Human Rights Defenders in Mongolia: Findings and recommendations of ODIHR’s assessment visit

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) will hold a multistakeholder online event to present the key findings of ODIHR’s 2018 assessment visit to Mongolia, focusing on the situation of human rights defenders. The event will also provide a platform to discuss recommendations and possible ways forward for their implementation.

Participants

The meeting will gather around 55 participants, including representatives of state bodies, the National Human Rights Commission and civil society organizations from Mongolia.

Objectives

This event aims to provide a forum for dialogue among different stakeholders on addressing identified gaps and challenges in the protection of human rights defenders in Mongolia. Other objectives include discussing the follow-up to ODIHR’s assessment visit and how to implement recommendations in a gender-sensitive, inclusive and sustainable manner.

Mandate and background

This initiative is in line with ODIHR’s mandate to monitor the implementation of OSCE participating States’ human dimension commitments (Helsinki 1992; Budapest 1994; Oslo 1998; Maastricht 2003).

In 2018, ODIHR launched its first country-specific assessment cycle focusing on the situation of human rights defenders. In this framework, from 24 to 30 September 2018, ODIHR conducted an assessment visit to Mongolia. This was in order to examine gaps and challenges in the protection of human rights defenders, as well as good practices in this area.

Alongside Mongolia, between 2018 and 2019, ODIHR also conducted assessment visits to the Czech Republic, Georgia, Italy and Montenegro.

The online event will be the third out of five country-specific discussions taking place between September 2020 and January 2021. By the end of 2020, ODIHR will also issue the final assessment report on the situation of human rights defenders (a public report). This document will provide an overview and analysis of findings from all country visits included in the first assessment cycle.