OSCE Centre helps judges better handle human trafficking cases

The last in a series of eight OSCE-supported training seminars for judges on good practices in handling human trafficking cases took place on 21 November 2013 in Astana. The seminars were organized by the OSCE Centre in Astana, in co-operation with the Civil Service Academy, the Supreme Court and the U.S. Embassy in Kazakhstan.

Over the course of ten months, some 250 judges from all regions of Kazakhstan discussed how best to use national and international legal tools in dealing with criminal cases on trafficking in human beings.

Supreme Court judges from Kazakhstan, Moldova and Turkey, as well as specialists from local non-governmental organizations shared their experience with some 30 regional court judges from across Kazakhstan and other civil servants.

Murat Beibitov, Director of the Academy of Public Administration, stressed the need to enhance professional skills of judges in Kazakhstan and bringing the trafficking case practice in the country fully in line with international and national standards.

The seminars are part of the OSCE Centre’s longstanding efforts to strengthen the protection of human trafficking victims and provide them with access to justice.