News and press releases

WARSAW, 21 February 2024 – The human rights situation in Belarus continues to deteriorate as those who voice dissent or stand up for the human rights of others are subject to investigation, persecution, and frequently prosecution, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said in a statement today.

Election experts from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) presented the final reports and recommendations of the observation missions to the 2023 early parliamentary elections as well as the presidential election in Montenegro during a visit to Podgorica from 6 to 9 February 2024.

WARSAW, 16 February 2024 – The reported death of Alexei Navalny while serving a lengthy prison sentence is a tragedy that follows years of unjust imprisonment and the denial of his rights, including to a fair trial, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said today.

PRISHTINË/PRIŠTINA, 9 February 2024- The OSCE Mission in Kosovo today published its latest report on the effects of the 2022 mass resignation of Kosovo Serb judges, prosecutors, and administrative staff working in the justice system in the Mitrovicë/Mitrovica region.

BAKU, 8 February 2024 – This was the first election to be held throughout the internationally recognized territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan, an issue that dominated the campaign and was echoed in public sentiment. While preparations for the election were efficient and professional, it lacked genuine pluralism and critical voices were continuously stifled. Longstanding restrictions on freedoms of association and expression were reinforced by recent legal amendments and resulted in legislation not in line with international democratic standards, international observers said in a statement today.

WARSAW/VIENNA, 7 February 2024 – The decision of Kyrgyzstan’s parliament, the Jogorku Kenesh, to proceed towards the adoption of the so-called “foreign representatives” bill is of great concern, the Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Matteo Mecacci and OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM) Teresa Ribeiro said today.

From 30 January to 1 February, the OSCE Programme Office in Astana conducted a three-day workshop on digital rights and dialogue facilitation between State officials and civil society organizations.