Vršac – Within the auspices of the project “Support for victims and witnesses of crime in Serbia”, a two day training for future victim and witness support trainers was held in Vršac.

The training included representatives of judiciary bodies, police, Judiciary Academy, lawyers and representatives of NGOs.

After a detailed presentation of the draft National Strategy on the Rights of Victims and Witnesses of Crime in the Republic of Serbia and the Action Plan, and with a focus on the role of future support personnel and contact points, the participants actively participated in the discussion, establishing the scope and content of training for future victim and witness support trainers, as well as for contact points in public prosecutors’ offices and police stations.

The participants also had a lecture titled “Skills of communicating with victims and witnesses of crime”, and a media workshop dedicated to communication with media and the role of competent bodies in media reporting on victims and witnesses was also held.

Representatives of the OSCE Mission to Serbia familiarized the participants with the Draft Form for Individual Assessment, and had a discussion about its future use.

The “Support for victims and witnesses of crime in Serbia” project, is financed by the European Union, and is implemented by the OSCE Mission to Serbia, as the chosen partner of the Ministry of Justice.