Legal reform support

The Centre has implemented a wide range of activities under its programme to support the host country in implementing legal reforms.

The Centre has supported the law-making process in Turkmenistan by organizing a series of courses on legislative drafting skills for Members of Parliament and parliamentarian legal officers, strengthened by study visits to the parliaments of other OSCE participating States.

The Centre has also worked to further enhance Turkmenistan's legal information. In 2010, the Centre launched a searchable database that includes all officially published national normative acts as well as international treaties to which Turkmenistan signed. The database is regularly updated and is available online at: http://www.turkmenlegaldatabase.info/

The Centre, in co-operation with the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, produced comprehensive comments to legislation in Turkmenistan, including the Law on Religious Freedom and Religious Organizations, the Law on Public Associations and on Turkmenistan’s legal framework in Combating Trafficking in Persons, thus assisting Turkmenistan in bringing its legislation in compliance with international law standards.

Support to the administration of criminal justice

The Centre assists the host country in considering international standards suitable for enhancing the national legal system by providing training opportunities for judges and law-enforcement officers to get further acquainted with international judicial standards and legal developments.

Promoting human rights education

The Centre has supported numerous activities in the area of human rights education, including lectures and training courses on different aspects of international human rights standards for of higher education institutions in Turkmenistan. The Centre has also donated publications on international human rights law to the libraries of these institutions and distributed publications related to OSCE commitments in the human dimension of security.

Prevention of trafficking in human beings

The Centre has facilitated the exchange of best practices in preventing and combating human trafficking for representatives of state institutions, civil society and international organizations.  In particular, the Centre supported the National Red Crescent Society of Turkmenistan (NRCST) in organizing “train-the-trainers” courses aimed at human trafficking prevention and safe migration promotion. This led the newly-trained instructors to conduct training sessions for the general public throughout the country. The Centre also organized seminars on this topic, targeting nationwide regional and local authorities and travel agencies.

Promoting international standards in the prison system

The Centre organizes thematic training courses to support the host country in further promoting prison officers' awareness of the rights of detainees and prisoners. The Centre is also working on the draft of a specialized manual on the rights of individuals deprived of liberty for teachers at the S. A. Niyazov Institute under the Ministry of Interior.

Preventing domestic violence

In 2009, the Centre initiated support to the public association ‘Keik Okara’ in providing a hotline on domestic violence to citizens of Turkmenistan. The Centre has also been supporting training courses for hotline consultants and the general public, and supported legal and psychological consultations on domestic violence.

Support to youth education

With the Centre’s support, the National Red Crescent Society of Turkmenistan organized training events in different regions of Turkmenistan to raise awareness on HIV/AIDS, STD, the risks of drugs, and gender and domestic violence. The Centre also supports activities aimed at raising awareness of youth rights among teenagers from different regions of Turkmenistan.

Media sector development

The Centre assists the host country in implementing media education reform. The Centre has established successful co-operation with the international journalism department at the Institute for International Relations, opened on the premises of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2008, and has organized a lecture series on the global media, and journalism skills for its students. The Centre organized practical training courses for journalists in print and electronic media. The Centre also works on assisting government and media institutions in modernizing Turkmenistan’s media legislation and a round table on mechanisms of enhancing the country’s media legislation to comply with relevant technologies and international standards was organized in 2011.