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Issue Number 3/2012 Confidence building in the OSCE Sports and the spirit of co-operation Voices: Listening to the cries of the world Time to act on Roma inclusion The OSCE Magazine, which is also available online, is published in English and Russian by the Press and Public Information Section of the Organization In this issue for Security and Co-operation in Europe. The views expressed in the articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the 3 Confidence building in the OSCE Claus Neukirch OSCE and its participating States. Editor: Ursula Froese 6 VOICES Designer: Nona Reuter Ambassador Geneviève Renaux: Listening to the cries Printed by Ferdinand Berger & Söhne GmbH of the world Please send comments and contributions to: DOSSIER: TIME TO ACT ON ROMA INCLUSION [email protected] Press and Public Information Section 7 Roma and Sinti under attack Andrzej Mirga OSCE Secretariat Wallnerstrasse 6 8 To make a tangible difference A-1010 Vienna, Austria Rasmus Barndorff Tel.: (+43-1) 514 36-6267 Fax: (+43-1) 514 36-6105 9 Breaking out: A new OSCE-EU project is seeking to multiply solutions for Roma integration OSCE Chairmanship 2012: Ireland 11 Research subjects should be partners: Interview with OSCE Structures and Institutions Angela Kóczé Permanent Council (Vienna) 13 Serbian models for Roma inclusion Forum for Security Co-operation (Vienna) Obrad Grković Secretariat (Vienna) OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media 14 Education in the Roma Mahalla, Kosovo (Vienna) Edita Buçaj OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (Warsaw) SPORTS AND THE SPIRIT OF CO-OPERATION OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities (The Hague) 15 Defeating racism and intolerance in sports OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (Copenhagen) Larry Olomofe Field Operations 16 Kids, the ghetto and the magic of sports South Caucasus Valeriu Nicolae OSCE Office in Baku OSCE Office in Yerevan 17 Eurocup 2012: Red card for human trafficking in Ukraine The Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on the Conflict Dealt 18 Mini-Paralympic games in Kosovo with by the OSCE Minsk Conference Hasan Sopa Central Asia OSCE Centre in Ashgabat 20 The OSCE and the Olympic Truce OSCE Centre in Astana OSCE Centre in Bishkek OSCE Office in Tajikistan 21 Conference interpreters love speakers who submit OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan statements in advance Javier del Pino Eastern Europe OSCE Mission to Moldova 23 Appointments OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine South-Eastern Europe OSCE Presence in Albania OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina OSCE Mission in Kosovo On the cover: Boyz in da Hood, OSCE Mission to Montenegro a rap and dance group founded OSCE Mission to Serbia by two musicians from the Konik OSCE Mission to Skopje Roma refugee camp near Podgorica, Montenegro has been recognized as a best practice by the OSCE-EU project Best Practices for Roma Inclusion launched in June of this year. (HELP - Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V.) Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe 2 3/2012 OSCE Magazine The OSCE’s Community Security Initiative (CSI) builds confidence between police and communities in Kyrgyzstan. Here, CSI officers and police officers in Isfana meet and interact with the local population, March 2012. (OSCE/Eric Gourlan) Confidence building in the OSCE by Claus Neukirch onfidence building lies at the heart of what exercises and limitations on the deployment of Cthe OSCE does. The term was first used dur- troops and armaments in a particular area. ing the Cold War to denote measures taken to But non-military measures for building reduce the fear of attack between East and West. confidence have also been a part of the OSCE Some of the first confidence-building measures since the beginning. Often called confidence- are contained in the Helsinki Final Act, agreed building measures (CBMs) in contrast to the in 1975 by the 35 countries participating in the classical CSBMs, these focus on changing Conference for Security and Co-operation in perceptions and (re)building relations between Europe (CSCE, predecessor of the OSCE). They adversaries. The Helsinki Final Act contains still form the basis of current arrangements to provisions on co-operation in the fields of ensure transparency and build trust between economics, science, technology and the envi- participating States. In addition, since the early ronment “as a means to contribute to the rein- 1990s, the OSCE has developed measures to build forcement of peace and security in Europe and confidence between communities within partici- the world as a whole.” As a matter of fact, the pating States. entire process of talks leading to the Helsinki In the early years of the CSCE, confidence Final Act was an unprecedented exercise of building focused primarily on hard security. building confidence between the two Cold War The confidence- and security-building measures camps. Over the years, CBMs have been used (CSBMs) agreed in the Helsinki Final Act and at more, although not exclusively, in the context subsequent meetings in Stockholm and Vienna of intra-state conflicts, for instance in South- dealt with military matters such as data exchang- Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus, Moldova es, pre-notification of military movements or and Kyrgyzstan. OSCE Magazine 3/2012 3 WHAT MAKES A GOOD CBM? license plates on Chisinau-controlled territory. Following CBMs can take many different forms, depending on this bumpy start, policies on both sides gradually became the stage of the conflict cycle at which they are used, how more consistent, and five years later the CBM process in deep the conflict between the two sides is and whether Moldova is well on track. they are used in intra-State or inter-State conflicts. They can be initiated top-down by elites, like the current CBM WHAT CBMS CANNOT ACHIEVE process in Moldova, or bottom-up by affected com- CBMs, taken by themselves, cannot solve a conflict. munities, as in the multi-ethnic mediation networks or They cannot eliminate the social and economic root causes cross-border water management projects supported by the of a conflict. They will not change existing balances or OSCE in Kyrgyzstan. They can start up as unilateral mea- imbalances of power and are unlikely to affect the core sures of good will, like German Chancellor Willy Brandt’s interests of the conflict actors. spontaneous genuflection in Warsaw in 1970 before a Whether or not they can get off the ground at all monument to the victims of the Nazi-era Warsaw Ghetto depends on political will, financial and human resources uprising, or take the form of an international agreement, and the prevailing mindsets of the sides. like the Open Skies treaty. What matters is that they And even once they do, the potential obstacles are many. take root at all levels of both affected communities. The Spoilers may aim to derail a process they dislike or con- Northern Ireland peace process, where peace movements sider a threat to their vested interests. Legal requirements from within the affected societies were complemented by or changes to them might hamper creative solutions. Policy strong leadership by the political elite, is a case in point. changes, perhaps triggered by issues not directly related to CBMs, by their very nature, are incremental. In order the conflict, might likewise create obstacles. to make a difference, they need to be long-term. Once CBMs are difficult to embed in environments where feelings of fear or hatred between conflicting parties have the rule of law and the administration of justice are weak, taken root, one-time measures or projects of short dura- where there are pervasive human rights violations, particu- tion will have little effect. Confidence is best built by larly if they are perceived to target primarily one group, combining several CBMs reaching out to different layers and where there is a court system in which segments of the of society in a cumulative process. Reciprocity and local population feel they cannot seek justice. Individuals are ownership are essential elements. They also need to be unlikely to participate in CBMs if they perceive that they consistent: contradictory actions and signals could destroy may risk arrest or imprisonment. rather than build confidence. In Moldova, an initiative by then-President Voronin to create working groups on CBMs OSCE SUccESS STORIES in 2007 was shortly afterwards neutralized by a govern- Despite these pitfalls, the OSCE, through its various ment official’s announcement that the Moldovan authori- field operations and institutions, has managed to imple- ties would crack down on drivers using Transdniestrian ment quite a number of CBMs, across the OSCE area and Confidence is best built by combining several CBMs reaching out to different layers of society in a cumulative process. 4 3/2012 OSCE Magazine in all three security dimensions. Here are some examples: mutual benefit of people living on both sides, which is • In Kyrgyzstan the Community Security Initiative has essential for long-term stability in the area. facilitated police-public partnership initiatives to re- • In Moldova, the OSCE Mission has been instrumental in establish a dialogue between the police and local com- promoting and assisting the work of joint CBM groups munities as well as between ethnic Kyrgyz and ethnic bringing together Moldovan officials and their Transd- Uzbek communities. In a separate project, the Osh niestrian counterparts. At the same time the Mission has Field Office of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek launched a been reaching out to journalists, civil society and local pilot project of multi-ethnic mediator teams providing inhabitants from both sides by supporting joint concerts, early warning and conflict prevention through media- summer schools, sport events and projects bringing tion in cases of latent and acute conflict involving eth- together journalists from both banks of the Dniestr/ nic Kyrgyz and ethnic Uzbek communities.