{"id":36866,"date":"2025-11-05T14:17:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T11:17:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/?p=36866"},"modified":"2025-11-07T13:38:26","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T10:38:26","slug":"resolution-on-the-peace-security-and-human-rights-crisis-in-the-eastern-europe-and-central-asia-region-in-light-of-the-severe-breaches-of-the-helsinki-principles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/news\/breaking-news\/resolution-on-the-peace-security-and-human-rights-crisis-in-the-eastern-europe-and-central-asia-region-in-light-of-the-severe-breaches-of-the-helsinki-principles\/","title":{"rendered":"Resolution on the Peace, Security and Human Rights Crisis in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia Region in Light of the Severe Breaches of the Helsinki Principles"},"content":{"rendered":"

Proposed by:\u00a0<\/span>ADC Memorial and Human Rights Center \u201cViasna\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Co-sponsored by: Norwegian Helsinki Committee, International Legal Initiative Foundation, Human Rights Defense<\/span> Center \u201cMemorial\u201d, Center for Civil Liberties, Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, Bir <\/span>Duino<\/span> Kyrgyzstan<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
Photo by Nelson Cardenas\/ FIDH<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 42nd Congress of the International Federation of Human Rights in Bogot\u00e1, Colombia from 27 to 31 October 2025<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Recalling<\/span><\/strong> that fifty years ago states participating in the inaugural Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe in<\/span> Helsinki, Finland, between 1973 and 1975, reaffirmed their objective of promoting better relations among themselves<\/span> and ensuring conditions in which their people can live in true and lasting peace free from any threat to or attempt<\/span> against their security, and recognized the close link between peace and security in Europe and in the world, and<\/span> fundamental human rights;<\/span><\/p>\n

Recalling<\/span><\/strong> also that at the conclusion of the Helsinki Conference, on August 1, 1975, participating states adopted the<\/span> Helsinki Final Act and the accompanying Helsinki Principles, recognizing and committing, among others, to uphold the<\/span> sovereign equality of States and respect for the equality of rights inherent in state sovereignty; the territorial integrity<\/span> of states and inviolability of frontiers; the right to self-determination of peoples; and respect for human rights and<\/span> fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief; having recognized the<\/span> universal significance of human rights and fundamental freedoms, respect for which being an essential factor in the<\/span> maintenance of peace, justice and well-being necessary to ensure the development of friendly relations and cooperation<\/span> among all states;<\/span><\/p>\n

Stressing<\/span><\/strong> the interdependence of the human, economic and environmental, and politico-military dimensions of the<\/span> Organization for the Security and Co-Operation in Europe, as encompassed in numerous OSCE instruments and<\/span> commitments;<\/span><\/p>\n

Noting<\/span><\/strong> with grave concern that the ongoing aggression against Ukraine, which was unleashed by Russia in 2014,<\/span> beginning with the annexation of Crimea and the participation in hostilities and the provision of essential financial and<\/span> military support to, and the overall planning and coordination of the activities of pro-Russia separatists,<\/span> in Eastern<\/span> Ukraine, and culminating in Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, both in violation of the United<\/span> Nations Charter, and subsequent full or partial occupation and annexation of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and<\/span> Kherson regions of Ukraine, amounts to an intentional, flagrant and gravest breach of the Principles embodied in the<\/span> Helsinki Final Act and subsequent commitments undertaken by the OSCE participating states since its founding;<\/span><\/p>\n

Condemning<\/span><\/strong> in the strongest terms Russia\u2019s aggression and other international crimes and violations of human rights<\/span> in and against Ukraine, including extrajudicial executions of civilians and POWs, systematic, deliberate and<\/span> indiscriminate attacks against civilians, torture and inhuman treatment, including conflict-related sexual violence,<\/span> unlawful imprisonment, persecution, mass forcible transfers of Ukrainian children, destruction of critical civilian<\/span> infrastructure, cultural property, schools, hospitals and the environment, in further violation of key OSCE commitments<\/span> and international human rights law and international humanitarian law standards, and likely amount to war crimes,<\/span> crimes against humanity and, possibly, the crime of genocide, all committed with the aim of subjugating Ukraine,<\/span> denying the right to self-determination of <\/span>Ukraine<\/span> and Ukrainians, and destroying Ukrainian independent statehood,<\/span> and resulting in immense human suffering and lasting or irreversible material, psychological and ecological harm;<\/span><\/p>\n

Asserting<\/span><\/strong> that one of the enabling factors of Russia\u2019s aggression against and occupation of certain territories of<\/span> Ukraine is the lack of accountability for Russia\u2019s previous international crimes allegedly committed in the armed<\/span> conflicts in Chechnya, Georgia and Syria, as well as escalating internal repressions during Vladimir Putin\u2019s tenure as<\/span> President against any opponents of the regime\u2019s policies, including opposition politicians, human rights defenders,<\/span> independent journalists, civil society organizations, anti-war activists, teachers and scientists, characterized by<\/span> systematic abuses of human rights, among them through the adoption and implementation of over one hundred<\/span> restrictive laws just in the past 10 years that restrict the activities of HRDs and CSOs undermining freedoms of<\/span> association, assembly and expression, but also widespread violations of the right to life, the rights to be free from<\/span> arbitrary arrest, inhuman treatment and torture, violations of the right to privacy, the right to be free from<\/span> discrimination, particularly as it concerns LGBTQI+ and religious and ethnic minorities, and the right to participate in<\/span> the political life of one\u2019s country, resulting in over 1,000 current political prisoners and the worst human rights crisis in<\/span> post-independence Russia;<\/span><\/p>\n

Believing<\/span><\/strong> strongly that the recurrence of grave human rights abuses in Russia has one of its root causes in the failure<\/span> of the Russian Federation to address earnestly and fully the legacy of mass human rights abuses and international<\/span> crimes of the Soviet regime through the implementation of victim-centered transitional justice measures, which has<\/span> laid the ground for the breakdown of the rule of law, the entrenchment of late-Soviet power structures and methods in<\/span> Russia\u2019s institutions, the falsification and political manipulation of history around the Soviet Union\u2019s victory in the<\/span> Second World War, and the continuation of Russia\u2019s neo-colonial dominance over ethnic minority and indigenous<\/span> peoples within Russia and of its neighbors;<\/span><\/p>\n

Deploring<\/span><\/strong> the unrelenting political pressure by Russia on, and the acquiescence of, the authorities of Georgia,<\/span> Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Belarus, among others, to crack down on their own independent civil society, as evidenced<\/span> by the proliferation of Russia-inspired \u201cForeign Agents\u201d laws and other legislation aimed at curtailing civil and political<\/span> rights and arrest and intimidation of human rights defenders and journalists, resulting in 65 political prisoners in<\/span> Georgia alone, as well as Russia\u2019s malign influence through sabotage activities and propaganda to interfere with<\/span> elections and otherwise undermine democratic processes throughout the OSCE region, particularly in Armenia,<\/span> Georgia and Moldova;<\/span><\/p>\n

Gravely concerned<\/span><\/strong> by the aiding and abetting of Russia\u2019s aggression, and the ongoing widespread and systematic<\/span> violations of human rights targeting any critical voices by the Lukashenka regime in Belarus, beginning with the<\/span> crackdown on peaceful protesters in the leadup and the aftermath of the fraudulent 2020 Presidential elections,<\/span> resulting in mass arbitrary arrests, inhuman treatment and torture of thousands, domestic and transnational<\/span> persecution, and the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Belarusians, and the ongoing imprisonment of almost 1,200<\/span> political prisoners, including FIDH\u2019s Vice President Valiantsin Stefanovic and former FIDH Vice President and Nobel<\/span> Laureate Ales Bialiatski, likely amounting to crimes against humanity;<\/span><\/p>\n

Alarmed<\/span><\/strong> by the ongoing democratic backsliding, erosion of the rule of law and shrinking civil society space in the<\/span> Participating States of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region of the OSCE, as evidenced by the increased resort to<\/span> restrictive legislation, capture and instrumentalization of the judiciary by the executive branch, resulting in a rise in<\/span> violations of the right to fair trial, the increased use of surveillance and the corresponding abuses of the right to<\/span> privacy, the use of excessive force and arbitrary arrests of peaceful protesters, the intimidation, stigmatization and<\/span> harassment of human <\/span>rights defenders and independent journalists, and the discrimination against LGBTQI+, ethnic<\/span> minorities, women and other vulnerable groups;<\/span><\/p>\n

Demands<\/span><\/strong> that Russia end its war of aggression and occupation of all territories of Ukraine, on terms that ensure<\/span> accountability for international crimes, Ukraine\u2019s sovereignty, territorial integrity and a just and lasting peace, including<\/span> by placing people first in any peace negotiations, by providing for the immediate release and return of all illegally<\/span> detained Ukrainian civilians and Russian anti-war activists, the return of all Ukrainian children illegally transferred from<\/span> Ukraine, as well as the immediate end to the re-education, indoctrination and <\/span>militarisation<\/span> of Ukrainian children, and<\/span> the restoration of their Ukrainian citizenship and identity, the release and repatriation of all POWs held by all parties to<\/span> the armed conflict, and justice and full reparations for all victims of Russian aggression and other international crimes<\/span> in Ukraine;<\/span><\/p>\n

Demands also<\/span><\/strong> the immediate release of all political prisoners and the end to arbitrary arrest, harassment and<\/span> intimidation of human rights defenders, independent journalists and any other person solely on the basis of their<\/span> belonging to a national, social, political, gender, religious, racial, ethnic or any other group protected under<\/span> international law;<\/span><\/p>\n

Calls<\/span><\/strong> on<\/strong> the OSCE and all Participating States to reaffirm the interdependence of the political-military, economic –<\/span> environmental and the human dimensions, stressing the importance of the fulfillment of the latter as key to the<\/span> maintenance of international peace and security and prevention of violent conflict;<\/span><\/p>\n

Also calls<\/span><\/strong> on<\/strong> the OSCE and all Participating States to reiterate that human rights violations in one State are a matter of<\/span> common concern to all Participating States of the OSCE and the entire international community, and are therefore not<\/span> exclusively an internal issue of the state subject to non-interference by others;<\/span><\/p>\n

Encourages<\/span><\/strong> all Participating States of the OSCE to reaffirm their commitment to cooperate and uphold human rights<\/span> embodied in all multilateral fora that aim to further respect, protection and fulfillment of human rights, such as the<\/span> United Nations, the European Union and the Council of Europe, and support the work of all permanent and ad hoc<\/span> international justice mechanisms, including the International Criminal Court, the Special Tribunal for the Crime of<\/span> Aggression against Ukraine, and the International Accountability Platform for Belarus;<\/span><\/p>\n

Encourages<\/span> also<\/span><\/strong> all Participating States to support civil society through all available means, including by placing civil<\/span> society and human rights defenders at the center of multilateral engagements concerning the three OSCE dimensions;<\/span><\/p>\n

Declares<\/span><\/strong> its unwavering support to the OSCE and other multilateral fora engaged in the protection and promotion of<\/span> human rights in line with FIDH\u2019s mandate.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Proposed by:\u00a0ADC Memorial and Human Rights Center \u201cViasna\u201d Co-sponsored by: Norwegian Helsinki Committee, International Legal Initiative Foundation, Human Rights Defense Center \u201cMemorial\u201d, Center for Civil Liberties, Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan The 42nd Congress of the International…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":36878,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[105],"tags":[173,417],"strategy_cases":[],"campaign":[],"archive":[],"filter-content":[],"regions":[],"class_list":["post-36866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-human-rights-en","tag-press-release"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-125x125.jpg",125,125,true],"medium":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-768x512.jpg",640,427,true],"large":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-650x433.jpg",640,426,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true],"pub-thumb":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-220x147.jpg",220,147,true],"post-thumb":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-170x170.jpg",170,170,true],"wcicon":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",48,32,false],"wcsquare":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",300,200,false],"wcsmall":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",250,167,false],"wcstandard":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",550,367,false],"wcbig":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",800,533,false],"wcfixedheightsmall":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",270,180,false],"wcfixedheightmedium":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",450,300,false],"wcfixedheight":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",750,500,false],"wccarouselsmall":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",210,140,false],"wccarousel":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",400,267,false],"wcslider":["https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/dscf1467-scaled.jpg",750,500,false]},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"

Proposed by:\u00a0ADC Memorial and Human Rights Center \u201cViasna\u201d Co-sponsored by: Norwegian Helsinki Committee, International Legal Initiative Foundation, Human Rights Defense Center \u201cMemorial\u201d, Center for Civil Liberties, Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan Photo by Nelson Cardenas\/ FIDH The 42nd Congress of the International Federation of Human Rights in Bogot\u00e1, Colombia from 27 to 31 October 2025 Recalling that fifty years ago states participating in the inaugural Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe in Helsinki, Finland, between 1973 and 1975, reaffirmed their objective of promoting better relations among themselves and ensuring conditions in which their people can live…<\/p>\n","category_list_v2":"Breaking news<\/a>","author_info_v2":{"name":"admin3","url":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/author\/admin3\/"},"comments_num_v2":"0 comments","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36866","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36866"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36866\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36881,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36866\/revisions\/36881"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36866"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"strategy_cases","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/strategy_cases?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"campaign","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campaign?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"archive","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/archive?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"filter-content","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/filter-content?post=36866"},{"taxonomy":"regions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adcmemorial.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/regions?post=36866"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}