Exchanging information, seeking hope for change at Europe's largest human rights conference
A major platform for information exchange and a rare place to find hope for change in their countries - this is how hundreds of NGO representatives from across the OSCE region see the annual two-week Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM) that took place in Warsaw in September and October.
Organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the wide-ranging conference gives for many non-governmental organizations the only opportunity to express their views straight to government representatives and to hear about problems and solutions in other countries of the OSCE region. It also gives them the chance present their recommendations to the OSCE itself.
A platform for NGO voices
"For us this is an opportunity to lift up to the international level a number of problems that we face in our day-to-day work and a chance to present our solutions to these problems," says Dmitry Makarov of the Youth Human Rights Organization from Moscow, who attended this year's session on freedom of assembly and association.
"The reaction of our authorities to OSCE activity is very weak. The recently published OSCE/ODIHR Guidelines on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly is a very good and complete document, which if implemented could solve some of the problems we have, but this document is still little known and is not being fully implemented. There is a big gap between legislation and practice in general and when the OSCE submits its advice, it often only remains a good intention," says Makarov.
"It is necessary, somehow, to promote these recommendations to make them operate in practice and do it together with NGOs."
The OSCE's unique value
Many of the NGOs come a long way to attend the conference. As Roland Kovats of Freedom House Europe explains, this is because of the unique position of the OSCE: "It doesn't necessarily refer to Central Europe, but largely to Central Asia and some of the former Soviet States, where standards are much lower than in other parts of OSCE region. And these countries are not a part of other international instruments, such as the Council of Europe. The OSCE provides the only opportunity for them to put these issues on the table and get the answers on problematic practices. So in this light, the OSCE is a very useful tool."
"On a critical note, I do not know how much in terms of development for the [OSCE] Ministerial Council [states] ultimately decide on OSCE direction and heed the outcries of participating States here at the table or non-governmental organizations that are also given a chance to speak."
Gaining direct access
Oliver Lewis, Executive Director of the Mental Disability Advocacy Center (MDAC) in Budapest, was at the HDIM for the first time, to try and place the rights of those with mental disabilities more prominently on the OSCE agenda. "It is quite overwhelming, there's quite an array of topics, but it's good that NGOs can have such direct access to states, and to OSCE staff."
At the government level, the meeting can be useful to see what the other states have done in their legislation and practice to deal with human rights challenges.
Learning from other countries
"We know the international situation, of course, but we would like to find out here how gender questions are being addressed in other countries," said Nailya Kulmanova, adviser to the head of the national commission for family affairs and gender policy of the President of Kazakhstan. "Maybe I will hear something useful that we could implement in our own country. I'm very glad that the OSCE has organized the special day [on gender and security] to discuss this issue."
At any meeting where real and critical debate is allowed to take place, there will be those who do not like what they hear. "There is no doubt that some of the statements from NGOs this year will have made for uncomfortable listening for certain participating States," said ODIHR Director Ambassador Christian Strohal. "But NGOs are there to remind states of their duty to meet the standards that they have set for themselves. At this meeting all 56 OSCE States come under scrutiny, and they all need to look critically at their own human rights record as well as that of their peers."
Looking to the future
Now that this year's conference is over, the 1,000 participants have returned home and the recommendations from it are being collected and compiled, thoughts in some quarters are already turning towards the 2008 event, where delegates will once again assess progress made, and draw attention to new or persistent problems.
"Having participated, after a few years, at the HDIM again, I am impressed by the broad discussion among various stakeholders on different aspects related to the protection and promotion of human rights," said Johanna Suurpaa from the Finnish delegation to the OSCE on the closing day. "Finland will be happy to take the process onwards during our Chairmanship of the OSCE next year," she added.
"The accountability of the 56 OSCE States is clearly demonstrated at the HDIM, but we must not forget that this accountability remains a daily challenge and a common responsibility," Ambassador Strohal concluded.