Press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly

VIENNA, 29 June 2011 - The following is a press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on 29 June. The views expressed in this press release do not necessarily reflect those of the OSCE Chairmanship, nor of all OSCE participating States.

Human Rights Committee resolution calls for more civil society access at OSCE, broader use of human rights tools

COPENHAGEN, 29 June 2011—A resolution before the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly human rights committee would call for regular meetings between civil society representatives and ambassadors to the Vienna-based Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

“For decades the OSCE has been a primary advocate for fundamental rights in Europe, but all this time our primary decision-making body has not allowed civil society to participate or even observe its proceedings. This resolution aims to change that,” said Matteo Mecacci (Italy), the author of the resolution and rapporteur of the Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions.

A More Effective OSCE through transparency

The committee will consider the resolution at the Belgrade Annual Session beginning 6 July under the theme “Strengthening the OSCE’s Effectiveness and Efficiency – A New Start after the Astana Summit.”

It would call for the OSCE’s main diplomatic forum, the Permanent Council, to hold bi-weekly meetings to consider human rights issues. The meetings would have to include civil society representatives and be open to the public and media, the resolution states.

The Permanent Council, comprised of ambassadors from the 56 participating States, meets on a weekly basis to consider OSCE business, normally behind closed doors without media access. 

A More Efficient OSCE through updated human rights tools

The resolution also encourages countries to consider ways to improve a human-rights investigative tool known as the Moscow Mechanism to “ensure that serious human rights concerns are examined effectively.”

The Moscow Mechanism allows for participating States to have independent experts investigate a human rights abuse in another country as long as the country in question approves.

“For more than four months now we’ve seen Belarus refuse to co-operate with the OSCE with respect to concerns about the human rights situation in the country,” Mr. Mecacci said. “Updating the Moscow Mechanism will ensure the OSCE continues to have a useful tool to examine activity in all countries with respect to the democratic commitments to which they freely agreed.”

The Belgrade Annual Session, including committee debates and votes, are open to the press and public. The session runs 6-10 July 2011. For more information on the Annual Session, click here.

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is comprised of 320 parliamentarians from 55 countries spanning, Europe, Central Asia and North America. The Assembly provides a forum for parliamentary diplomacy, monitors elections, and strengthens international co-operation to uphold political, security, economic, environmental, and human rights commitments.