Marija Pejčinović Burić, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, met today in Strasbourg Kairat Abdrakhmanov, OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities, to officially launch the joint web resource “Collection of Council of Europe and OSCE National Minority Standards”.

The webpage, an example of co-operation between the two organisations in promoting rights of persons belonging to national minorities in Europe, has been launched to mark the 25th anniversary of the entry into force of the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, as well as the 30th anniversary of the opening of the office of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities in The Hague.

“The joint webpage illustrates the long-standing and strong co-operation between, and complementarity of our two institutions,” Council of Europe Secretary General and the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities have written in the joint foreword to the dedicated webpage. “The Council of Europe and the OSCE HCNM fulfil their responsibilities towards national minorities using different tools that serve the same goal. In the current challenging geopolitical context, developing closer ties between our two institutions has become even more important than ever before”.

“Setting standards and guidelines is only one important aspect in the protection of human rights; efficient implementation of these standards and monitoring adherence to them is imperative to ensure that they serve the purpose for which they were established and by doing so contribute to social cohesion, to build resilient societies and maintain peace.”

The Council of Europe, established in 1949, promotes and safeguards democracy, human rights and the rule of law. The Council of Europe carries out its mission as regards national minorities through the standards enshrined in the Framework Convention and the Language Charter, monitoring of states parties’ compliance with these standards, co-operation activities supporting national authorities in applying them, and intergovernmental co-operation to develop policy instruments.

Originating in the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, the OSCE promotes stability, peace and democracy through a comprehensive concept of security that covers the politico-military; the economic and environmental; and the human dimensions. To address national minority issues through these three dimensions, the position of the OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities was established to be an instrument of conflict prevention at the earliest possible stage in regard to tensions involving national minority issues. The HCNM fulfils its mandate by providing analysis and policy guidance, including through its thematic Recommendations and Guidelines.

The “Collection of Council of Europe and OSCE National Minority Standards” is featured in a dedicated section of the Council of Europe website and is meant as a reference resource for civil society actors, government representatives, media and general public.