ODIHR conference in Istanbul focuses on standards in political party regulation

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) opened a one-day conference on 5 September in Istanbul, on the importance of ensuring that Turkish legislation on the regulation of political parties meets international standards and OSCE commitments.

Around 40 representatives from Turkish political parties, the media and the academic community are participating in the conference, held at the Marmara University. Experts from ODIHR and the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission are promoting their Guidelines on Political Party Regulation, published this year and developed from 2008 to 2010, with the contribution of more than 100 experts from across the OSCE region.

“ODIHR’s primary task in the field of legislative assistance is to respond to requests from participating States to review their framework legislation on political parties and provide constructive advice and expertise to ensure that laws meet international standards,” said Nathalie Tagwerker, the Deputy Head of ODIHR’s Democratization Department.

“Political parties are major actors in any democratic society, so they enjoy the benefits of the guarantees by the state of those principles,” said the Venice Commission’s representative Serguei Kouznetsov. “Accordingly, they must also respect and promote these very same principles.”

The conference will be followed by a meeting of experts on 6 September, to discuss OSCE/ODIHR’s past work and future activities in response to requests for assistance by participating States related to the regulation of political parties.