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Executive Summary ODIHR – report “Common Repsonsibility. Commitments and Implementation”
The present report, “ Common Responsibility: Commitments and Implementation ”, aims
to help the OSCE community to again underscore its core collective values and recommit
to them. It reinforces earlier calls to redevelop a common responsibility of participating
States not only towards each other, but, even more importantly, towards their citizens as primary
beneficiaries.
Requested by the 2005 OSCE Ministerial Council of Ljubljana and submitted to the 2006
OSCE Ministerial Council of Brussels, the report is structured along four chapters and covers
the implementation of existing commitments, possible supplementary commitments, ways
of strengthening and furthering the ODIHR’s election-related activities, as well as improving
the effectiveness of the ODIHR’s assistance to participating States. In preparing the report,
the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) consulted closely with
all 56 participating States.
A decade ago, heads of state and government expressed concern about a number of serious
deficiencies in the implementation of OSCE commitments. While much progress has been
achieved since then, this report points out that many problems remain acute today. Indeed,
it is regrettable that, 10 years after the Lisbon Summit, electoral fraud, manifestations of aggressive nationalism and xenophobia, threats to freedom of the media, involuntary migration,
incomplete or stalled transition to democracy, and a climate detrimental to the full realization
of, and respect for, human rights persist within the OSCE region. This report also
highlights the challenges many human rights defenders still have to face today and notes the
important role of national human rights institutions in this regard. The fundamental freedoms
of assembly and association are at risk in a number of participating States. The implementation
of commitments on these two issues needs intensified attention. Finally, the report
takes stock and raises awareness of the challenges that participating States face when
they engage in the fight against terrorism.
Since Lisbon, several other issues of concern have emerged that need to be addressed as a
matter of urgency for the OSCE to remain true to its principles, in particular the commitment
to implement. New challenges, however, may require new commitments. The second
chapter responds to the request of participating States to identify a number of areas where it
appears that the OSCE acquis needs to be supplemented or made more explicit. Those areas
where a normative response might be required and useful concern election-related challenges
such as the transparency of the vote when new voting technologies are being tested and
used, and the confidence an electorate needs to develop with respect to the process.
New commitments could also be elaborated to complement other areas that are at the core
of the OSCE’s human dimension: first, with regard to more traditional areas of human rights
norms such as the prevention of torture; and second, with regard to key ingredients of democratic
constitutionalism, the separation of powers of government, and judicial scrutiny of
normative acts. Existing commitments in both areas could benefit from clarification or specification; a consolidation of commitments on tolerance and non-discrimination might also
be considered.
While the ODIHR’s election-related activities are discussed and reflected upon throughout
the report, Chapter III explains in more detail the basis for, and the functioning of, the
ODIHR’s observation methodology, and it responds to criticism that it has recently drawn.
In line with many of the solicited responses from States, the report outlines the modalities
through which participating States can ensure effective follow-up to the recommendations
offered by the ODIHR. In addition, the ODIHR presents a number of concrete measures,
some of them already on the way, to strengthen its election-related assistance to participating
States.
Presenting ways to strengthen the ODIHR’s overall assistance efforts, the final chapter of the
report clearly stresses that States should enable the ODIHR, as well as the other OSCE institutions,
to be effective. The key to the ODIHR’s successful assistance undoubtedly lies with
States and the degree to which they, first and foremost, demonstrate the necessary political
will to prepare the ground for effective assistance work and, second, provide an environment
conducive for the ODIHR to continue its work successfully.
Effective peer review and collective follow-up to the ODIHR’s work are indispensable for its
work in the human dimension. In this respect, a proposed Human Dimension Committee
could allow for a more standardized manner of monitoring, reviewing implementation, preparing
and following up on human dimension meetings. It should, however, not be seen as
an alternative to the annual Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, but rather as an
additional element in making these important mandated meetings even more relevant, focused,
and better prepared.
The OSCE must live up to the aspirations of an earlier generation, as well as to the spirit of
the OSCE’s achievements, which continue to encourage so many in the region and beyond.
The participating States are particularly called upon to lead the way and demonstrate that,
despite the difficulties, credible collective action in the human dimension is possible. It is
hoped that this report will be of value to the deliberations on strengthening the effectiveness
of the OSCE, in what is a clear shared responsibility of all 56 participating States: upholding
common commitments and their implementation to the benefit of all.