J. Domestic War Crimes Trial Monitoring, OSCE Mission to Serbia 142 Model A staff programme of the OSCE Mission to Serbia funded through extrabudgetary contributions from the Netherlands. Inception The Mission has monitored war crimes trials on an ad hoc basis since 2001, and permanently since 2003. Objectives • To assess domestic war-crimes trials for compliance with international fairtrial standards; • To assess the application of international standards in war-crimes cases transferred under Rule 11 bis of the ICTY Rules of Procedure; • To track progress of regional co-operation efforts in the collection of evidence and prosecution of those indicted for war crimes; • To support judicial reform, including identifying legislative, training, and institutional needs, to help improve the fairness and effectiveness of criminal prosecutions. Reports Published: “War Crimes before the Domestic Courts” (2003). Unpublished: daily and periodic reports on specific cases and issues distributed to the international community and local counterparts. Partners None Monitoring Staff Two national staff members of the Mission’s Rule of Law and Human Rights Department monitor war-crimes trials under a programme supervisor. Achievements • The identification of a need to establish regional judicial and police co-operation with Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina; • The facilitation of regional co-operation mechanisms, including regional meetings of prosecutors and judges involved in war-crimes prosecutions; • The dissemination of reports on individual war-crimes cases to the ICTY, foreign embassies, and international organizations; • The publication of a public report assessing the application of international law and standards in war crimes such as ICTY jurisprudence related to command responsibility, the law of armed conflict, admission of evidence, and compliance with fair-trial standards. Of Note As a Mission activity, monitoring war-crimes trials is also part of wider warcrimes programming aimed at assisting Serbia come to terms with the legacy of its recent wartime past. From this perspective, war-crimes prosecutions are viewed as an important part of a process of transitional justice in which justice is provided to victims. As a result, in addition to monitoring war-crimes proceedings to assess the fairness and effectiveness of trials, monitoring also aims to identify institutional obstacles to securing criminal accountability. Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners