NGOs under European Convention on Human Rights / Tymofeyeva

(hereinafter also referred to as the ‘CSCE’) and was renamed OSCE in 1994. The CSCE was created by the Helsinki Final Act in 1975. 142 This document contains recommendations that there must be more effective utilization of cooperation among non-governmental organizations, particularly those “concerned with science and technology, for improving exchanges of information and experience, as well as for developing other forms of cooperation in fields of common interest”, 143 “women‘s organizations” 144 and other “relevant … non-governmental organizations”. 145 The word ‘relevant’ may be interpreted in both wide and narrow senses. In a wide meaning, it may comprise an indefinite number of subjects. In a narrow sense it may concern only NGOs, which closely cooperate with the OSCE. The CSCE Vienna mechanism of 1989 and the Copenhagen Concluding Document of 1990 do not address the term ‘NGO’ at all. 146 The MoscowMechanism established in 1991 allows independent experts to resolve human dimension conflicts in member states, but it is also does not make reference to the term in question. 147 The OSCE body responsible for human rights promotion is the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (hereinafter also referred to as the ‘ODIHR’). It provides support, assistance and expertise to the OSCE member states; in particular, it conducts training programmes for government and law-enforcement officials and non-governmental organizations on how to uphold, promote and monitor human rights. Moreover, to a wide extent, it uses information provided by NGOs. For example, the ODIHR hate crime reporting includes reports from NGOs. 148 Unfortunately, the ODIHR does not specify which NGOs are entitled to submit their reports to the OSCE bodies. On the basis of the analysed documents alone, it is, regrettably, impossible to give any particular definition of the term ‘NGO’ for the purposes of the OSCE instruments. The main EU human rights treaty is the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (hereinafter also referred to as the ‘EU Charter’). 149 The list of rights in the EU Charter is based on the European Convention on Human Rights and the European Social Charter, two treaties of the Council of Europe. The EU Charter does not envisage in its text a particular mechanismof enforcement of the rights contained. Therefore, it is not surprising that NGOs are not mentioned there. The Explanations Relating to the Charter of Fundamental Rights (2007/c 303/02) 150 clarify that the 142 Helsinki Final Act, Helsinki, 1975. URL: < https://www.osce.org/mc/39501?download=true> accessed 20 July 2015. 143 Helsinki Final Act, ibid. , p. 26. 144 Helsinki Final Act, ibid. , p. 42. 145 Helsinki Final Act, ibid. , p. 46. 146 ViennaandCopenhagenmechanismsdocuments.URL: accessed 20 July 2015. 147 Moscowmechanism. URL: < http://www.osce.org/odihr/20066?download=true> accessed 20 July 2015. 148 See < http://hatecrime.osce.org/what-do-we-know/our-methodology> accessed 20 July 2015. 149 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, 18 December 2000, Official Journal of the European Communities , C 364/1. 150 Explanations relating to the Charter of Fundamental Rights (2007/c 303/02), 14 December 2007, Official Journal of the European Union, C 303/17.

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