The course, which is being held at the University, is organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, in co-operation with the Ministry of Education and the Magtymguly State University. The lectures include theoretical discussions illustrated by case studies and examples of best practices regarding the implementation of international human rights standards in the administration of criminal justice.

Addressing the students at the opening, Ambassador Arsim Zekolli, the Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat, said: "The OSCE Centre attaches great importance to promoting education. This series of lectures is evidence of the continuation of the successful co-operation established between the Centre and one of the country’s largest educational institutions."

"We believe that the course will help students to not only better understand the existing international human rights documents that Turkmenistan has acceded to, but to also get acquainted with mechanisms and practice of translating them into the national legal system, which is particularly important as Turkmenistan is implementing a large scale legal reform."

Leonid Golovko, a professor from the Moscow State University who is teaching the course, added: "We should not underestimate the technical aspects of the rule of law’s mechanisms. Only the lawyers who know and understand the functional structure of the modern criminal procedure will be able to implement international standards into their national legal system."

This is the third course the Centre has organized in co-operation with the Magtymguly Turkmen State University. The first course, which was held in 2007, focused on international human rights standards, and the second series of lectures in 2008 addressed international public law.