OSCE Mission, Council of Europe host high-level roundtable on strengthening Assembly’s role in monitoring ‘Istanbul Convention’ implementation in Kosovo

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo, in co-operation with the Council of Europe and the Kosovo Assembly, organized on 22 November 2023 in Prishtinë/Priština a high-level panel on the role of the Assembly in monitoring the implementation of the Istanbul Convention.

Preceding the “16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence” campaign, the event brought together MPs, representatives of the government, civil society organisations, international institutions and organisations active in the field of combating violence against women and domestic violence.

Through carefully-structured discussion, these leading experts and practitioners explored the modalities for strengthening the institutional instruments for monitoring the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, including the requirement to establish an institutional support mechanism between key stakeholders and across different levels of governance.

The Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador Michael Davenport, opening the event, said, “the theme of the 2023 campaign is around investing to prevent violence against women and girls. So, with that in mind, the Mission is focused on building up essential coordination mechanisms at central and local levels. For if we are not more coordinated, we cannot be more effective. This means engaging young people, young women and young men and also concentrating even more on the specific needs of vulnerable groups and non-majority communities.”

In her address, Saranda Bogujevci, Vice President of the Assembly, said, “one important point that I believe requires more work and more attention is the establishment of a form - be it through the Ministry or within the Assembly - to gather more data that would not focus only on the causes of violence but would encompass the manner in which we plan, both within the parliament and overall governance, and how this planning affects women across various spheres of life.”

Participants concluded that ending violence against women requires continuous, comprehensive engagement which transcends political lines and entails comprehensive institutional approach. In that regard, the role of the Assembly and its organs was underlined as instrumental in these efforts. The executive branch was urged to establish contact points within the Assembly and keep the legislators well-informed of the progress and challenges in implementing the Istanbul Convention. Finally, it was pointed out that both the legislative and executive branch need to strengthen their co-operation and coordination with the civil society sector.

The OSCE Mission in Kosovo is mandated with the protection and promotion of human and community rights, and with democratization and public safety sector development, and has women’s empowerment, gender equality and women’s rights at the core of all its activities. The Mission focuses on supporting enactment and implementation of non-discriminatory legal frameworks and policies and gives particular attention to women’s participation in public and political life.