News and press releases

COPENHAGEN, 17 April 2018- Ignacio Sanchez Amor (MP, Spain), Chair of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s human rights committee, today expressed his concern regarding the state of freedom of expression in Poland, following the stripping of immunity from several opposition parliamentarians last week...

The SMM recorded fewer ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and more in Luhansk region between the evenings of 13 and 14 April, compared with the previous reporting period. Between the evenings of 14 and 15 April, it recorded more ceasefire violations in Donetsk region and fewer in Luhansk region compared with the previous 24 hours. The Mission continued monitoring the disengagement areas near Stanytsia Luhanska, Zolote and Petrivske and recorded ceasefire violations inside the Petrivske disengagement area. The SMM heard shots in close proximity to its position while conducting a mid-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flight near the Petrivske disengagement area. Its access remained restricted in all three disengagement areas.* The SMM observed weapons in violation of withdrawal lines on both sides of the contact line. The SMM continued to facilitate and monitor repairs to the Petrivske pumping station and a high-voltage powerline near Yuzhna-Lomuvatka. In Kyiv, the SMM followed up on media reports of an explosion near a one-storey building.

VIENNA, 16 April 2018 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Harlem Désir, said today he was shocked by the death of journalist Maksim Borodin in the Russian Federation...

From 12 to 14 April, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro, in co-operation with the Department for Human Resources of the Parliament of Montenegro, facilitated the first train-the-trainers workshop for 11 parliamentary staff on principles of managing change, developing vision statements and project goals, adult learning principles and modern tools to support changes in the working environment...

PODGORICA, 16 April 2018 – Fundamental freedoms were respected in the 15 April Montenegro presidential election, although the governing party candidate held an institutional advantage, the international observers concluded in a preliminary statement today. Candidates campaigned freely, and the media provided the contestants with a platform to present their views, but the lack of analytical reporting and absence of the frontrunner in the televised debates reduced voters’ opportunity to make an informed choice, the statement says...

Upholding human rights while policing assemblies was the focus of two three-day training courses for representatives of law enforcement agencies in Bosnia and Herzegovina organized by the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Sarajevo and Banja Luka from 9 to 14 April 2018...

MOSTAR, April 15 2018 – The OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) concluded today in Mostar a series of student workshops on media literacy. The workshops were held in Sarajevo, East Sarajevo, Banja Luka and Tuzla, concluding today in Mostar. The workshops focused on enhancing the level of the participating students’ understanding of the media in the digital age and their influence on society in the context of BiH...