Project trial-monitoring in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan: increasing transparency and assessing compliance with international fair-trial standards Beginning in 2004, ODIHR, in co-operation with the OSCE Centres in Almaty and Bishkek, launched long-term trial-monitoring project programmes in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. These programmes entailed the recruitment and training of 25 local lawyers in each country to systematically monitor criminal trials. Once accepted to the programme as contracted monitors and trained, these recent law school graduates and young practicing lawyers were paid to monitor trials in designated courts in their assigned region. As required by the terms of their individual contracts, monitors worked under the direction of the project co-ordinator in accordance with the methodology set forth in the projects’ trial-monitoring guidelines and instructions on monitoring and reporting. Foremost among the aims of both of the programmes was to obtain reliable information on criminal practices to support ongoing efforts to improve compliance with fair-trial standards and support reform of the judiciary. An aim of equal importance was to train and build the capacity of local lawyers to monitor and report on criminal trials, as well as to widely publish the findings of their monitoring. Among the achievements of these programmes was the attainment of greater access to criminal trials, including an increased openness of criminal courts, judges, and prosecutors to the presence of monitors, consistent with the right to a public trial. With the dissemination of public reports in 2007, the programmes in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan met another of their primary goals by publishing the first independent and objective findings on the compliance of the criminal justice system with domestic legal procedures and international legal standards. The increased transparency of criminal proceedings combined with the development of a local monitoring capacity and publication of findings demonstrate the important role of these programmes in the process of reform. 3.3 Comparison of staff and project models Staff and project models both constitute viable options for establishing a programme capable of supporting comprehensive monitoring efforts of extended duration within the host state. Despite differences in organization, both types of programmes are capable of fulfilling the basic functions of trial-monitoring to obtain accurate information regarding the functioning of the criminal justice system to further a long-term reform process. In the OSCE, programmes of both types have monitored individual cases for the application of domestic laws and compliance with international fair-trial standards, provided public reporting on these issues to raise awareness and effect systemic change, and expanded the right to a public trial. Nevertheless, there are operational issues related to different functional capacities of these programme models that should be considered prior to selecting a model for a programme. The following chart provides a comparative overview of some these organizational considerations. 38 Trial-Monitoring: A Reference Manual for Practitioners