with their implementing partners, including
international and national NGOs. Such reports are produced with the input of the
implementing partner, thereby benefiting from local perspective. Upon issuance, such
reports are also positioned to be more widely distributed through the networks of the
involved organizations, thereby increasing the audience of the report, as well as the visibility of all partners.
A second variety of joint report is issued with a national institution or authority.
By issuing reports with a national authority, a report assumes the added impact that
derives from official state approval. Further, state approval not only extends to findings,
but also to the viewpoints expressed and recommendations made in the report. Such
joint reporting may have a powerful effect on local authorities and actors who then cannot ignore monitoring results after official government bodies have sanctioned findings
and expressed a commitment to reform. Within the OSCE context, one field operation
has succeeded in having reports issued with local authorities on several occasions.
Trial-monitoring by the OSCE Mission to Croatia: war-crimes reports
issued together with the Ministry of Justice
Between 2003 and 2006, two of the various comprehensive war-crimes reports published
by the OSCE Mission to Croatia were issued jointly with the Ministry of Justice of Croatia.*
At that time, the joint reports were prepared in full by the Rule of Law Section based on
the mission’s monitoring, before being provided to the Ministry of Justice for review. After
comment by, and discussion with, the Ministry, the reports were published and a joint press
conference was held to announce the report and recommendations.
According to the experience of the Mission, the joint issuance of the reports added to the
credibility of the reports among the state authorities, including prosecutors and the judiciary. In turn, this increased the impact of the findings and awareness of international fair-trial
standards among local courts. Conversely, joint issuance of reports also benefits the host
state in that it is seen to be making reform necessary for EU succession.
* Reports issued by the OSCE Mission to Croatia after 2006 were issued by the Mission only, and not jointly with the Ministry
of Justice.
9.4 Roundtable events
Roundtable events following the publication of reports have been used extensively as
a mechanism to further expand the reach of reports, as well as to organize a process
to implement recommendations. Roundtables organized among a wide range of stakeholders provide actors with information, a forum for discussion, and bring together
different institutional and individual perspectives. Organizing roundtables around the
findings of the report provides the benefit of a solid foundation of fact to discuss the
current situation and from which to begin discussion about reforms. In the OSCE,
roundtables have been organized at all levels of the justice system from among judges in
Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners
119
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents