Democratization: Rule of Law Within this framework, the ODIHR implements activities in OSCE participating States in Central and Eastern Europe, South-Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. The Office uses expertise from a variety of sources, stressing good practices developed in various participating States. Where appropriate, the ODIHR relies on experts from states that have had comparable experiences. Included in this pool are a considerable number of experts from the Russian Federation. Co-operation with OSCE field operations is vital, as those on the ground in the relevant countries are able to react quickly to developments in government policies or to cases that require OSCE involvement. The ODIHR also co-operates with a strong network of governmental and non-governmental partners, which is a fundamental aspect of all of its fieldwork. I. Fair trials Promoting access to justice The ODIHR emphasizes access to justice as a core element of the rule of law. Denial of justice and ineffective access to justice hinder implementation of the rights granted in constitutions and legislative acts, making legislative frameworks ultimately window dressing. Through a variety of initiatives in 2006, the ODIHR provided states with advice on how to improve their legal-aid schemes and trained lawyers to improve their ability to implement the rights set forth in procedural legislation in the courtroom. A special day at the 2006 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM) was devoted to this topic, during which participants addressed the issue of the availability and quality of legal assistance, as well as the need to ensure the enforcement of court decisions in civil and administrative cases. The HDIM provided a platform for dialogue and the exchange of expertise and knowhow, and promoted the exchange of best practices and lessons learned among government and civil society representatives present at the meeting. In addition to policy discussions, the ODIHR also supported a number of practical initiatives in participating States. In Croatia, the ODIHR completed the implementation of a legal-aid project that ensured access to justice for particularly vulnerable groups, focusing on refugees and displaced persons who left the country during the period of armed conflict and wished to return to Croatia. The project was initiated in 2003 as a result of an ODIHR assessment highlighting the lack of an effective scheme for free legal aid in civil cases. By supporting a local legal-aid NGO, the ODIHR ensured that, between 2003 and 2006, more than 1,300 clients were provided with free legal assistance and in-court representation, thus contributing to sustainable return of refugees, displaced persons, and internally displaced persons in Croatia. At the request of Kazakhstan’s Justice Ministry, the ODIHR participated in discussions among political decision makers and professional civil society groups on reforming the legal-aid system and contributed technical expertise and comparative examples from other participating States to the official concept paper on the reform of the legal-aid system. The ODIHR also held consultations with all major stakeholders in the legal sphere. The ODIHR will continue to pay attention to this important area of justice reform in the coming year. National human rights institutions such as ombudsmen can provide assistance with regard to the effective implementation of individual complaints and improve access to justice for individual citizens. The ODIHR continued in 2006 to provide legislative support through technical advice in drafting relevant legislative frameworks. It also provided technical assistance for the creation of national human rights institutions and promoted the sharing of best practices and experiences, as well as the transfer of technical know-how within the OSCE area through regional and international meetings bringing together professionals from various participating States. The ODIHR followed the appointment of a second human rights defender to Armenia’s Office of the Human Annual Report  25