An expert group on follow up to the trial monitoring has publicized a final statement. Baku Office of the OSCE told Trend said that At the conclusion of two days of very open and productive discussion, the Group agreed a number of specific recommendations to the Government of Azerbaijan for institutional and structural changes in the police custody and pre-trial detention system.
Participants are confident that recommendations will provide assistance to the Government of Azerbaijan in its efforts to fully realize best practices and achieve European standards in the pre trial system. Further meetings of the Group to discuss other recommendations of the Trial Monitoring Report are envisaged shortly.
The second meeting of the Expert Group, formed as an initiative of the Azerbaijan Government, was held between the 28th and 29th of November 2005. The Group met to discuss one topic of the recommendations made in the Report from the Trial Monitoring Project, published in February 2005: “Reform of the Pre-Trial Detention System in Azerbaijan”. The meeting was hosted by the OSCE Office in Baku.
Expert participants were found from relevant ministries and departments of Azerbaijan, representative advocates of the domestic NGO community, practicing advocates, an independent international legal expert and expert representatives, of OSCE/ODIHR and the OSCE Office in Baku.