Publications

The publication aims at clarifying the procedural legal concept of shifting the burden of proof, its meaning and scope, as well as all open issues during practical implementation of the proceedings before the Commission for Prevention and Protection against Discrimination and the national court, to ensure effective application of the Law on Prevention and Protection against Discrimination. It also focuses on helping legal practitioners in acquiring knowledge and skills in the area of equality law and the principle on non-discrimination, thus examples from the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Human Rights, as well as comparative practices from European countries, are widely used.

COVID-19 has impacted the lives of each and every one of us. Regardless of where in the world we found ourselves during the outbreak of this virus, limitations on freedom have been implemented that would not have been imagined just months earlier.

The 12th issue of the e-newsletter issued by the Gender Section of the OSCE on a quarterly basis.

The Guidelines for the Effective Performance of Municipal Coordination Mechanisms against Domestic Violence (MCMDV) are a practical tool to facilitate more effective and co-ordinated responses of these mechanisms to domestic violence cases at the local level. They cover the legal basis and purpose of the MCMDVs, the importance of a multi-institutional and coordinated approach, data collection and reporting, and training and capacity building for MCMDV members.

Book of proceedings of an international academic conference held in Tirana on 21 June 2022. (English and Albanian)

The purpose of the report,commissioned by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), was to identify patterns of structural, cultural and direct violence against women in politics, backed by personal experience of respondents, to analyze public and media discourse relating to women politicians and provide factual basis for further analyses and action in addressing violence against women in politics. The OSCE Mission to Serbia supported publishing of the report.

Updated informatin on ODIHR activities

The OSCE Mission to Montenegro supported the Office of the Protector of Human Rights and Freedoms of Montenegro in preparing an analysis of court verdicts for misdemeanors of domestic violence and violence against women in 2019, and during the COVID-19 pandemic for March- July 2020. The document analyzed 184 verdicts from the following courts: Misdemeanor court in Bijelo Polje (divisions in Pljevlja, Berane and Rožaje), Misdemeanor court in Budva (divisions in Ulcinj, Bar, Kotor and Herceg Novi) and Misdemeanor court in Podgorica (divisions in Nikšić, Cetinje and Danilovgrad). Some of the main conclusions of the Analysis are that vast majority of the victims of domestic violence are women, that the victims are often not aware of the possibility to initiate misdemeanor proceedings themselves and that the penalty policy is mild. The Analysis provides a good basis to integrate the principles of gender equality into courts’ procedures and practices in cases of domestic violence and violence against women.

In response to the lack of survivor inclusion to date, and in line with its objectives, ODIHR, in consultation with ISTAC and other relevant anti-trafficking stakeholders, developed this policy guidance. It reflects participating States’ obligations as well as international good practices to protect victims and survivors of human trafficking under international, regional and national laws as well as with National Referral Mechanisms (NRMs) or equivalent mechanisms. It aligns with OSCE commitments and draws on ODIHR’s NRM Handbook, which also recognizes the importance of the contributions of survivor leaders to all aspects of effective anti-trafficking work.