for Implementation of the Programme’s Activities was established in January 2015 and is currently operative. In its efforts to further enhance accountable and transparent internal oversight mechanisms in the police service, the PDU, in co-operation with the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF), organized the 5th Regional Conference in Skopje between 1 and 3 October 2014 for the representatives of Units of Internal Control of 11 countries from South-Eastern Europe. The conference focused on “Professional conduct of police officers as a condition for increased confidence of the citizens” and “Cooperation and coordination between the Sector for Internal Control and the Office of Public Prosecutor in the area of acting upon complaints regarding the issues of corruption and illegal activities done by the MoIA employees”. Additionally, an “Open Day” for citizens in all eight Sectors for Internal Affairs was organized by PDU in co-operation with the MoIA Sector for Internal Control and Professional Standards (SICPS). The Open Day aimed to increase the transparency and accountability of the SICPS by encouraging open discussion among different stakeholders on topics related to the police behaviour, including respect for human rights, as well as to the abuse and misuse of police power. In 2014, the Mission’s PDU further supported the implementation of strategic priorities deriving from the MoIA Training Strategy adopted by the MoIA in late 2012 and the Development Strategy of the Police Training Centre adopted by the MoIA at the beginning of 2014, both produced with the Mission’s support. In 2014, the PDU supported the development of an integrated and fully operational “E-learning” platform to assist the MoIA Training Centre in the modernization of its training system. Police-Media Relations PDU efforts to encourage police-media relations continued in 2014 through strengthening the decentralized structure within MoIA Sector for Public Relations (PR). Training on updating the MoIA web site was organized with PDU support for regional police spokespersons from all eight Sectors of Internal Affairs (SIAs) and MoIA PR advisers to increase the visibility and transparency of police actions at the local level. Additionally, the Mission supported the Sector for Public Relations in the development of the Communication Plan consisting of the Situation Analysis, the Guidelines for Communication with the Public and the Guide for Crisis Communication. The effect of Mission support in this field may be measured by the positive trend in the public perception of police-media relations. The Public Perception Survey on Policing 2014, supported by the Mission, has shown that citizens and police agree that the police effectively use the media to broadcast information related to public safety. In 2010, the percentage of citizens who completely or generally agreed with this statement was 58.6 per cent, which increased by 9.7 per cent to 68.3 per cent in 2012. In 2014, this percentage was 71.5 per cent, thus representing a total increase of 22 per cent in the last four years. Assistance with Elections In regards to the presidential and early parliamentary elections held in April 2014, the Monitoring Unit of the Mission, with the support of other Units, including the PDU, monitored the security situation on election days at the identified hotspots in the host country, which provided the Mission Management with first-hand security-related information. PDU deployed teams that monitored police interventions in the polling stations (when requested by Electoral Boards) and reported on incidents or disturbances of public peace and order at or near polling stations, especially in ethnically mixed areas. 109