Publications

This report is an output of the conference “Working With Youth and For Youth: Protection Against Radicalization”, organized by the Serbia's OSCE Chairmanship together with its Special Representatives on Youth and Security, from 03-04 September in Belgrade, Serbia. The conference aimed to provide a platform for discussion among young people, academia, participating States and civil society looking for a better understanding of the violent extremism and radicalization leading to terrorism, as well as to offer recommendations in approaching this phenomenon.

This study on the OSCE’s engagement with insider mediators has been conducted by the Berghof Foundation and commissioned by the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre/Operations Service Mediation Support Team jointly with the German OSCE Chairmanship. Insider mediators enjoy an inherent legitimacy and authority to engage with conflict actors and possess potential advantages in comparison to mediators coming from outside a conflict context. They are highly relevant for the OSCE as peacemakers, yet engagement requires acute sensitivity and strategizing. The study deliberates on some conceptual and operational considerations for OSCE support to insider mediation.

This report evaluates progress made in mainstreaming gender issues in OSCE structures and the working environment. Reporting period: 1 January 2015- 31 December 2015.

This publication has been developed in cooperation between DCAF and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) as part of an ongoing research project on ombuds institutions for the armed forces. It is the result of an effort to conceptualize and examine issues and challenges related to oversight of the armed forces and the promotion of human rights based on the feedback provided by the institutions themselves. It maps prominent capacity development needs of ombuds institutions in the OSCE region, and offers best practices through which these needs can be addressed. The study also examines different models, functions and approaches of ombuds institutions for the armed forces in the OSCE region. The mapping study will hopefully help states that wish to establish ombuds institutions by identifying the best format for doing so but it can also support existing ombuds institutions, scholars, policy-makers and armed forces commanders by offering a reference instrument on the current state of ombuds institutions in the OSCE region.

The brochure is prepared on the occasion of 40-year anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act. It introduces the 10 guiding principles, brief information about the OSCE and Office in Yerevan activities as well as messages from high level officials on this occasion.

Forty years after its signing, the Helsinki Final Act remains the defining document that guides the work of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. This publication includes a historical timeline as well as spotlights on the different entities that make up the Organization in 2015.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo promotes human rights, good governance and the safety of all people living in Kosovo by monitoring and supporting the work of local institutions. The Mission, established in 1999, is the OSCE's largest field operation.

The report provides an overview of the police-related programmes and projects implemented by the OSCE executive structures, including the thematic units of the Secretariat, the institutions and the field operations. In his Preface, Secretary General Lamberto Zannier notes: “The OSCE’s engagement in police-related activities is more crucial than ever at a time in which the OSCE region is exposed to multiple security challenges that range from instability and armed conflict to violent extremism and terrorism, organized crime and trafficking in arms, drugs and human beings.” This year’s report, in its completely new design and structure, better aligns the types and categories of activities with recently adopted OSCE decisions and makes the report more user-friendly for all stakeholders.