OSCE trains lawmakers and officials in Georgia on preserving human rights in fight against terrorism

BATUMI, 8 July 2008 - The protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in countering terrorism is the focus of an OSCE training course for Georgian officials that began in Batumi today.

The three-day event, organized by the OSCE Mission to Georgia and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), brings together 26 participants from the Georgian Parliament, the Supreme Council of Autonomous Republic of Adjara, the Office of the Prosecutor General, the Interior Ministry, the Justice Ministry and the Public Defender's Office.

"Acts and strategies of terrorism aim at the destruction of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Governments therefore have a duty to protect their nationals and others against terrorist attacks, to bring the perpetrators to justice and to adopt effective prevention policies," said Kelly Low, ODIHR's Adviser on Anti-Terrorism Issues. "In pursuing the legitimate goal of combating terrorism, it is crucial that OSCE participating States fulfil their obligations to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms."

"The protection of human rights and serious security concerns do not pull in opposite directions. To the contrary - a state's failure to respect human rights and the rule of law in the fight against terrorism may exacerbate conditions conducive to the recruitment of terrorists," said Bogdan Udriste, Advisor on Anti-Terrorism Issues at the OSCE Mission to Georgia.

National and international experts, including from the Council of Europe and the ODIHR will lead the course. Participants will discuss the importance of prohibiting torture and respecting the rights of individuals to liberty, a fair trial, and privacy, as well as the freedoms of association, assembly, expression and religion or belief.