OSCE Centre and Supreme Court conduct seminar on alternatives to imprisonment

OSH, 13 November 2009 - An OSCE-supported two-day training seminar for local judges from Southern Kyrgyzstan focusing on judiciary system reform and alternatives to imprisonment started today in Osh. 

The seminar, organized by the Supreme Court of Kyrgyzstan and the local non-governmental organization "Human Rights Advocacy Centre" with the support of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek, gathered 25 judges from Osh, Jalal-Abad and Batken provinces of Kyrgyzstan.

At practical workshops conducted by Supreme Court judges and representatives of the Supreme Court's Judiciary Training Centre, seminar participants are discussing the ongoing judicial reform and the implementation of the law on humanization of criminal legislation by local courts.

Participants are also discussing the role and functions of the National Council on Judiciary Affairs, the Council of Judges and the Judiciary Training Centre, as well as practical aspects such as the application of pre-trial restraint measures by local courts, admissibility of evidence, matters related to restorative justice and alternative punishment, and co-operation and co-ordination between the local courts and local branches of the State Probation Service.

"We consider this workshop particularly important in the light of the ongoing legal reform which encourages the courts to consider alternative sentences to imprisonment for the cases when defendant poses no public danger and did not commit grave crime. Such punishments give offenders a better chance to be reintegrated into society. Local courts play a crucial role in this regard and should be aware of all the aspects of the reform," said Ambassador Andrew Tesoriere, the Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek.

Janyl Alieva, Chairman of the Supreme Court of Kyrgyz Republic, added: "Some initiatives reforming the judiciary system have been accepted and are already applied by the courts in Kyrgyz Republic. In addition, the Council of Judges was set up to increase the independence and commitment of judges. A lot has been done to incorporate human rights in criminal legislation: the death penalty was abolished and several Criminal Code articles were revised. The seminar provides local judges with the latest information on the legal developments and thus helps them apply the recently adopted laws in these fields."

The seminar is part of a project run by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek's field office in Osh to strengthen the judicial capacity and legal protection of victims of human rights violations.