POLICE-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF FIELD OPERATIONS central ASIA On 22 and 23 October, the Office supported the participation of one high-level official and two officers of the MoI in the OSCE APEM, which took place in Vienna. The meeting focused on “Future Policing Strategies: Addressing Trends and Changes in a Globalized World”. Representatives of the MoI were invited to examine and discuss legislative instruments, co-operation mechanisms, policing strategies and best practice examples with their colleagues from the OSCE participating States and the Partners for Co-operation to address new and emerging security challenges through a forward-looking approach to policing. Human Rights and Police Accountability On 31 August, the Police Assistance project in co-operation with the Human Dimension Rule of Law Unit organized a three-day training course on juvenile justice aimed at raising awareness and protecting the rights of children in contact with the criminal justice system. The training brought together 18 mid- to senior-level officials from Tajikistan’s MoI and five members of the Tajik Inter-Agency Working Group on Justice for Children System Reform. The training course focused on international norms and standards, domestic legislation related to the rights of the child as applied to juvenile justice, and the psychological characteristics of children in contact with the law. It included discussions and interactive exercises on communication with child suspects, victims and witnesses. Community Policing, Police-Public Relations and Crime Prevention From 9 to 24 August, the Office conducted three workshops aimed at enhancing communication between the police, the general public and the media. In total, 40 mid- to seniorlevel officials from Tajikistan’s MoI and thirty journalists attended the workshops. They highlighted different aspects of the relations between police and community, including the management of press centres and their interaction with mass media. The participants were familiarized with the role of social media in the context of community policing, and learned effective ways for law enforcement agencies to conduct informative and transparent press conferences. They also developed sample work plans on police public relations for the level of regional and district departments that will serve them as a useful tool for their future work with communities. In October and November, the Office, in co-ordination with the MoI and in co-operation with the international NGO Saferworld, organized four three-day training courses for seven PCs. All courses were aimed at increasing the participants’ knowledge of the legal framework and main strategic documents of police reform in Tajikistan, as well as to promote the principles of community policing and enhance police interaction with communities. The events brought together 70 participants from the Republican Public Council, Dushanbe city, Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomus Region (GBAO), Khatlon, Kulyab and Rasht PCs, as well as 12 representatives of Tajikistan’s MoI working in the capacity of assistants to the Heads of Regional and District Departments on Public Relations. Specialized Investigations Units / Forensics In an effort to increase the technical capacities of forensic experts from the MoI’s Forensics Department, alllowing them to process physical evidence, to identify forged documents and to provide the relevant empirical body of evidence, the Office supplied the Department with five modern analytical scales, three compact bullet catchers, three hardness measuring sets, two electro luminescent identification items, one microscope, 20 packs of magnetic fingerprint powder, 200 metres of adhesive tape for collecting finger prints, five ultraviolet counterfeit banknote detectors and two professional camcorders. The Office also donated five forensic cases and 35 books on forensic techniques to the MoI Academy. Activities Related to Threats Posed by Criminal Activity Counter-Terrorism & P/C VERLT On 3 and 4 May, the Office co-organized a high-level international conference on P/C VERLT in Dushanbe, together with the Tajik Government and in close co-operation with TNTD/ATU, the UN and the EU. The event brought together some 65 delegations from different countries and was aimed at creating a common understanding of current challenges and obstacles in the implementation of the UN Global Counter Terrorism Strategy in the region and globally. It also explored opportunities for strengthening the partnership and cooperation at national, regional and international levels on P/C VERLT, and provided a forum for participants to exchange their experiences in tackling this phenomenon by specifically focusing on FTFs threat prevention. The Office provided consultative and technical assistance for the organization of the event and participated in developing the concept note and outcome document of the conference. Illicit Drugs and Chemical Precursors On 16 and 17 July, the Office gave administrative and financial support for the participation of three Tajik law enforcement officials in the OSCE-wide conference on “Combatting the Threat of Illicit Drugs and the Diversion of Chemical Precursors” in Vienna. The Tajik delegation, which included 125