Rapport fra OSCE PAs 25. Årlige Session i Tbilisi, Georgien den 1.-5. juli 2016

OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s
25th Annual Session
Tbilisi, Georgia
REPORT
OSCEs Parlamentariske Forsamling 2015-16
OSCE Alm.del Bilag 47
Offentligt
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Summary ................................................................................................ 1
Tbilisi Declaration .........................................................................
Inaugural Plenary Session ...........................................................
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Standing Committee ........................................................................
General Committee on Political Affairs and Security ...
General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science,
Technology and Environment ................................................
General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and
Humanitarian Questions ............................................................
Second Plenary Session ..................................................................
Closing Plenary Session .................................................................
Officers of the Assembly ................................................................
General Committee Officers ........................................................
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14
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CONTENTS
REPORT ON THE
25th ANNUAL SESSION OF THE OSCE
PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
Prepared by the OSCE PA International Secretariat
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Summary
Bringing together some 250 members of
parliament from 53 OSCE participating
States and two Partners for Co-operation, the
25thAnnualSessionoftheOSCEParliamentary
Assembly took place 1-5 July 2016 in Tbilisi.
The Session was held under the theme “25
Years of Parliamentary Co-operation: Building
Trust Through Dialogue,” commemorating the
quarter-century anniversary of the Assembly’s
work.
Featuring several days of parliamentary
debate in committee and plenary meetings,
the Session culminated in the adoption by
majority vote of the 2016 Tbilisi Declaration,
which contains the Assembly’s wide-ranging
pronouncements and policy recommendations
for the OSCE and its participating States in
the fields of political affairs, economics, the
environment and human rights.
The Session featured speeches by Georgian
officials including Speaker of Parliament David
Usupashvili, President Giorgi Margvelashvili,
and Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, as
well as OSCE PA President Ilkka Kanerva
(Finland) and OSCE Chairman-in-Office
and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter
Steinmeier.
In addition to adopting the Tbilisi
Declaration, the Assembly elected its new
leadership, with Austrian parliamentarian
Christine Muttonen elected President, and
Vilija Aleknaite Abramikiene (Lithuania),
Azay Guliyev (Azerbaijan), Isabel Santos
(Portugal) and Victor Dobre (Romania) elected
Vice-Presidents.
The General Committee on Political Affairs
and Security elected Roger Wicker (United
States) as Chair, Guglielmo Picchi (Italy) as
Vice-Chair, and Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden)
as Rapporteur.
The General Committee on Economic
Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment
elected Nilza Sena (Portugal) as Chair, Artur
Gerasymov (Ukraine) as Vice-Chair, and
Marietta Tidei (Italy) as Rapporteur.
The General Committee on Democracy,
Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions
elected Ignacio SanchezAmor (Spain) as Chair,
Ivana Dobesova (Czech Republic) as Vice-
Chair, and Kyriakos Kyriakou-Hadjiyanni
(Cyprus) as Rapporteur.
The Standing Committee met on 1 July to
allocate supplementary items to the general
committees, and heard reports from the
Treasurer, German parliamentarian Doris
Barnett, who focused on the OSCE PA’s
present financial situation, and Secretary
General Roberto Montella, who described his
priorities of strengthening the International
Secretariat and enhancing co-operation with
partners. Special Representatives, leaders
of election observation missions, and chairs
of ad hoc committees also reported to the
Standing Committee on their ongoing work
and upcoming activities.
Several meetings were held on the margins
of the Annual Session, including events
focused on the progress of reforms in Georgia,
gender equality, nuclear disarmament, human
trafficking, mediation, and migration.
Hosted by the Georgian Parliament, the OSCE PA’s 25h Annual Session took place 1-5 July 2016.
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Tbilisi Declaration
The Assembly adopted the 2016 Tbilisi
Declaration on 5 July, addressing key issues
in the fields of political affairs and security,
economics, the environment, human rights, and
humanitarian concerns. Following its adoption,
the Declaration was sent to parliaments and
to the foreign ministers of OSCE countries,
serving as policy guidance to governments and
the international community.
Among the issues covered in the Declaration
are terrorism, the
crisis in and around
Ukraine, protracted
conflicts in Georgia,
countering corruption,
energy, climate change,
migration, and the
rights of refugees.
Stressing the theme
of trust-building, the
Declaration “reaffirms the undiminished
validity and historic role of the guiding
principles and common values of the Helsinki
Final Act signed in 1975, including the
commitments on politico-military, economic,
environmental, human rights, and humanitarian
issues.” It regrets however the trend of gridlock
in the OSCE and urges OSCE countries to
enhance the level of co-operation in addressing
common challenges.
On terrorism, the Declaration calls upon
governments to strengthen co-operation and
develop measures aimed at blocking the funding
of terrorist organizations. It further urges the
OSCE to help governments counter violent
extremism through pragmatic assistance and
promotion of best practices.
On the crisis in and around Ukraine, the
Declaration urges all parties to fully implement
thePackageofMeasuresfortheImplementation
of the Minsk Agreements, and “underlines
respect for the principles of the inviolability
of frontiers and territorial integrity, peaceful
settlement of disputes, equal rights, and self-
determination of peoples as stated in the
Helsinki Final Act.”
Regarding climate change, the Declaration
calls upon parliamentarians to promote political
dialogue in order to
achieve the goals set
by the Paris Climate
Agreement adopted
in 2015, and to ensure
that the Agreement’s
targets are met “with the
greatest sense of urgency
by implementing robust
policies and regulations
on greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating
the transition to a low-carbon economy.”
On migration, the Declaration stresses the
importance of prioritizing the rights of those
displaced by conflicts, and urges governments
to stop imposing legal and physical barriers to
the movement of people fleeing violence, as
well as to actively work toward an inclusive
approach to migrants and refugees.
The Assembly also approved 15 resolutions
to supplement the Declaration, addressing
issues such as fundamental freedoms in the
Crimean peninsula, prevention of child sexual
exploitation, confidence-building measures
in the Baltic Sea region, and ensuring that
members of the OSCE ParliamentaryAssembly
affected by international travel bans are able to
attend OSCE events.
At the close of each Annual Session, the
Assembly adopts a Declaration with
recommendations in the fields of political
affairs, security, economics, environment and
human rights. Representing the collective
voice of the OSCE parliamentarians, the
Declaration helps shape OSCE and national
policy. It is complemented by a number
of supplementary items relating to OSCE
commitments and values.
Voting on the Tbilisi Declaration.
“The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
reaffirms the undiminished validity and
historic role of the guiding principles
and common values of the Helsinki
Final Act signed in 1975.”
2016 OSCE PA Tbilisi Declaration
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Georgian officials including President
Giorgi Margvelashvili, Prime Minister
Giorgi Kvirikashvili, and Speaker of Parlia-
ment David Usupashvili addressed the open-
ing plenary of the Annual Session on 1 July.
Also speaking during the plenary were OSCE
PA President Ilkka Kanerva, and OSCE Chair-
person-in-Office and German Foreign Minis-
ter Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Parliamentarians
in the opening plenary session considered a
supplementary item, “Strengthening Relations
Between the OSCE PA and the OSCE,” which
was agreed to unanimously.
David Usupashvili, President of
the Parliament of Georgia
President of the Parliament of Georgia David
Usupashvili opened the Session by noting that
2016 is a landmark year for both the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly and the nation of
Georgia, as it marks the 25th anniversary of the
PA’s establishment and the 25th anniversary
of Georgia’s independence. Emphasizing that
recent problems in the OSCE area have largely
been due to a lack of trust and co-operation,
he insisted on the need to promote dialogue to
restore confidence and resolve conflicts.
He also called for transformation of the
OSCE to “effectively handle the growing defi-
cit of security and co-operation of the modern
world.” He further stressed the need to consol-
idate efforts and “deal with all types of threats
together; all other paths will lead us to defeat.”
Giorgi Margvelashvili,
President of Georgia
The President of Georgia highlighted secu-
rity as the biggest challenge for Georgia, as
well as for the wider region.
“Sovereignty of certain countries are vio-
lated,” he said. The lack of respect for terri-
torial integrity, he said, further complicates
various problems that require international co-
operation, including terrorism and drug traf-
ficking.
He also expressed his country’s readiness
for negotiations in resolving conflicts, for
contributing to the enhancement of global
peace and security, and for acting as a facilita-
tor of co-operation across Eurasia, especially
through opening new co-operative relation-
ships between European and Asian regions.
President Margvelashvili concluded by
noting the key role of the OSCE in consolidat-
ing the country’s democratic progress.
Giorgi Kvirikashvili,
Prime Minister of Georgia
Prime Minister Kvirikashvili discussed the
challenges the OSCE is facing, especially in
regards to the situation in the Caucasus region.
“Today,” he said, “as we are witnessing the
worst security crisis on our continent, the role
that the OSCE has to play in addressing stabil-
ity and security issues is ever more important.”
In this regard, he called for the establishment
of a new perspective for the OSCE in order
to implement peaceful resolution of conflicts,
and to restore collaborative relationships.
He further emphasized the importance of
European and Euro-Atlantic integration for
Georgia, and highlighted reforms that Georgia
has implemented, while also noting the chal-
lenges the country continues to face.
Finally he called for the restoration of a full-
fledged and comprehensive OSCE Mission in
Georgia.
Inaugural Plenary Session
President Ilkka Kanerva chairs the 25th Annual Session’s opening plenary on 1 July­
.
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Inaugural Plenary Session
Ilkka Kanerva,
President of the OSCE PA
President Kanerva, recalling that the previ-
ous year’s Annual Session had been held at the
birthplace of the Helsinki Final Act in Finlan-
dia Hall, insisted on the undiminished validity
of the Helsinki Principles, despite recent set-
backs in promoting security and stability.
“The security environment has largely dete-
riorated across the OSCE area due to ongoing
crises and unresolved conflicts, as well as envi-
ronmental and humanitarian concerns that are
undermining human security in many of our
countries,” he said. Nevertheless, he expressed
a firm belief in the importance of dialogue
and co-operation, and reaffirmed the need to
respect fundamental principles such as territo-
rial integrity. He also emphasized the role the
PA can play as a unique forum that engages in
open and direct dia-
logue to build trust.
“As we see the
interrelated effects
that various crises
are having on our
mutual security,
we cannot afford to
retreat into an isola-
tionist mindset. Instead we should utilize the
OSCE’s comprehensive security framework
and work together towards building bridges,
not walls,” said President Kanerva.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Chairper-
son in office of the OSCE, German
Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs
The German Foreign Minister and OSCE
CiO recalled the priority of the German Chair-
manship to find ways to resolve intractable
conflicts in the OSCE area, as “managing the
status quo is not acceptable,” and to strengthen
dialogue and co-operation.
He described the steps taken by the German
Chairmanship to address these conflicts “with
a two-pronged approach: On the one hand,
with a policy of small steps in order to create
a minimum of trust between the parties and
to improve the everyday lives of people in
the region. … On
the other hand, we
intend to revive
and intensify nego-
tiation formats and
channels of commu-
nication.”
Steinmeier con-
cluded by evoking
the key role MPs could play in strengthening
societies’ capacity for peace, and welcoming
“the manifold efforts by the members of the
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly to ... support
the process of mediation.”
Supplementary Items
Following the opening addresses, parlia-
mentarians took up the supplementary item
“Strengthening Relations Between the OSCE
PA and the OSCE,” principally sponsored by
Gudmundur Steingrimsson (Iceland). The
item was adopted by unanimous vote with no
amendments.
Georgia in focus on Session’s opening day
A working lunch on 1 July organized by the OSCE PA’s Georgian Delegation featured discus-
sions on the rule of law, democracy and transparency in Georgia. Featuring keynote speeches
by Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili and Professor S. Neil MacFarlane, the event was moder-
ated by Tedo Japaridze, Acting Head of the Georgian Delegation to the OSCE PA and Chairman
of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Parliament of Georgia.
Speakers focused in particular on the state of reform efforts in the country.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier
“We should utilize the OSCE’s comprehen-
sive security framework and work together
towards building bridges, not walls.”
OSCE PA President Ilkka Kanerva
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Standing Committee
The Standing Committee consists of the
57 Heads of National Delegations and
Members of the Bureau. Meeting three
times a year – at the Winter Meeting, the
Autumn Meeting and the Annual Session
– the Standing Committee guides the work
of the Assembly, approves its budget, and
elects the OSCE PA Secretary General.
President Ilkka Kanerva opened the OSCE
PA’s Standing Committee meeting on 1 July
with a report on his activities since the previous
Annual Session in Helsinki, noting a number
of high-level meetings he has held, as well as
discussing political issues in the OSCE region
and highlighting the Assembly’s achievements
of the past 25 years.
“EarlierthisyearourAssemblycelebratedour
25th anniversary, and 25 years of leading open
and inclusive inter-parliamentary dialogue on
the most challeng-
ing issues and trying
to find solutions that
truly deliver for our
people in the OSCE
area,” Kanerva said.
He highlighted the
special report he
had prepared and
distributed ahead
of the Annual Ses-
sion, “Our common
vision for the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly:
Supporting OSCE principles and facilitating
parliamentary dialogue,” which outlines the
Assembly’s strengths and areas that could be
further developed.
The Standing Committee also heard a report
of the Treasurer, German parliamentarian
Doris Barnett, focused on the OSCE PA’s pre-
sent financial situation. She warmly thanked
the Parliament of Georgia for hosting the 25th
Annual Session, noting that the Assembly
needs the constant support of national delega-
tions, including by hosting meetings. Barnett
reported that despite an increase in activities,
the Assembly remains within its approved
budget. Following a brief debate, the budget
for the 2016/2017 financial year was unani-
mously approved.
The Standing Committee approved 15 sup-
plementary items for general debate, allocat-
ing five to the First Committee, two to the
Second Committee and six to the Third Com-
mittee. Two supplementary items, “Strengthen-
ing Relations Between the OSCE PA and the
OSCE” and the Compromise Supplementary
Item on “Unrestricted Access of Members of
the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Attending
Official OSCE Events and Other Activities,”
were allocated to the plenary.
Thanking the Georgian hosts for their excel-
lent organization of
the Annual Session,
OSCE PA Secretary
General Roberto
Montella presented
his report, which
focused largely on
his priorities of
strengthening the
International Secre-
tariat and enhancing
co-operation with
partners, as well as a summary of ongoing and
upcoming activities. He said that his guiding
principles for managing the Secretariat over the
past six months are what he referred to as the
“triple A’s” – assess, adapt, advance.
Leaders of recent election observation mis-
sions also reported their findings to the Stand-
ing Committee, followed by a number of reports
from Special Representatives and chairs of ad
hoc committees.
Information was further provided by Heads
of Delegations on upcoming meetings of the
OSCE PA, including the Autumn Meeting to be
held in Skopje from 29 September to 2 October
2016, the Winter Meeting in Vienna on 23-24
February 2017, and the 26th Annual Session,
which will be held in Minsk on 5-9 July 2017.
Kyrgyzstan also announced its intentions to
host the 2018 Autumn Meeting.
“Maintaining the flexibility to engage in
the most relevant political issues has been a
hallmark of the Assembly’s first 25 years; we
should continue to capitalize on this strength
and use it to full effect.”
President Kanerva’s report, “Our common
vision for the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly”
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General Committee on
Political Affairs and Security
Beginning its work on 2 July, the General
Committee on Political Affairs and Secu-
rity held a total of four sessions, with Chair
Roger Wicker (United States), Vice-Chair
Azay Guliyev (Azerbaijan) and Rapporteur
Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden) serving as offic-
ers. The committee debated and approved five
supplementary items, covering issues includ-
ing protracted conflicts, the possible contribu-
tions of the OSCE PA to developing effective
responses to crises and conflicts, reconsolidat-
ing European security as a common project,
and enhanced co-operation and confidence
building measures in the Baltic Sea region.
Report and Resolution
Rapporteur Margareta Cederfelt presented
her report with a focus on rebuilding trust and
stability in the OSCE region, with other key
points including the fight against transnational
terrorism, the crisis in and around Ukraine,
protracted conflicts, women in armed conflict
and the link between security and democracy.
Cederfelt’s resolution urges participating
States to strengthen co-operation on anti-ter-
rorism and develop measures aimed at block-
ing the funding of terrorist organizations. The
resolution further calls on the OSCE to help
Side events on mediation, nuclear disarmament
A side event was held
during the Annual Session
on nuclear non-prolifer-
ation and disarmament.
Co-sponsored by Parliamen-
tarians for Nuclear Non-Pro-
liferation and Disarmament
(PNND) and the Austrian,
Canadian and Swiss delega-
tions to the OSCE PA, the working lunch was chaired by Hedy Fry (Canada) and featured remarks
by OSCE PA Vice-President Christine Muttonen (Austria). Also speaking were Co-President of
PNND Paul Dewar, Deputy Head of the Swiss OSCE PA Delegation Margaret Kiener Nellen, and
PNND French Director Jean-Marie Collin. The event focused on prospects for global nuclear
non-proliferation and disarmament within the context of an increasingly fragile security envi-
ronment in the OSCE area.
In an event on 3 July focused on mediation, OSCE PA President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland)
and Finnish Ambassador to the OSCE Katja Pehrman spoke about parliamentary contributions
to conflict resolution and prevention.
Roger Wicker (center) chairs the First Committee meeting on 2 July.
PA Vice-President Christine Muttonen (right) speaks at the nuclear disarmament
side event on 4 July.
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governments counter terrorism through
pragmatic assistance and promotion of
best practices, and urges a comprehensive
settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh con-
flict within the framework of the Minsk
Group. Regarding the crisis in and around
Ukraine, the resolution urges all parties
to fully implement the Package of Meas-
ures for the Implementation of the Minsk
Agreements.
The committee debated a number of
issues related to the security situation in
the OSCE area, with a particular focus on
resolving the crisis in and around Ukraine
and protracted conflicts in the South Caucasus.
Parliamentarians stressed that constructive
dialogue will help rebuild trust among par-
ticipating States and thereby facilitate the full
implementation of key documents and agree-
ments aimed at stabilizing the situation on the
ground and exerting more pressure for achiev-
ing peace.
There were 87 proposed amendments to the
resolution, with 47 adopted.
Supplementary Items
The First Committee discussed five supple-
mentary items. The resolution “The Possible
Contributions of the OSCE PA to Developing
Effective Response to Crisis and Conflicts,”
principally sponsored by Doris Barnett (Ger-
many), was adopted by a large margin with
four amendments. The resolution recommends
the development of a rapid reaction capability
for deployment in times of crisis to support the
work of OSCE field operations and to make
policy recommendations on future action to
the OSCE executive bodies.
Principally sponsored by David Usupash-
vili (Georgia), the resolution “The Conflict
in Georgia,” was approved with three amend-
ments. The resolution reiterates the PA’s sup-
port for the sovereignty and territorial integrity
of Georgia within its internationally recog-
nized borders. The committee also debated
and adopted the resolution “Reconsolidating
European Security as a Common Project,”
principally sponsored by Filippo Lombardi
(Switzerland), with four amendments. The res-
olution calls upon the current and upcoming
OSCE Chairmanships, in close co-operation
with the OSCE Troika and the OSCE Secre-
tariat, to prepare concrete proposals on how
political discussions on European security can
be further developed within the OSCE, with a
view to restoring co-operative security in the
OSCE area.
Authored by Arta Dade (Albania), the reso-
lution “The Republic of Moldova” passed with
five amendments. The resolution proposes
to facilitate parliamentary dialogue between
members of the Moldovan Parliament and
representatives of the Transnistrian legislative
body under the auspices of the Parliamentary
Team on Moldova and with the support of the
OSCE Mission to Moldova.
Jürgen Klimke (Germany)’s resolution
“Enhanced Co-operation and Confidence
Building Measures in the Baltic Sea Region”
was approved with two amendments. The
resolution calls, inter alia, for a discussion
within the OSCE PA with the aim of forming a
Baltic Sea working group in order to foster and
strengthen security, co-operation and dialogue
in the region.
The Committee wrapped up its work on 4
July with the election of committee officers.
General Committee on
Political Affairs and Security
Election of Officers
Chair: Roger Wicker (United States)
Vice-Chair: Guglielmo Picchi (Italy)
Rapporteur: Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden)
Rapporteur Margareta Cederfelt confers with Deputy Secretary
General Gustavo Pallares on 2 July.
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The three sessions of the General Commit-
tee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technol-
ogy and Environment on 2-3 July were chaired
by Committee Vice-Chair Nilza Sena, Head
of Portugal’s OSCE PA Delegation. Members
considered the draft resolution proposed by
Rapporteur Marietta Tidei (Italy) and two sup-
plementary items which dealt with combatting
corruption and commemorating the 30th anni-
versary of the Chernobyl disaster.
Report and Resolution
Tidei presented her report and draft resolu-
tion, calling for tackling the underlying causes
of common security challenges, which today,
she said, clearly have a component rooted in the
economic and environmental dimension.
The Rapporteur paid particular attention to
the cascading and interrelated effects of cor-
ruption, energy, climate change, food security,
and migration as contributing to destabilization
in many parts of the OSCE area. Tidei stressed
that food security should not be viewed from a
purely humanitarian standpoint, but also as cen-
tral to a comprehensive approach to security.
Tidei also emphasized the role migrants play in
economic growth, and called for more focus on
improving the management of migration flows,
as well as to “increase economic opportunities
for migrants in destination countries and coun-
tries of origin.”
Tidei called for creating a platform of dia-
logue to better address cross-sectoral issues in
the economy and environment, and to build
upon dialogue in the OSCE area. “In the Hel-
General Committee on Economic Affairs,
Science, Technology and Environment
Rapporteur Marietta Tidei presents her report and draft resolution, 2 July.
Ad Hoc Committee on Migration outlines work plan
The Ad Hoc Committee on
Migration, chaired by Filippo
Lombardi (Switzerland), met
on the margins of the Annual
Session to discuss its plan of
action for the coming year.
The Chair recalled the three
main activities the committee
is focusing on, including field
visits to learn about the situation of migrants, interaction with stakeholders dealing with migra-
tion, and developing ideas and policy recommendations.
During the meeting, the Ad Hoc Committee heard from Swiss Ambassador Claude Wild,
Chair of the OSCE’s Informal Working Group (IWG) on Migration, who presented the OSCE’s
complementary role to UNHCR and IOM in tackling the issue of migration and refugees flow, as
well as the challenges and opportunities this issue encompasses for the OSCE.
To best complement the work of the OSCE’s governmental side, the Ad Hoc Committee
agreed to focus on the same five dimensions that the IWG is working on, namely protection,
combatting crimes, responsible border management, successful integration, solidarity and
partnership. In addition, the Committee will focus on prevention.
Members of the Ad Hoc Committee on Migration meet on 3 July.
25th Annual Session t Report
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sinki Final Act of 1975, participating States rec-
ognized that ‘efforts to develop co-operation in
the fields of trade, industry, science and tech-
nology, the environment and other areas of eco-
nomic activity contribute to the reinforcement
of peace and security in Europe and in the world
as a whole’,” she said. “More than four decades
later, in the midst of crises and challenges on
multiple fronts, we are reminded of how presci-
ent these words were.”
In this regard, Tidei’s resolution calls for
participating States to “further develop their
early warning capacity in an effort to counteract
potential threats from climate change,” and for
the OSCE to co-ordinate its work in the second
dimension with that of other international
organizations.
Seventeen parliamentarians took the floor,
presenting their views on a range of issues
related to the report. These included the risk
of water as a possible source of conflict, the
need to develop economic infrastructure and
transportation, instability of financial markets,
energy security, combatting corruption, and
strengthening the OSCE’s economic-environ-
mental dimension and the potential of economic
co-operation to reinforce peace and security.
The committee considered 35 amendments to
the draft resolution, with 19 ultimately adopted.
Following the debate and consideration of
amendments, the document was adopted unani-
mously.
Supplementary Items
SponsoredbyMargaretaCederfeldt(Sweden),
the supplementary item “Acting Against Cor-
ruption in the OSCE Region to Strengthen the
Rule of Law” calls upon participating States
to update their legislative frameworks to prior-
itize the fight against corruption, point-
ing out that national legislation should
ensure a maximum degree of transpar-
ency in political, administrative, and
economic life.
The item also encourages OSCE
participating States to bear in mind the
gender dimension of corruption and to
mainstream gender equality into anti-
corruption monitoring activities. It also
encourages the strengthening of the
parliamentary dimension of the fight
against corruption among national parliaments
by taking stock of national anti-corruption ini-
tiatives and sharing good practices on working
methods and approaches to tackling corruption
effectively. Two amendments were discussed,
one of which was adopted, and the item was
adopted unanimously.
The supplementary item “The 30th Anniver-
sary of the Chernobyl Disaster,” sponsored by
Artur Gerasymov (Ukraine), commemorates
the anniversary of the disaster, pays tribute to
the victims, and underlines that current as well
as past efforts to minimize the negative effects
of the Chernobyl disaster have fallen short. It
also calls for additional assistance by the inter-
national community to maintain and operate
structures built within the closed “exclusion
zone” and unconditional resettlement zone.
The item welcomes the OSCE’s work to con-
tribute within its mandate to the international
efforts aimed at alleviating and minimizing the
consequences of the Chernobyl disaster, in par-
ticular through an assessment of environmen-
tal risks in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, and
strengthening capacities in the sphere of envi-
ronmental control, also reaffirming the critical
importance of observing International Atomic
Energy Agency nuclear safety standards and the
requirements of the 1991 Espoo Convention on
Environmental Impact Assessment in a Trans-
boundary Context. With 13 amendments dis-
cussed and 12 agreed to, the item was adopted
unanimously.
General Committee on Economic Affairs,
Science, Technology and Environment
Election of Officers
Chair: Nilza Sena (Portugal)
Vice-Chair: Artur Gerasymov (Ukraine)
Rapporteur: Marietta Tidei (Italy)
Nilza Sena chairs the committee
Voting in the Second Committee on 3 July.
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General Committee on Democracy,
Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions
Chair Isabel Santos (Portugal) presided over
four meetings of the General Committee
on Democracy, Human Rights and Humani-
tarian Questions on 2-4 July, with Vice-Chair
Ivana Dobesova (Czech Republic) filling in as
Chair while Santos presented the report and
draft resolution in the absence of Rapporteur
Gordana Comic (Serbia). Six supplementary
items were also considered by the committee.
Report and Resolution
Raising concerns over the deprioritizing
of human rights across the OSCE region, the
report and resolution urges a revitalization of
the OSCE’s commitment to the human dimen-
sion of security at a time when a “crisis of
leadership and ideas” is coinciding with a
humanitarian emergency related to Europe’s
refugee and migrant crisis. The report argues
that respect for human rights, democracy and
rule of law is fundamental to lasting security.
The resolution further provides guidance on
ways to improve the comprehensive and mul-
tidimensional approach to security, including
by refraining from the imposition of legal and
physical barriers to the movement of people
fleeing violence. It advocates an inclusive
approach to migrants and refugees, including
by opening up labour markets at the earliest
possible stage.
Santos noted that the report and draft resolu-
tion do not present a “magic solution” to the
challenges of human rights in the OSCE area,
Parliamentarians consider gender issues at working lunch
Hedy Fry addresses the Gender Lunch.
Opened by Special Representative on
Gender Issues Hedy Fry (Canada), 2
July’s Gender Lunch featured keynote
addresses by Manana Kobakhidze,
the First Vice-Speaker of the Georgian
Parliament, and OSCE PA President Ilkka
Kanerva (Finland). The working lunch,
held under the theme “Transforming
Gender Equality Goals into Concrete Action,” was also addressed by Elene Rusetskaia,
Director of the Women’s Information Center, and Sophia Japaridze, Assistant to the Prime
Minister of Georgia on Human Rights and Gender Equality Issues. Key themes discussed
by the speakers included how to increase opportunities for women and how to improve
social, political and economic conditions for women through the improvement of national
legislation.
Following the keynote addresses, participants discussed how to move from commitment
to action, proposing a number of concrete actions for success in achieving gender equality
on the local, national, and international levels.
Isabel Santos chairs the Third Committee on 3 July.
25th Annual Session t Report
17
but provide a basis for further co-operation.
“Together, we can achieve more, and one day
we will achieve the solutions,” she said.
Twenty-three parliamentarians took the
floor to debate the report and draft resolution,
with views expressed on the ongoing chal-
lenges of the refugee and migrant crisis, the
crisis in and around Ukraine, and protracted
conflicts in Georgia. Other issues highlighted
were the vulnerabilities of women and girls in
the context of the migration crisis and the state
of LGBT rights.
Following the discussion, the committee
debated the proposed amendments to Com-
ic’s resolution. The committee considered 40
amendments to the draft resolution, as well as
several oral amendments proposed during the
meeting, with 27 adopted in total. After the
consideration of amendments, the document
was adopted overwhelmingly.
Supplementary Items
The Third Committee discussed six sup-
plementary items. The item “Violations of
Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in
the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the
City of Sevastopol”, sponsored by Natalia
Ahafonova of Ukraine, reaffirms the territo-
rial integrity of Ukraine within its internation-
ally recognized borders and condemns human
rights abuses on the Crimean peninsula,
including those directed against the Crimean
Tatar minority. Following a vigorous debate,
the item was ultimately approved overwhelm-
ingly with three amendments.
The item “Law Enforcement Co-ordination
to Prevent Child Sexual Exploitation and Traf-
ficking by Known Sex Offenders”, sponsored
by Christopher Smith (United States), passed
overwhelmingly with one amendment. The
resolution expresses alarm at the scale of the
problem of the victimization of children by
commercial sexual exploitation, and calls on
OSCE participating States to improve their law
enforcement co-ordination on matters relating
to child sexual exploitation.
The supplementary item “A Call for OSCE
Action to Address Violence and Discrimina-
tion” was proposed by Randy Hultgren on
behalf of sponsor Ben Cardin, both members of
the U.S. Delegation. The resolution expresses
alarm over heightened incidents of violence
and discrimination and increased prejudice in
the OSCE region, and calls on participating
States to develop an anti-discrimination action
plan. There were six proposed amendments
with one agreed to, and the resolution was sub-
sequently adopted.
The resolution “The Rights of Refugees”,
sponsored and presented by Michel Voisin
(France), enjoyed overwhelming support and
was adopted with one oral amendment. The
item calls on governments to protect the fami-
lies of refugees and ensure that their status as
refugees is protected. The debate included an
exchange of views on how best to deal with the
refugee and migrant crisis.
The item “The Security Challenges of
Migration”, sponsored by Third Committee
Vice-Chair Ivana Dobesova (Czech Repub-
lic) urges greater consideration of the secu-
rity issues raised by the refugee and migrant
crisis, and invites OSCE participating States
to co-operate more closely with countries of
origin and transit in order to address potential
security issues arising from irregular migra-
tion. Ten amendments were proposed to the
resolution, with five adopted. Following the
discussion of amendments the resolution was
adopted by a large margin.
The final supplementary item, “Integrating
Gender-Based Analysis and Gender Main-
streaming in the Response to the Migrant
and Refugee Crisis”, authored by Hedy Fry
(Canada), was adopted unanimously with one
amendment. The resolution calls on the OSCE
and its participating States to, inter alia, collect
sex-disaggregated data and conduct gender-
based analysis of all plans and programmes in
response to the migrant and refugee crisis, and
to ensure that female migrants and refugees
are protected from exploitation and discrimi-
nation.
General Committee on Democracy,
Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions
Election of Officers
Chair: Ignacio Sanchez-Amor (Spain)
Vice-Chair: Ivana Dobesova (Czech
Republic)
Rapporteur: Kyriakos Kyriakou-
Hadjiyanni (Cyprus)
25th Annual Session t Report
18
President Ilkka Kanerva chaired two plenary
sessions on 4-5 July, in which the Tbilisi
Declaration was adopted and election results
announced. Hedy Fry (Canada) and Doris Bar-
nett (Germany) presented reports on gender
issues and the OSCE PA’s finances, respec-
tively, and Members also heard addresses by
OSCE PA Secretary General Roberto Montella
and President Kanerva.
Hedy Fry, OSCE PA Special
Representative on Gender Issues
Presenting her report, “A Gender Sensitive
Response to the Migrant and Refugee Influx in
Europe is Needed,” Hedy Fry declared that no
country is moving fast enough when it comes
to gender issues. Despite the fact that the struc-
tures are in place for making progress, imple-
mentation is lacking, she said, highlighting in
particular a need for gender mainstreaming in
the response to the refugee and migrant crisis.
Fry pointed out that women and children
make up a disproportionate number of refu-
gees, and when migrating they are particularly
vulnerable to sexual exploitation or forced
labour. She urged the development of gender-
sensitive strategies in dealing with the migra-
tion crisis, noting that there is a pressing need
to improve gender data collection and analysis
in order to determine how migration policies
impact women and girls.
Supplementary Items
The supplementary items “Unrestricted
Access of Members of the OSCE Parlia-
mentary Assembly Attending Official OSCE
Events and Other Activi-
ties,” principally spon-
sored by Filippo Lombardi
(Switzerland), and “The
Need to Equip Passenger
Aircraft with Additional
Technical Means for Moni-
toring Conditions on Board
in Real Time,” principally
sponsored by Nikolay
Kovalev (Russian Federa-
tion), were adopted in ple-
nary session on 4 July.
Lombardi’s resolution states that travel
restrictions resulting from sanctions regimes
have a negative impact on parliamentary diplo-
macy and calls on OSCE participating States
to refrain from applying these restrictive meas-
ures on members of parliament. In the debate,
Members stressed that the freedom to attend
parliamentary events is essential for promot-
ing dialogue, and is at the core of parliamen-
tary diplomacy. The supplementary item was
adopted by a vote of 94-44, with four absten-
tions.
Members also adopted Kovalev’s resolu-
tion, which emphasizes the vulnerability of
passenger aircraft to terrorist attack and urges
the adoption of on-board photographic and
audio-visual monitoring equipment to prevent
such attacks.
Open Debate
The floor was then opened up for general
debate, with Members addressing a number
of issues including terrorism, radical religious
movements, the role of the OSCE in conflict
resolution, the migration crisis, new technolo-
gies, and the need for improving dialogue in
the OSCE PA.
Ola Elvestuen (Norway), OSCE PA Special
Representative for Arctic Issues, also gave a
brief presentation of challenges for the Arctic
area, including rising temperatures, melting
glaciers, and ongoing security concerns. He
reminded the Assembly that Arctic issues cross
the three dimensions of security and require
co-operation to reduce greenhouse emissions
and implement climate change adaptation.
Second Plenary Session
President Ilkka Kanerva chairs the plenary session.
25th Annual Session t Report
19
Open Debate (continued)
A total of 17 Members took the floor during
the open debate on 5 July, with migration fea-
turing prominently in discussions. Filippo
Lombardi, Head of the Swiss Delegation and
Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Migration,
noted that the OSCE should play an important
role in migration crisis resolution, stressing
that parliamentarians can help promote the
exchange of best practices on this issue. He
pointed out that as the world’s largest regional
security organization, the OSCE is well-suited
to meet the challenges of migration due to its
geographic and thematic focuses.
Doris Barnett, OSCE PA Treasurer
Treasurer Doris Barnett (Germany) started
her report thanking her predecessor, Rob-
erto Battelli, for his work in ensuring that the
Assembly’s finances were in good order, as
recently confirmed by the OSCE PA’s external
auditors. Noting that Members of the Assem-
bly are ultimately accountable to their constit-
uents, she welcomed the fact that the budget
had remained at a relatively constant level for
a number of years.
The OSCE PA’s fiscal year 2016/2017
would see a small rise, she said, to ensure that
the Secretariat was sufficiently supported to
organize its statutory meetings and the increas-
ing level of PA activities. Barnett concluded by
thanking the Georgian Delegation for hosting
the 2016 Annual Session, as well as her col-
leagues for their contributions, and the Inter-
national Secretariat for its work.
Roberto Montella,
Secretary General of the OSCE PA
Secretary General Roberto Montella began
by expressing his thanks to the Georgian hosts
for an exceptional event, and to all Members for
their contributions to the discussions. Montella
stressed that since taking up his post as Secre-
tary General in January, his two main priori-
ties had been internal reform of the Secretariat
and external relations with partners. He noted
that it was important to focus on the values that
the OSCE PA defends and the important assets
that Assembly Members represent.
Montella expressed gratitude to President
Kanerva for his two years of service lead-
ing the Assembly, noting that this period had
been a challenging one due to the crisis in
and around Ukraine, the migration crisis and
terrorist attacks across the region. He urged
continued diligence in addressing these chal-
lenges, and noted that the International Secre-
tariat is as committed as ever to working with
OSCE PA Members – including the incoming
President – in addressing common concerns
together.
Ilkka Kanerva,
President of the OSCE PA
President Kanerva addressed the Assembly,
noting that in times of increased tension in
the OSCE area, it is all the more important to
enhance constructive parliamentary dialogue
and promote mutual understanding. “We must
find solutions to our challenges through politi-
cal not military means,” he said, pointing to the
Closing Plenary Session
The Assembly meeting in plenary session.
25th Annual Session t Report
20
Closing Plenary Session
paper that he had distributed in Tbilisi entitled
“Our common vision for the OSCE Parliamen-
tary Assembly,” which promotes a common
approach to comprehensive security.
“Our Assembly has a distinct identity based
on its values that unite
us,” he said. “Each and
every one of us should
promote our common
values.” He pointed to
the various ways that
Assembly Members can
help ensure that OSCE
commitments are
implemented in all OSCE countries, includ-
ing through the valuable work of the OSCE
PA’s Special Representatives and the political
weight of its Declarations.
Adoption of the Tbilisi Declaration
and Election Results
The Session ended with the adoption of the
Tbilisi Declaration and the announcement of
election results for new Assembly officers.
Acting Deputy Head of the PA’s Austrian Del-
egation Christine Muttonen, an OSCE Parlia-
mentary Assembly Vice-President and Special
Representative for Central and Eastern Asia,
was elected Assembly President, along with
three Vice-Presidents: Vilija Aleknaite Abra-
mikiene (Lithuania), Azay Guliyev (Azerbai-
jan), Isabel Santos (Portugal), and Victor Paul
Dobre (Romania).
The newly elected President started her
speech by thanking all colleagues, noting that
she would not take her responsibilities lightly.
She expressed her belief that the dialogue
and debate of the Assembly can further the
interests of all citizens.
“Parliamentarians can
play a very important
role in securing peace
and stability,” she said.
“It will be my duty to
make sure they have the
possibility to do so.”
She thanked her com-
peting candidates for a well-fought campaign,
and looked forward to continuing discus-
sions with them and all other Members of the
Assembly. Muttonen expressed special thanks
to President Emeritus Ilkka Kanerva for his
leadership, emphasizing that she would con-
tinue his work.
“Parliamentarians can play a very
important role in securing peace and
stability. It will be my duty to make sure
they have the possibility to do so.”
Newly elected OSCE PA President
Christine Muttonen
Christine Muttonen
Voting in plenary session.
25th Annual Session t Report
21
25th Annual Session t Report
22
Deputy Prime Minister, and Deputy Speaker of
Parliament. In the PA, he has served as Vice-
President and as Co-Chair of the OSCE PA’s
Helsinki +40 Project. He is currently the PA’s
Special Representative on Mediation.
Doris Barnett (Germany)
was elected Treasurer in
2015, after serving since
2013 as Vice-President.
She has been a member
of the German Bunde-
stag since 1994, where
she currently serves on
the Committee on Eco-
nomics and Technology
and the Committee on
European Union Affairs. She is the Head of
the German Delegation to the OSCE PA and is
also a member of the Council of Europe and the
European Security and Defence Assembly.
Robert Aderholt (United States)
was elected OSCE PA
Vice-President at the
Monaco Annual Ses-
sion in 2012 and re-
elected in 2015. In the
U.S. Congress, he is a
member of the House
Committee on Appro-
priations, which has
jurisdiction over
funding the operation
of the federal government. As Chairman of the
Christine Muttonen (Austria)
was elected President
at the 2016 Annual
Session in Tbilisi.
Muttonen has previ-
ously served as OSCE
PA Vice-President and
Special Representa-
tive for Central and
Eastern Asia, and is
Deputy Head of the
Austrian Delegation
to the PA. She has been a Member of the Aus-
trian Parliament since 1999 and also serves
as area spokesperson for the Austrian Social
Democratic Parliamentary Group for Foreign
Politics. She is also a member of her national
delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe. Muttonen was a teacher
before her career in politics.
Ilkka Kanerva (Finland)
is the Assembly’s
President Emeritus.
Elected President at
the 2014 Annual Ses-
sion and re-elected in
2015, Kanerva is a
former OSCE Chair-
person-in-Office, and
has been a member
of the Finnish Parlia-
ment since 1975. He
has held a variety of posts in his government
and national legislature, including service
as Foreign Minister, Minister of Transport,
Officers of the Assembly
The Officers of the Assembly, also
known as the Bureau, include the
President, Vice-Presidents, the Treas-
urer, General Committee Officers and
the President Emeritus. The Bureau is
responsible for ensuring that the deci-
sions of the Standing Committee are
carried out, as well as for the efficient
operation of the Assembly between
meetings of the Standing Committee.
The Bureau takes decisions by a two-
thirds majority vote.
OSCE PA Bureau Members meeting on the
fourth day of the 17th Annual Session
OSCE PA Bureau meeting on 8 July 2015.
25th Annual Session t Report
23
Subcommittee on Agriculture and a member
of the Commerce, Justice and Science as well
as the Defense Subcommittees, he supports
greater transparency, accountability and over-
sight of the appropriations process. Aderholt is
also an active member of the U.S. Commission
on Security and Cooperation in Europe (also
known as the Helsinki Commission).
Vilija Aleknaite Abramikiene
(Lithuania)
was first elected Vice-
President at the 2013
OSCE PA Annual Ses-
sion in Istanbul after
serving two terms as
Rapporteur of the Com-
mittee on Political
Affairs and Security,
and re-elected in Tbi-
lisi. She also served as
Head of Delegation of Lithuania to the OSCE
PA from 2008 to 2012 and is a member the
Ad Hoc Working Group on Belarus. Aleknaite
Abramikiene has been a member of the Seimas
(Parliament) of the Republic of Lithuania since
1992 and is a member of the Committees on
European Affairs and Legal Affairs.
Roberto Battelli (Slovenia)
was elected Vice-
President of the
OSCE Parliamentary
Assembly at the 2015
Annual Session in
Helsinki after serv-
ing for three terms as
the Assembly’s Treas-
urer. He is also the
OSCE PA’s Special
Representative on
South East Europe, a position he has held since
2006. Since becoming a member of the OSCE
PA in 1992, Battelli has been particularly active
in election observation, observing some two
dozen elections across the OSCE area. Battelli
has been a member of the National Assembly of
the Republic of Slovenia since 1990, where he
is a member of the parliamentary expert group
that was responsible for drafting the country’s
constitution.
Peter Bowness (United Kingdom)
was elected Vice-Pres-
ident of the OSCE PA
at the Helsinki Annual
Session in 2015. As a
member of the House
of Lords, he serves on
the European Union
Energy and Environ-
ment Sub-Committee
and has been a member
of the European Union
Select Committee, among other assignments.
He has been a member of the British Delega-
tion to the OSCE PA since 2007 and serves as
Chair of the OSCE PA’s Sub-Committee on the
Rules of Procedure.
Victor Paul Dobre (Romania)
was elected to a one-
year term as Vice-Pres-
ident at the OSCE PA’s
25th Annual Session in
Tbilisi, Georgia, on 5
July 2016. A member
of the Romanian
Chamber of Deputies
since 2000, Dobre has
served on the Roma-
nian Delegation to the
OSCE PA since 2009. In his national parlia-
ment, Dobre serves as Chairman of the Com-
mittee on Public Administration and Territorial
Planning.
Azay Guliyev (Azer-
baijan)
was elected Vice-Presi-
dent in Tbilisi. He pre-
viously served for three
years as Vice-Chair of
the General Committee
on Political Affairs and
Security. A member
Officers of the Assembly
25th Annual Session t Report
24
Officers of the Assembly
tee on Agriculture and the Sea. As Chair of the
Third Committee she was particularly active,
leading delegations and fact-finding missions to
Kazakhstan and Guantanamo Bay, as well as to
refugee camps in Rome, Lampedusa, Catania,
Czech Republic, and Serbia.
George Tsereteli (Georgia)
was elected Vice-Pres-
ident of the OSCE Par-
liamentary Assembly
at the 2012 Annual
Session in Monaco and
re-elected at the 2015
Annual Session in
Helsinki. Following a
career in business and
as a practicing neurol-
ogist, Tsereteli came to
politics in 1995, serving in the Tbilisi munici-
pality and as Minister of Labour, Health and
Social Affairs. He has been a Member of Par-
liament since 1999, and has served as Deputy
Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, Vice
Prime Minister, Chairman of the Committee
on Regional Policy, Chairman of the Com-
mittee on Healthcare and Social Issues and as
Acting Chairman of Parliament.
of his national parliament since 2005, Guli-
yev currently serves on the Permanent Com-
mittee on State Building and is a member of
several working groups promoting Azerbai-
jan’s bilateral relations with various countries.
Since 2008, he has also served as Chair of the
Council on State Support to NGOs. Guliyev
has been a member of Azerbaijan’s OSCE PA
Delegation since 2005.
Kent Harstedt (Sweden)
was elected Vice-Pres-
ident of the Assembly
at the 2014 Annual Ses-
sion in Baku. A member
of the Swedish Parlia-
ment since 1998, he
has served on the Com-
mittee on Defence, the
Committee on Health
and Welfare, the Joint
Committee on Foreign
Affairs and Defence and the Standing Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs. In the OSCE PA,
Harstedt is a member of the General Com-
mittee on Political Affairs and Security and
has been particularly active in election obser-
vation activities, having participated in mis-
sions to Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, Tunisia,
Turkmenistan, the United States and Ukraine.
He is also active in the Swedish Delegation to
the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe.
Isabel Santos (Portugal)
was elected Vice-Pres-
ident in Tbilisi, after
having previously
served three terms as
Chair of the Committee
on Democracy, Human
Rights and Humanitar-
ian Questions. Santos
has been a member of
Portuguese Parliament
from 2005 to 2009 and
resumed her service in the Parliament in 2011.
SheservesontheCommitteeonBudget,Finance
and Public Administration and the Commit-
The Bureau meets every spring in the Danish Par-
liament (Folketing).
25th Annual Session t Report
25
First General Committee
Roger Wicker (United States)
has served as the Chair
of the OSCE Parlia-
mentary Assembly’s
Committee on Politi-
cal Affairs and Secu-
rity since November
2014. He has been
re-elected at the 2015
and 2016 Annual Ses-
sions. Wicker currently
serves as the Co-Chair of the Commission on
Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Hel-
sinki Commission). Within the U.S. Senate he
is a member of the Armed Services Commit-
tee; the Budget Committee; the Commerce,
Science, and Transportation Committee; the
Environment and Public Works Committee;
and the Rules Committee.
Guglielmo Picchi (Italy)
was elected Vice-Chair
of the General Commit-
tee on Political Affairs
and Security at the 25th
Annual Session in Tbi-
lisi. He has served in
the Italian Parliament
since 2006 and has been
on the Italian Delega-
tion to the OSCE Par-
liamentary Assembly
since 2008. He previously has worked in invest-
ment banking and served on the City Council of
Florence from 1995 to 1999. He also serves as
Vice-Chair of the OSCE PA’s Ad Hoc Commit-
tee on Migration.
Margareta Cederfelt (Sweden)
has served as the Rap-
porteur for the General
Committee on Politi-
cal Affairs and Security
since 2015. First enter-
ing the Swedish parlia-
ment (Riksdag) in 1999,
Cederfelt served as an
Alternate Member of
the Swedish Delegation
to the OSCE PA from
2010 to 2014 and since 2014 as Deputy Head
of the Delegation. In her national parliament,
Cederfelt has served as a member of the Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs since 2014. She has
also served as Chair of the National Board of
Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) and
Treasurer of the PGA Executive Board since
2011.
General Committee Officers
The General Committee on Political Affairs and
Security (First Committee)
Following the 1991 Madrid Declara-
tion, three committees were established
along the lines of the three main “baskets”
or sections of the Helsinki Final Act: The
First General Committee on Political
Affairs and Security; the Second General
Committee on Economic Affairs, Science,
Technology and Environment; and the
Third General Committee on Democracy,
Human Rights and Humanitarian Ques-
tions. Following debate and discussion, a
draft resolution is adopted by each commit-
tee for presentation to the Annual Plenary
Session of the Assembly, which is then
included in the Final Declaration.
First General Committee on Political Affairs and Security
First General Committee on Political Affairs and Security
General Committee on Political Affairs and Security
25th Annual Session t Report
26
Second General Committee
Nilza Sena (Portugal)
was elected Chair of the
General Committee on
Economic Affairs, Sci-
ence, Technology and
Environment at the 2016
Annual Session, after
serving three terms as
Vice-Chair. A Member
of the Portuguese Del-
egation to the OSCE PA
since 2011, Sena is also
a founder and member of the Board of the Por-
tuguese Platform for Sustainable Development
and Vice-Chair of the Parliamentary Committee
on Education, Science and Culture. She is Vice-
President of the Social Democratic Party and a
Professor at the Technical University of Lisbon.
She holds a Master’s degree in Political Science
and a PhD in Social Sciences in the specialty
of sociology and has published numerous aca-
demic articles.
Artur Gerasymov (Ukraine)
was elected Vice-Chair
of the General Commit-
tee on Economic Affairs,
Science, Technology
and Environment at the
25th Annual Session
in Tbilisi. Head of the
Ukrainian Delegation to
the OSCE PA, Gerasy-
mov has a background
in the private sector, serving as Deputy Direc-
tor, Director and General Director of Ukrainian
Marketing Group. In 2014, he was elected to
the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Parliament),
where he serves as a member of the Committee
on National Security and Defence, Chairperson
of the Sub-Committee on Military-Industrial
and Military-Technical Co-operation of the
Verkhovna Rada Committee for Security and
Defence Affairs.
Marietta Tidei (Italy)
was elected Rapporteur
of the Second Commit-
tee at the 2014 Annual
Session in Baku and re-
elected at the 2015 and
2016 Annual Sessions
in Helsinki and Tbilisi.
Elected to her national
parliament in 2013,
Tidei is active in the
Parliamentary Com-
mittee for the Procedures of Charge and the
Committee on Economic Activities, Trade and
Tourism. She is from Rome and is a member of
the Democratic Party.
General Committee Officers
General Committee on Economic Affairs, Science, Technology and Environment
Marietta Tidei and Nilza Sena
25th Annual Session t Report
27
Third General Committee
Ignacio Sanchez Amor (Spain)
was elected Chair of
the General Committee
on Democracy, Human
Rights and Humanitar-
ian Questions at the
25th Annual Session
in Tbilisi in July 2016.
Sanchez Amor is a
member of the Spanish
Parliament’s Foreign
Affairs Committee and
serves as Head of the Spanish Delegation to
the OSCE PA. Since 2012, he has also been the
OSCE PA’s Special Representative on OSCE
Border Issues. Sanchez Amor was previously
vice president of the Association of European
Border Regions. He also held a seat in the
regional Assembly of Extremadura and served
as Deputy President of the government of the
region, which is on the Spain-Portugal border.
Ivana Dobesova (Czech Republic)
was elected Vice-Chair
of the General Com-
mittee on Democracy,
Human Rights and
Humanitarian Ques-
tions at the 2015 Annual
Session in Helsinki and
re-elected in Tbilisi.
Dobesova serves as
Head of the Delegation
of the Czech Repub-
lic to the OSCE PA and has been a member of
her national parliament since 2013. Within the
Czech Chamber of Deputies she is Vice-Chair of
the Committee on Science, Education, Culture,
Youth and Sports and a member of the Com-
mittee on Petitions and the Sub-Committee on
Migration. Dobesova also serves as a substitute
member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe. She has been an active partic-
ipant in OSCE PA election observation activities
since joining the Assembly, participating in mis-
sions to Hungary, the former Yugoslav Repub-
lic of Macedonia, Ukraine, the United States of
America, the United Kingdom and Turkey.
Kyriakos Kyriakou-Hadjiyanni (Cyprus)
was elected Rapporteur
of the Third Commit-
tee at the 2016 Annual
Session in Tbilisi. He
has been a Member of
the House of Repre-
sentatives of Cyprus
since 2006, where he
serves as Chairman of
the Parliamentary Com-
mittee on Educational Affairs and Culture. He is
also a Member of the Committee on Refugees-
Enclaved-Missing-Adversely Affected Persons.
He has previously served on his parliament’s
Committee on the Environment; the Commit-
tee on Energy, Trade, Industry, and Tourism; the
Committee on Foreign and European Affairs; the
Committee on Internal Affairs, and the Commit-
tee on Agriculture and Natural Resources. He
was also a member of the Economic and Social
Committee of the European Union from 2003 to
2004.
General Committee Officers
General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Questions
25th Annual Session t Report
28
29
25th Annual Session t Report
25th Annual Session t Report
30
25th Annual Session t Report
31
25th Annual Session t Report
32
Philippe Nobile
T
he OSCE PA International Secretariat provides administrative support
for the Assembly in its various activities. The Secretariat organizes the
meetings of the Assembly and provides support for election observation
projects, special missions and Presidential activities. Its work is carried out
in co-operation with other OSCE Institutions and international parliamentary
organizations. The Secretariat, which is hosted by the Danish Parliament, is
headed by Secretary General Roberto Montella, and has a permanent staff of 16,
including three staff members at the Liaison Office in Vienna.
Deputy Secretary
General
Gustavo Pallares
Special
Representative
Andreas Nothelle
Presidential Advisor
Maria Chepurina
Head of Document
Services
Dana Bjerregaard
Head of Confer-
ence Services
Odile LeLarge
Director of Adminis-
tration, Finance and
Human Resources
Kurt Lerras
Secretary General
Roberto Montella
Chief ICT
Stephen Paul
Deputy Director of the
Vienna Liaison Office
Marc Carillet
Head of Administration
for Election Observation
Iryna Sabashuk
Deputy Secretary
General
Semyon Dzakhaev
Head of Communi-
cations and Press
Nat Parry
Programme Officer
Farimah Daftary
Chief of the
Executive Office
Andreas Baker
General Services
Manager
Bo Hjorth Nielsen
Programme Officer
Loic Poulain
Chief Political
Advisor
Francesco Pagani
B
ringing together 323 parliamentarians from across the 57-nation OSCE
region, including Europe, Asia and North America, the OSCE PA pro-
vides a forum for parliamentary dialogue, leads election observation
missions, and strengthens international co-operation to uphold commitments on
political, security, economic, environmental and human rights issues.
Recognized as a regional arrangement under Chapter VIII of the United Nations Charter, the
OSCE is a primary instrument for early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and
post-conflict rehabilitation in its area. The Parliamentary Assembly, originally established by
the 1990 Paris Summit to promote greater involvement in the OSCE by national parliaments,
is the oldest continuing OSCE Institution.
The basic objectives of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly are:
• To assess the implementation of OSCE objectives by participating States;
• To discuss subjects addressed during meetings of the Ministerial Council and the summits of
Heads of State or Government;
• To develop and promote mechanisms for the prevention and resolution of conflicts;
• To support the strengthening and consolidation of democratic institutions in OSCE partici-
pating States;
• To contribute to the development of OSCE institutional structures and of relations between
existing OSCE Institutions.
To pursue these objectives, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly employs a variety of means:
• A Final Declaration and a number of resolutions and recommendations are adopted each year at
the Annual Session in July;
• Committee work addresses important contemporary international issues;
• Programmes and Seminars designed to develop and strengthen democracy including an
extensive election observation programme;
• Special parliamentary missions to areas of latent or active crisis.
Vladivostok
.
Vancouver
.
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
International Secretariat
Tordenskjoldsgade 1
1055 Copenhagen K
Denmark
Telephone: +45 33 37 80 40
Telefax: +45 33 37 80 30
E-mail: osce@oscepa.dk
Internet: www.oscepa.org