- OSCE/ODIHR opens observation mission for constitutional referendum in Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, 25 May 2010 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today formally opened an observation mission for the 27 June constitutional referendum in Kyrgyzstan.

The mission’s deployment followed an invitation from the authorities of Kyrgyzstan.

The mission is headed by Ambassador Boris Frlec and comprises a 13-member core team, based in Bishkek, with analysts and support staff drawn from ten OSCE participating States. In addition 13 long-term observers will be deployed throughout the country. For the day of the referendum, 300 short-term observers will be requested from OSCE participating States.

The observation mission will assess the referendum process for its compliance with OSCE commitments and other international standards, as well as with national legislation. The observers will monitor the work of the authorities responsible for organizing the referendum, the implementation of relevant legislation, the referendum campaign, the media environment and the resolution of disputes related to the referendum process.

On the day of the referendum, observers will monitor the opening of polling stations, the voting, the counting of ballots and the tabulation of results.

A statement of preliminary findings and conclusions will be issued on the day after the referendum, followed by a final report approximately two months after the completion of the process.

The OSCE/ODIHR referendum observation mission and the OSCE Centre in Bishkek operate independently under separate mandates.

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- OSCE Centre in Bishkek launches training for journalists in southern Kyrgyzstan

JALAL-ABAD, 26 May 2010 - The first of two media training seminars organized by the OSCE Office in Bishkek for local journalists and human rights defenders in southern Kyrgyzstan started in Jalal-Abad today.

The two-day seminars on responsible reporting on political and inter-ethnic issues in southern Kyrgyzstan will be held in Jalal-Abad and Osh. The seminar in Osh is scheduled for 28 and 29 May. Both events aim to strengthen accurate, unbiased and balanced reporting by both local journalists and human rights defenders on the situation in Jalal-Abad and Osh. Participants will learn about international journalistic standards and best practices in covering crisis situations.

"Responsible, rapid and unbiased reporting is more critical than ever in light of recent events in southern Kyrgyzstan. The OSCE Centre in Bishkek is committed to supporting efforts to sustain political and inter-ethnic stability and prevent further violence through concrete actions, including this media training seminar," said Lilian Darii, the Deputy Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek.

The training sessions are being delivered by two leading Kyrgyz media experts with extensive experience in working as journalists for international media outlets, including the BBC and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Kyrgyz service, Azattyk. The trainers are drawn from both the ethnic Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbek communities, representing both the northern and southern parts of the country, and will use three languages - Kyrgyz, Uzbek and Russian - to lead the interactive sessions. A manual on ethical standards in journalism will be provided by the trainers.

Media expert and trainer Sultan Jumagulov said: "Coverage of recent events in the south has resulted in some poor or even potentially harmful reporting. Some media and human rights activists have significantly departed from international reporting standards. The present training course aims to respond to this problem by providing clear guidelines on responsible, unbiased and ethical reporting."

The training seminars are organized by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek within the framework of the OSCE contingency funds package allocated on 29 April by the OSCE Permanent Council to support peace and stability in Kyrgyzstan.

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- OSCE National Minorities Commissioner discusses Hungarian citizenship law with Slovak Foreign Minister

THE HAGUE, 26 May 2010 - The OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, Knut Vollebaek, made the following statement after a meeting yesterday in The Hague with Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak on the proposed amendments to the Law on Hungarian Citizenship.

 "I have not seen the text of the proposed amendments to the Hungarian Law on Citizenship and I am therefore not in a position to comment on the law in great detail. I am in touch with the Hungarian authorities and once I have had the opportunity to examine the text, I will make my assessment and get back to them with an opinion and recommendations if needed. 

 In general, the decision to confer citizenship is considered to fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of each individual State and may be based on preferred linguistic competences as well as on cultural, historical or familial ties. The purpose, procedure and the timing of such a decision are separate questions that can be raised.

 Rights are rarely absolute. They can and often are constrained by other rights and by obligations and responsibilities of a State with regards to other States. This means that principles of good neighbourliness and friendly relations should be taken into account when pursuing policies affecting citizens of another State.

 Contested claims or competing attempts by the States concerned to exercise jurisdiction over their citizens, irrespective of the place of residence, have the potential to create tensions. It is for this reason that I have cautioned States against granting citizenship on the mere basis of ethnic, national, linguistic, cultural or religious ties and urged them to give full consideration to the consequences of granting citizenship. This is particularly true if citizenship is conferred on residents of a neighbouring State residing there in substantial numbers.

 It is clear that granting citizenship en masse could have destabilizing effect and should be discouraged. However, in all other cases bilateral consultations are encouraged. This is particularly true for Hungary and Slovakia who are partner States in the EU and NATO, and who have signed bilateral treaties. Such consultations would be in the spirit of the European Union as well as in accordance with friendly and good neighbourly relations."

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- OSCE media freedom representative calls for improved access to information at conference in Dushanbe

DUSHANBE, 26 May 2010 - The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, called for more transparency and easier access to government-held information in a speech delivered at the 12th OSCE Central Asia Media Conference, which ended in Dushanbe today.

Speaking to participants from the five Central Asian states: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as well as from Afghanistan, Mijatovic called on Central Asian governments to improve access to information.

"Governments are not compiling data just for the sake of keeping it. They do it for the benefit of the public, which elected them as their representatives. The culture of confidentiality is outdated, especially with the widespread use of the Internet," Mijatovic said. "What we need now is a new culture of transparency that takes full advantage of the easy distribution methods new media can offer. Such an approach will increase trust between the authorities, civil society and citizens."

The two-day event was organized by the office of the Representative on Freedom of the Media, in co-operation with the OSCE Office in Tajikistan and supported by OSCE field operations in the region.

"New technologies offer quicker access to information, which enables citizens to make informed choices. This is the basis for democratic development", said Ambassador Ivar Vikki, Head of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. "In Tajikistan, which is building up its capacity for new technologies, the OSCE Office has helped increase newspaper print runs by approximately 10 percent."

Conference participants adopted a declaration on access to information and new technologies in Central Asia, which will be available soon in English and Russian at www.osce.org/fom.

Sweden, the United States and Lithuania financed the conference.

Preceding the conference, Mijatovic spoke at an expert meeting on broadcast media policy development for representatives of the Tajik government and civil society that was organized by the OSCE Office in Tajikistan.

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- OSCE participating States adopt Plan of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons

VIENNA, 26 May 2010 - The 56 OSCE participating States adopted a plan of action to tackle the threat of small arms and light weapons (SALW) at a meeting of the Forum for Security Co-operation in Vienna today.

The plan aims to counter the uncontrolled proliferation and destabilizing accumulation of illicit SALW by improving the implementation of existing measures and reviewing principles, norms and measures, in order to improve capacity and efficiency.

"As the main weapons used in the majority of armed conflicts and violence, small arms and light weapons endanger the security of states and people. The plan of action agreed today represents a unanimous commitment on the part of the 56 OSCE States to improve controls and counter the dangers of these illicit weapons, and most importantly includes concrete steps, with a timetable for implementation," said György Molnár, the Hungarian Ambassador to the OSCE, who currently chairs the Forum for Security Co-operation.

The comprehensive set of measures agreed under the action plan include more rigorous monitoring and active assistance through targeted projects, possible expansion of the scope and strengthening export and brokering controls and facilitating implementation of the International Tracing Instrument (ITI) to mark existing stores.

The Plan of Action will be a major element of the OSCE’s contribution to discussions to take place in New York in June at the Fourth Biennial Meeting of States to Consider the Implementation of the United Nations Programme of Action to Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons. As a regional organization under Chapter VIII of the UN Charter, the OSCE contributes to the implementation of globally agreed documents, including the Programme of Action.

The Forum for Security Co-operation meets weekly in Vienna to discuss and take decisions regarding military aspects of security in the OSCE area, in particular confidence- and security-building measures.

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