Protection of human rights defenders is vital to realize OSCE human rights commitments, says OSCE/ODIHR Director Link

HAMBURG, 9 December 2016 – The protection of human rights defenders is essential for OSCE participating States to realize their human dimension commitments in practice, Michael Georg Link, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said today at the close of the 23rd OSCE Ministerial Council, in advance of international Human Rights Day on 10 December.

“Human rights defenders are often the focus of threats, attacks and legal harassment simply for trying to protect the rights of society’s most vulnerable people, without discrimination,” Director Link said. “I encourage OSCE participating States to seriously consider the Hamburg Declaration, which outlines many important actions to safeguard human rights defenders from restrictions contrary to OSCE commitments.”

On 7 December 2016, the parallel civil society conference at the OSCE Ministerial Council presented the Hamburg Declaration on Protecting and Expanding Civil Society Space to the incoming 2017 Austrian OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, as well as to ODIHR and the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media.

“OSCE participating States emphasized the need for protection of human rights defenders in Budapest in 1994, yet defenders are under threat more than ever, now over 20 years later,” said Director Link. “ODIHR will continue to bring attention to the situation of human rights defenders across the OSCE region, so that states can better protect human rights defenders and support their role in addressing some of today’s greatest challenges in the human dimension of security.”

In 2016, the annual UN Human Rights Day calls on all to “Stand up for someone’s rights today!”

ODIHR is presently engaged in a three-year project on the protection of human rights defenders across the entire OSCE region, building upon the OSCE Guidelines on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders.