L. Trial Monitoring in Uzbekistan, ODIHR and the
OSCE Centre in Tashkent
144
Model
ODIHR special-purpose activity organized in co-operation with the OSCE
Centre in Tashkent.
Inception
The project was organized following the violence on 13-14 May 2005 in
Andijan. Between September and November 2005, the criminal trial of the
15 people charged with violent crimes and other serious offences against the
state was monitored.
Objectives
• To observe the trial of those charged with crimes committed in
connection with events in Andijan;
• To monitor the trial for compliance with international fair-trial standards
and OSCE commitments at all stages of proceedings;
• To establish and maintain a dialogue with the Government of Uzbekistan
on issues related to fair-trial standards.
Partners
None.
Monitoring
Staff
Monitoring was performed upon invitation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan by four ODIHR international staff members and two
rule-of-law monitors seconded by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Reports
“Report From the OSCE/ODIHR Trial Monitoring in Uzbekistan – September/October 2005” (2006)
Achievements
• Secured an invitation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to monitor the
trials of 15 people before the Supreme Court of Uzbekistan;
• Secured access to the courtroom for a majority of the trial hearings;
• Publication of a report setting forth the findings of the trial-monitoring.
The report contained findings regarding the following issues: the right
to a public trial; the right to a lawyer in the pre-trial stages of criminal
proceedings; the right to an effective defence counsel;
• A series of recommendations were provided to the Government of
Uzbekistan, which included, inter alia: retrial of the defendants to be fully
compliant with international fair-trial standards; review of all safeguards
for a fair trial in law and practice; review of the conduct of the stateappointed lawyers; access to persons convicted of crimes related to the
Andijan events by competent international bodies.
Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents