OSCE supports conference marking tenth anniversary of Ombudsperson Office in Tajikistan

On 21 and 22 May 2019, representatives of national human rights institutes and ombudspersons from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Russia and Azerbaijan as well as experts from international organizations and civil society gathered to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Ombudsperson Office in Dushanbe.

The two-day conference was organized by the Office of the Ombudsperson in Tajikistan and supported jointly by the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe and other international partners.

Ambassador Valeriu Chiveri, the Head of the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe, in his opening remarks highlighted the importance the OSCE gives to the work of ombudspersons across the region and the OSCE’s long-standing co-operation with their Offices. He said: “The OSCE stands ready to support the work of the Office of the Ombudsperson in Tajikistan in the future. We appreciate the constructive co-operation between the Office of the Ombudsperson and civil society here in Tajikistan and are keen to continue supporting the human rights-based dialogue between government institutions, the Office of the Ombudsperson and civil society as a pillar for stability and progress towards human rights protection.”

During the conference, achievements and prospects of the work of ombudspersons in Central Asia were discussed. Recognizing the challenges which still exist, the participants agreed to work closer together and to exchange experiences to improve the work of ombudspersons and national human rights institutes as well as the protection of human rights.