News and press releases

TBILISI, 13 November 2017 – The 12 November mayoral run-off elections in six Georgian districts were well administered, candidates were able to compete freely and fundamental rights were generally respected in a shortened, low-key campaign, the election observers from the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) concluded in a preliminary statement released today. At the same time, shortcomings in the process highlighted the need for improvements to the laws governing elections, the statement says...

SKOPJE, 10 November 2017 – OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (HCNM) Lamberto Zannier presented the first ever children’s illustrated Macedonian-Albanian/Albanian-Macedonian dictionary for primary schools to Education Minister Renata Deskoska in Skopje today. This innovative tool was developed by the HCNM and the Nansen Dialogue Centre, Skopje, and supported financially by the German government...

VALLETTA, 3 November 2017- OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir, in Malta today to attend the funeral of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, urged the country’s authorities to ensure that all means will be put in place to enable a full, transparent and independent investigation into the killing of the prominent investigative journalist...

VIENNA, 3 November 2017 – The relationship between the media and security across the OSCE region and how it could be enhanced to the benefit of both the free media and security interests was the focus of the OSCE Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting 2017, which concludes in Vienna today.

VIENNA, 2 November 2017 – Representatives of Ukrainian and Russian journalists’ unions today, on the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, called upon their governments to promote a safe and enabling environment for journalists and vigorously counter impunity of crimes against the media...

TBILISI, 22 October 2017 – Fundamental freedoms were generally respected in the 21 October local elections in Georgia, and candidates were able to campaign freely. Efficient administration of the elections and accurate voter registration contributed to the quality of the process, the international observers concluded in a preliminary statement released today. The entire context of the elections was shaped by the dominance of the ruling party, the observers said.

KYIV, 20 October 2017 – The safety of journalists and putting an end to impunity for crimes committed against them must be adequately addressed to maintain a favourable environment for freedom of the media in Ukraine, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Harlem Désir said today, during his visit to Kyiv.