Declaration of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and Resolutions adopted at the Fourteenth Annual Session
- Document number
- 1084
- Date
- 2005
- Title
- Declaration of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and Resolutions adopted at the Fourteenth Annual Session
- Author/publisher
- Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)
- Availability
- View/save PDF version of this document
- Document type(s)
- Meeting Documentation/Conference Reports,
- Keywords
- Washington Declaration
- Summary
- EXCERPTS: The Parliamentarians of the OSCE participating states met in annual session in Washington, DC on 1-5 July 2005 to assess developments and challenges relating to security and cooperation, in particular on the cooperation and partnership in coping with new security threats, offered views to the OSCE Ministers and passed the following resolutions relevant to trafficking in human beings. RESOLUTION ON MARITIME SECURITY AND PIRACY: The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (19) Urges the OSCE participating states to offer technical support and military assistance to coastal states boarding international trade routes and sea lines in the fight against piracy, the terrorist threat and illegal trafficking in weapons and human beings. RESOLUTION ON COMBATING INVOLVEMENT IN TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS AND SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND ABUSE BY INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPING FORCES: The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly calls on OSCE participating states to review the sufficiency of their national laws, regulations, and other relevant documents, such as guidelines and codes of conduct, including those applicable to the military forces, to ensure that those addressing trafficking in human beings or sexual exploitation and abuse can be enforced with respect to their nationals who are serving on peacekeeping missions abroad or other similar missions; Urges the Ministerial Council to adopt a decision regarding the responsibilities of participating states to ensure that military and civilian forces deployed abroad with peacekeeping or other similar missions and civilian contractors accompanying them, as well as international organizations' personnel, do not engage in or facilitate trafficking in human beings, or exploit victims of trafficking, or engage in sexual exploitation and abuse of local populations. RESOLUTION ON THE NEED TO STRENGTHEN THE CODE OF CONDUCT FOR OSCE MISSION MEMBERS: Noting that international aid workers and peace keepers who exploit prostitutes in the field have been duly criticized and that exploitation of positions of unequal power undermines the credibility of humanitarian work and damages victims, their families and communities, 5. Noting that such behaviour has, in fact, resulted in an increase of the trafficking of women and children, The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly: 10. Recommends that the Code of Conduct for OSCE mission members be completed by prohibiting the purchase of sexual services. RESOLUTION ON COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS: points to failed attempts to combat trafficking, takes the view that causes of trafficking are not being given enough consideration: in particular, causes such as poverty and unemployment, weak social and economic structures, an unstable security situation, violence against women and children, as well as discrimination, in particular as a result of gender, race, or ethnic background. Points out that countries of destination make trafficking possible through a continuing demand for sexual exploitation as well as cheap and easily exploitable labour without social security protection. Welcomes Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, protection of victims, independent monitoring mechanisms. Calls upon the OSCE participating states to take effective measures in the countries of origin to combat the causes that result in victims of trafficking in human beings, among other things by engaging in close socio-economic cooperation, providing development assistance and expanding economic cooperation, promoting the creation of jobs for women, in particular by creating favourable conditions for the start-up of small and medium-sized businesses, and guaranteeing freedom of association for employers and employees as well as freedom of activity for such associations; to improve school and career training opportunities as well as access to the labour market for those groups threatened by trafficking in human beings (children, women, ethnic minorities). Calls upon the OSCE participating states, as well as the countries of origin, the countries of transit and the countries of destination to conclude agreements on legal and police cooperation as well as on the humanitarian aspects. Calls upon the OSCE participating states to sign the relevant ILO core agreements, if this has not been done already, and to implement and apply them at the national level with a view to achieving a minimum standard of financial and social security for the working population. Proposes regular evaluation of and reporting on the progress being made in implementing the ILO minimum standards in the OSCE participating states with a view to promoting international cooperation in support of the realization of these minimum standards.
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