OSCE facilitates police reform in Tajikistan

The OSCE Office in Tajikistan facilitated a three-day expert operational meeting from 27 to 29 November 2013 aimed at aligning the Police Reform Programme and Action Plan with the National Police Reform Strategy of Tajikistan.

Ambassador Markus Mueller, Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, said: “Police reform lies at the heart of developing democratic policing in Tajikistan, as it promotes a new, positive relationship between police, civil society and the population at large – the key actors in police reform.”

The meeting took place in Khoja Obigarm, some 50 kilometers north of Dushanbe. It brought together some 40 experts from the Executive Office of the President, Ministries of Interior, Justice, Finance, Agency of State Financial Control and Anti–Corruption, National Centre of Legislation, General Prosecutor’s Office, Supreme Court, Ombudsman, Police Reform Civil Society Advisory Group, Embassy of the Russian Federation, UNICEF, as well as international independent experts.

The event participants sought to finalize the draft of Police Reform Programme and Action Plan for the implementation of the Police Reform Programme. Once revised, the documents will be submitted for approval to the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.

Nurillo Oripov, First Deputy Interior Minister of Tajikistan said: “We have made another step towards creating a new model of police structure which, in line with modern standards in human rights and fundamental freedoms, will help protect the interests and rights of people, in the first place.”