Local judges and prosecutors visit ICTY as part of War Crimes Justice Project training initiative for Kosovo judiciary

PRISHTINЁ/PRIŠTINA, 5 October 2011 – Eleven local judges and prosecutors from Kosovo today started a two-day study visit to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

The visit is part of a capacity-building initiative carried out under the War Crimes Justice Project (WCJP), implemented by OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), ICTY and the UN Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute. 

The visit includes a training seminar, peer-to-peer discussions with ICTY judges and prosecutors, as well as presentations by staff of the Tribunal. This is the first time the Tribunal is hosting a group of local judges and prosecutors from Kosovo.

“The programme was developed in close consultation with practitioners and the Kosovo Judicial Institute. The ICTY adjusted the programme to meet the needs of the participants,” said Romana Schweiger, the ODIHR Regional Co-coordinator.

The training seminar is based on the International and Humanitarian Law Curriculum, provided by the WCJP to the Kosovo Judicial Institute for use in their regular training programmes.

"The knowledge transfer and expertise sharing is timely and critical for our judges and prosecutors," said Lavdim Krasniqi, the Director of the Kosovo Judicial Institute.

“It is with great pleasure that I welcome our colleagues from Kosovo to the Tribunal to exchange views and expertise on the adjudication of war crimes cases.  I am confident that our interaction will result in greater understanding of the common challenges we face in carrying out our work and methods to overcome those challenges,” said ICTY Judge Fausto Pocar.

The participants will also attend a trial hearing at the Tribunal and discuss issues ranging from drafting indictments and judgments to victims and witnesses support and protection issues with their ICTY peers.

The War Crimes Justice Project is a four-million euro regional project funded by the European Union and carried out by ODIHR in partnership with the ICTY, the UN Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute and OSCE field operations.

This project is funded by the European Union.

For more information please contact: Sanela Tunovic, War Crimes Justice Project Outreach Officer at: +387 61 539 535 or e-mail: at wcjp@odihr.pl.