“Train the trainer” workshop for addiction support workers in the Lipjan Correctional Facility (Kosovo) from 6-8 March 2023. Kosovo
The IRZ has been working closely with the Lipjan Correctional Facility in the area of juvenile penitentiary since 2017. Since 2020, the focus of the cooperation has been on how to treat young addicts. A training course for prison staff on support work based on the German model is intended to help them learn how to treat young people with addiction problems in prison enforcement to enable them to free themselves from the addiction and to improve their prospects of social reintegration after release. A joint concept for “treating young addicts in the penitentiary system” was therefore drafted in 2021 and 2022.
Against this backdrop, a “Train the trainer” workshop was held for addiction support workers in the Lipjan Correctional Facility (Kosovo) from 6-8 March 2023. The event was attended by two employees each from the juvenile correctional service, the juvenile detention centre, the girls’ and women’s correctional service, the diagnosis unit for the correctional service and the probation service. Ms. Katja Liebmann, Head of the Social Therapy Department and Psychology Counsellor at Hameln Juvenile Institution, and Mr. Siegfried Löprick, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Jugendhilfe Göttingen e.V. (youth support service), provided comprehensive theoretical and practical knowledge to the participants on the focal points of “addiction anamnesis” and “treatment measures for addiction” in a joint exchange.
The aim of the training was to provide the participants with the necessary professional skills to implement the addiction treatment independently in their respective institutions. In the future, the participants see themselves as multipliers for “addiction support” in their institution, and will therefore also be able to train other suitable employees. In addition, the participants and the Head of the Correctional Service discussed the possibility of visiting suitable inpatient addiction treatment facilities in Kosovo to enable the participants to continue their professional training after the workshop.
The event was generally characterised by a particularly trusting environment for the discussions, lively and active participation by all participants and an extremely practice-oriented and interactive implementation of the workshop.
The cooperation with the Lipjan Correctional Facility takes place within the framework of the project funding for “Support for several states in the Western Balkans in the consolidation of constitutional and European standards” and is funded by the Federal Foreign Office. After the first independent implementation of an addiction measure and observations on site, a follow-up event can be organised to discuss and reflect on the measures in the second half of the year.
Expert talks at the Koblenz Higher Regional Court as part of the study trip for Kosovan judges from 19-24 February 2023 in Trier and Koblenz. Kosovo
In February 2023, a delegation of recently appointed Kosovan judges was able to exchange ideas with their German colleagues during a study trip and to gain a practical insight into the workings of German courts. The study trip was funded by the Federal Foreign Office, and took place in Trier and Koblenz from 19-24 February 2023 and was organised with the Kosovo Judicial Academy.
The 22 members of the delegation was accommodated in the German Judicial Academy in Trier for the duration of the study trip. To start the week, the Director of the Academy, Dr. Stephan Jaggi, presented the historical role and working methods of the German Judicial Academy and the basics of further training for judges in Germany, before giving a general overview of ordinary jurisdiction in Germany. The participants then discussed aspects of judicial conduct of negotiations, questions of judicial ethics and alternative dispute resolution options in Germany with Mr. Uwe Stark, a Judge at the district court of Siegen.
The intensive exchange of experiences continued the next day when Dr. Bruno Menhofer, Presiding Judge at the Frankfurt am Main Higher Regional Court, gave the participants a comprehensive insight into German civil procedural law. The initially theoretical explanations on the procedural principles of German procedural law were illustrated with the help of the IRZ educational film “Vista 2020”. In the afternoon, the participants visited the Academy of European Law (ERA) in Trier and received an introduction to the tasks and role of the ERA from Mr. Jean-Philippe Rageade, Director of the Academy of European Law and Luc Doeve, Acting Director of Finance.
Following the expert talks and theoretical introductions at the start of the study trip, on the third day the delegation had the opportunity to participate in a criminal hearing at the Trier Regional Court and were then able to ask the Presiding Judge, the Public Prosecutor and the jury some general questions about the course of the procedure. This practical insight continued in the afternoon by more expert talks on German criminal procedural law and the role of the investigating judge.
The four-day study trip ended with a visit to the Koblenz Higher Regional Court. After a ceremonial welcome by Mr Thomas Henrichs, the President of the Higher Regional Court, the delegation exchanged views with their German colleagues on the basics of family court proceedings and aspects of commercial court proceedings.
The numerous working and expert talks, the court visits, and the participation in the verbal hearing provided the participants with valuable experiences and insights from German practice. The study trip therefore not only offered an opportunity to strengthen German-Kosovan relations, but also to take away some important findings to implement in their own professional practice.
Seminar on “Juvenile criminal proceedings: the role and tasks of the defence in preliminary proceedings”, held on 11-12 March 2023 in Prizren (Kosovo). Kosovo
The Kosovo Juvenile Justice Code of 2018 regulates criminal proceedings against juveniles in Kosovo and specifies significant procedural features and sanction options for juvenile offenders. In particular, the law contains several out-of-court diversionary measures which, under certain conditions, may lead to the juvenile criminal proceedings being dropped.
Against this backdrop, the IRZ, in cooperation with the Kosovo Bar Association, organised a seminar on 11-12 March 2023 on “juvenile criminal proceedings” in Prizren, Kosovo. The aim of the event was to compare legal perspectives, and an expert exchange on the role of the defence in juvenile criminal proceedings with a special focus on the investigation procedure.
On behalf of the IRZ, Mr. Lukas Pieplow, specialist lawyer for criminal law and former member of the national board of the Deutsche Vereinigung für Jugendgerichte und Jugendgerichtshilfen e.V. (German Association for Juvenile Courts and Juvenile Legal Support Agencies), presented the German legal framework and case studies from his professional practice. Mr. Pieplow reported on the historical development of German juvenile criminal law and discussed the prevailing educational thinking in juvenile criminal law with the participants.
The event also provided an opportunity to exchange views on various issues in juvenile criminal proceedings, including communication between the defence, the Public Prosecutor's Office and the court, the role of juvenile legal support agencies and aspects of the infrastructure and financing of alternative “out-of-court” measures.
A total of approx. 45 lawyers took part in the discussions on the two days of the event. In addition to the theoretical explanations, best practices and specific options for action by the legal profession in the investigation procedure were also explored, and the difficulties in implementation in both countries were also discussed.
The event was financed by the Federal Ministry of Justice and is part of the long-standing cooperation between the IRZ and the Kosovo Bar Association in the field of juvenile criminal law.
