OSCE held human rights session for Kosovo's ministers
(Lubomir Kotek/OSCE)The OSCE Mission in Kosovo conducts a human rights awareness campaign in 150 school classes throughout Kosovo, January 2002. (Lubomir Kotek/OSCE) Photo details
PRISTINA, 8 May 2002 - An orientation session for ministers of Kosovo's provisional government focused on the importance of human rights in the decision-making process.
The session, organized by the OSCE Mission in Kosovo with the support of the Advisory Board on Communities (ABC), Prime Minister Bajram Rexhepi and his cabinet, were attended by the Ministers of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government and their Senior Advisers.
The one-day orientation, which opened with remarks by the Prime Minister, guided the Ministers and Advisers through their roles and responsibilities and demonstrated how human rights are central to their work. They looked at what constitutes basic human rights and how, in a practical sense, human rights can be a key factor which influences decisions made by government.
The session paid specific attention to the need of public officials to balance their actions with the legal obligation to respect the rights of the people they serve, including the protection of the rights of all communities in Kosovo.
"The Prime Minister and his cabinet were very interested in developing their ability to be 'human rights compliant' in the decisions they take as public officials," said Gregory Fabian, Senior Legal Adviser of the OSCE Mission's Department of Human Rights and Rule of Law, who served as the principal facilitator of the meeting held on 4 May.
The OSCE plays a key role in helping to strengthen government structures in Kosovo by working to instil a human rights culture within governmental institutions and to demonstrate the importance of such standards to good governance.
The session, organized by the OSCE Mission in Kosovo with the support of the Advisory Board on Communities (ABC), Prime Minister Bajram Rexhepi and his cabinet, were attended by the Ministers of the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government and their Senior Advisers.
The one-day orientation, which opened with remarks by the Prime Minister, guided the Ministers and Advisers through their roles and responsibilities and demonstrated how human rights are central to their work. They looked at what constitutes basic human rights and how, in a practical sense, human rights can be a key factor which influences decisions made by government.
The session paid specific attention to the need of public officials to balance their actions with the legal obligation to respect the rights of the people they serve, including the protection of the rights of all communities in Kosovo.
"The Prime Minister and his cabinet were very interested in developing their ability to be 'human rights compliant' in the decisions they take as public officials," said Gregory Fabian, Senior Legal Adviser of the OSCE Mission's Department of Human Rights and Rule of Law, who served as the principal facilitator of the meeting held on 4 May.
The OSCE plays a key role in helping to strengthen government structures in Kosovo by working to instil a human rights culture within governmental institutions and to demonstrate the importance of such standards to good governance.