OSCE PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION VISITS BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (October 20,2008) – OSCE parliamentarians are in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo today to visit the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and observe the implementation of the Mission's mandate, including its work to combat human trafficking.

Tomorrow, the delegation from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly will participate in a roundtable discussion with members of the Bosnian State Parliament on "Eradicating human trafficking as a political priority".

The OSCE's Special Representative and Co-ordinator on Human Trafficking, Eva Biaudet, will join the delegation to contribute her expertise on the issue and to enhance awareness of the role that parliamentarians play in the fight against human trafficking.

The OSCE Parliamentary Delegation is led by Robert Battelli, Special Representative of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President on South-Eastern Europe, who will also chair the inter-parliamentary discussion.

Ilija Filipovic, First Deputy Speaker of the Bosnian State Parliament's House of People, will open the event, and Biaudet will discuss the role of parliaments in the fight against human trafficking. Other speakers include Branko Zrno, Head of the Bosnian Delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, and Ambassador Vadim Kuznetsov, Acting Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press, and fair elections.

The OSCE is an ad hoc organization under the United Nations Charter (Chap. VIII), and is concerned with early warning, conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation. Its 56 participating States are from Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia and North America and cover most of the northern hemisphere. It was created during the Cold War era as an East-West forum.
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