The minister’s words highlighted the importance of the anniversary of the 1989 free elections in Poland and recalled the role of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (formerly the Office for Free Elections), which has its registered office in Warsaw.

In his address, Minister Czaputowicz pointed to the particular importance of human rights in Poland’s foreign policy, as reflected among others in the priorities of its non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council. “Poland’s commitment to protection of human rights is mainly driven by our firm belief in their universal applicability and the duty to protect them,” said Minister Czaputowicz. He also recalled Poland’s candidacy to the UN Human Rights Council and Polish priorities in human rights protection: freedom of religion and belief, the rights of the child and persons with disabilities, as well as support for democratic transitions worldwide.

Commenting on the challenges ahead of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, Minister Czaputowicz mentioned the impact of the situation in Ukraine on security and peace across Europe. “The ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the illegal occupation of Crimea continue to pose the biggest challenge to our common security and to the OSCE itself,” observed Minister Czaputowicz. He furthermore stressed that the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict should become the OSCE’s priority, while activities to ensure respect for human rights and consolidate democratic standards are essential to conflict resolution and peaceful cooperation across the OSCE region.

Apart from Minister Jacek Czaputowicz, the opening session of the OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting was attended by the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák; OSCE Secretary General Thomas Greminger; Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir; as well as Lech Wałęsa, Polish President in 1990-1995 and the co-founder and the first head of the Independent Self-Governing Trade Union “Solidarity.”

The annual OSCE Human Dimension Implementation Meeting is Europe’s largest conference on human rights issues. The special topics of this year’s implementation meeting include the safety of journalists, the fight against hate crime, and the rights of Roma and Sinti.

 

MFA Press Office

Photo: Tymon Markowski/ MFA