OSCE Office in Tajikistan supports civil society-government dialogue on human rights

DUSHANBE, 29 July 2010 - The fourth annual Human Dimension Implementation Meeting focusing on human rights in Tajikistan began in Dushanbe today.

The two-day event was organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan, the Foreign Ministry, the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman and the Department on Constitutional Guarantees of Citizen Rights within the Executive Office of the President, with the co-operation of international organizations and local civil society.

The meeting brings together more than 30 government officials, 40 participants from the regions of Tajikistan and representatives from some 100 civil society organizations, as well as diplomatic representatives of OSCE participating States.

"The presence of so many representatives of government and civil society indicates a willingness to engage in dialogue and to find solutions to difficult questions," said Ambassador Ivar Vikki, the Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

The dialogue is modelled on the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, which is held annually in Warsaw and addresses human dimension topics in the whole OSCE area. The agenda for the meeting was developed in a collaborative process facilitated by the OSCE Office. This year's agenda focuses on national human rights institutions; abolition of the death penalty; rights of individuals deprived of liberty; property rights; freedom of expression; preventing domestic violence; rights of migrants; and freedom of religion and belief.

Zarif Alizoda, the Human Rights Ombudsman of the Republic of Tajikistan, said; "The meeting provides an opportunity for all relevant agencies and organizations in the field of human rights to gather and discuss concrete achievements and ways we can better collaborate to ensure the protection, promotion and implementation of human rights in Tajikistan."