Turkmenistan officials discuss best practices in prison management on OSCE-supported visits to Denmark and Norway
ASHGABAT, 25 May 2012 – Five senior officials from Turkmenistan’s law-enforcement bodies participated in an OSCE-organized working visit to Denmark and Norway on prison management that concluded in Oslo today.
The working visit aimed to facilitate the exchange of best practices among Turkmenistan and other OSCE participating States in the area of the prison system administration and the rights of prisoners.
During the one-day visit to Denmark, the delegation visited the Danish Institute for Human Rights, the Danish Prison and Probation Service and several penitentiary institutions. Discussions focused on the penitentiary system in Denmark and national legislation addressing the rights of prisoners.
The four-day visit to Norway included meetings at the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security and visits to the Probation Office and a number of penitentiary institutions, including a detention and prison for women.
The law-enforcement officials from Turkmenistan gained insight into the Norwegian Correctional Service, the relevant legal framework, security measures in prisons, as well as rehabilitation and reintegration programmes in prisons, and education and vocational training for inmates. The delegation also discussed the Norwegian probation service, alternative measures to imprisonment and issues related to healthcare for inmates.
“These visits are expected to assist the host country in advancing its penitentiary system, and the OSCE Centre remains committed to continuing its support for the implementation of the country’s human dimension commitments,” said Ambassador Ivo Petrov, the Acting Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat.
The working visit was fully financed by the Government of Norway through an extra-budgetary contribution.