Can I bargain with the Mayor?

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Joyeux Noël et bonne année 2015 Счастливого   Рождества   и   год . 圣 诞快乐，新年快乐。 मेरी   क्रिसमस   और   हैप्पी   साल। สุขสันต์วันคริสต์มาสและสวัสดีปี Gabon zoriontsuak eta Urte Berri On. Καλά   Χριστούγεννα   και   Ευτυχισμένο   το   χρόνο . Buon Natale e Felice Anno Nuovo. Boas Festas e Feliz Ano Novo.

Today,  23th December 2014,  the OSCE Centre in Bishkek handed over an additional service facility, an obstacle range and an assault training facility, to the National Guard of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kyrgyzstan. The event was organized as part of the OSCE Combatting Terrorism Project which aims at strengthening and developing the counter-terrorism capacity of the country.  OSCE Senior Politico-Military Officer Yury Padun. said he  hopes that these facilities will contribute to improving the efficiency of special units of the Kyrgyz National Guard in accomplishment of various tasks in the fight against terrorism”.  The OSCE Centre in Bishkek and the Kyrgyz National Guard signed a protocol on co-operation in the fight against terrorism starting in 2015 with the aim of strengthening counter-terrorism capacity of the National Guard. In particular, it is planned to improve training infrastructure of the Kyrgyz National Guard and provide approp...

Real men never hit women: OSCE Mission in Kosovo kicks off anti-domestic violence campaign. In PRISHTINË/PRIŠTINA, today, the OSCE Mission in Kosovo kicks off a public information campaign against domestic violence with a press conference in Prishtinë/Priština. The campaign dubbed “Real men never hit women” features two professional fighters: boxer Armend Xhoxhaj and kick-boxer Marko Božović. It includes TV spots and posters in both Albanian and Serbian languages. It will run for four weeks including the 16 Days of Activism against Violence against Women. The campaign aims to help prevent domestic violence, and urges the public and victims to report any cases when they occur to the Victim Advocates helpline: 0800 11 11 2.      The Head of the OSCE Regional Centre Prishtinë/Priština, Neil Tobin; Manager of the Victim Advocacy and Protection Office, Basri Kastrati; and Chief of the Domestic Violence Unit within Kosovo Police, Tahire Haxholli...

City of Barcelona wants to receive 10 millions of tourists. This target is very hard. It can produce a future circumstance that cannot be predicted with certainty. Actually, the relationship is problematic between the citizens and mass tourism. headering contingencies. For now, the results are questionable. Residents of center from “Cuitat Vella" District has enough to live in their quarter. The following video explains the damage of tourism that transforms the neighborhood in an amusement park.

Azerbaijan is the official Atletico sponsor. Then, a supporter must know more about this country. In business, income is important. In football business, incomes are more important. Without real autonomy in income, there will not be real autonomy in expenditure. The link between Azerbaijan and Atletico Madrid has a tremendous value, as the tool to achieve important goals, through actions of a different nature. It’s important to know how  Authorities don’t stop persecution of free voices. Many people must obey. In Spain, people can deplore intensifying harassment of media freedom activists in Azerbaijan but it want free football in television. Economy Baku is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan. Currently the oil economy of Baku is undergoing resurgence, with the development of the massive Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli field (Shallow water Gunashli by SOCAR , deeper areas by a consortium led by BP), development of the Shah Deniz gas field, the expansion of...

The New York City Council has approved Avonte’s Law. With this legislation, the Town Hall will install audible alarms in the city’s public schools. This law was inspired by the disappearance and death of a 14-year-old with non-verbal autism who ran out of his Queens school. The bill,  passed unanimously, will require alarm installation on the exterior doors of city schools catering to students grades pre-K through fifth, and schools with special needs programs. The bill was named after Avonte Oquendo, who walked out of his Long Island City school while class was in session, and went missing in October 2013. His remains were found in January along the East River. At least eight other New York City children went missing from school since then, spurring the introduction of the bill.  Among them was a 4-year-old boy in Brooklyn who wandered away from school and walked home without a coat on a bitterly cold winter day. The ...

Fortunately, seventy years ago, the “Zigeunerlager”, or “Gypsy Camp”, at Auschwitz-Birkenau, was closed. Some 23.000 Roma and Sinti were murdered. This liquidation didn’t finish with racism in Europe. Today, many political leaders speak with racist rhetoric in public discourse. They don’t refrain from scapegoating Roma and Sinti communities. Then, this attitude can fuel anti-Roma sentiment in society. Those political leaders must understand the important role of leadership in combatting these attitudes. Public discourse still perpetuates old negative stereotypes against these people. In a number of countries in the Europe, Roma are portrayed as criminals or social outsiders. The crucial role of the media in constructing and perpetuating these negative images has recently been confirmed by a comprehensive study in Germany. These stereotypes must be countered, both to bring justice to the victims of the Roma and Sinti genocide, and to create a better future for Roma today. Publ...

Brčko District (pronounced [br̩̂t͡ʃkɔː]) in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina is a neutral, self-governing administrative unit, under the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is formally part of both BiH entities: the Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The seat of the district is the city of Brčko . The Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina today called upon the citizens of Brcko District to determine their citizenship before 28 August 2014.It’s a condition of vote in the upcoming general elections. He reminded citizens in Brcko District that they need to opt for one of the entity citizenships to be able to exercise their right to vote and run in the election. The citizens have one month left to act. They can do so in the office of the Brcko District Government or in 14 smaller offices across the District. This is an important issue. Citizens will be unable to fully enjoy their democratic right to vote because they fai...

The Ukrainian government needs the help of the OSCE. Alone, he can’t win. Then, the OSCE Permanent Council decided to extend the mandate of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine for a further six months. Maybe, the SMM will be able to continue to play its crucial role in assisting Ukraine in de-escalating measures. 57 States All participating States work together in the mission. They support financially and in terms of personnel. This consensus indicates that the scope for a co-operative solution to the Ukraine crisis persists among the 57 participating States even under the current challenging circumstances. The timely extension of the current mandate will expire on September 20, 2014. That allows the mission to operate uninterrupted. The value of impartially verified information and objective reporting on developments on the ground cannot be overestimated in tense and volatile situations. The SMM has also proven to be a useful facilitator of contacts...

In Albania today, Bledar Çuçi, the Minister of State for Local Issues, who also serves as Albania’s National Co-ordinator on Anti-corruption, and the OSCE Presence presented the draft Anti-corruption Action Plan 2014-2017. The Action Plan was put together with the support and co-operation of the OSCE Presence in Albania. Attending the presentation of the Plan were some 70 representatives of government and independent institutions, civil society, business community and international organizations. Most of the participants have been involved in the drafting of the Action Plan or were consulted during the drafting process. “Corruption hinders development. Public resources are diverted to the pockets of corrupt individuals instead of being used for investments in transport, energy, environment, health and education,” said Ambassador Florian Raunig, Head of the OSCE Presence, as he presented the plan. “It is important to undertake harmonised efforts and concrete actio...

Today, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) presented its  Handbook on Promoting Women’s Participation in Political Parties  at a side event on the second day of the OSCE Gender Equality Review Conference in Vienna. The handbook is the first tool of its kind for the OSCE region, produced to support political party leaders in facilitating broader access for women to party structures and elected office. The handbook highlights different strategies for enhancing women’s participation in political parties, including successful examples from political parties in the OSCE region, such as voluntary measures and capacity-building initiatives. Political parties play a key role in increasing women’s political participation, both as candidates and holders of elected office.. We must recognize women’s rights to participate on an equal footing in all spheres of decision-making process within political parties. As part of the event, members of par...

Yesterday, in Sarajevo, the Acting Head of OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Nina Suomalainen today expressed her support for all the efforts aimed at enabling elections in the city of Mostar to be held in parallel with the general elections due in October 2014. She said that she welcome all constructive proposals for finding an end to the deadlock in Mostar. The lack of properly functioning city institutions has been negatively influencing the lives of citizens for too long . People must regain their social rights, and there is still time to resolve this issue and enable them to vote in the autumn. Before yesterday, the Office of the High Representative (OHR) sent to the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH a draft suggestion for amendments which would allow holding elections in Mostar this year. The Parliamentary Assembly is responsible for implementing the changes to the Election Law, which must be done before the Statute of Mostar can be amended. Th...

Tensions remained in parts of Donbas. The situation was calm elsewhere across the country. In Kharkiv the situation remained calm.   The situation in parts of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions was tense and unchanged compared to the previous reporting period.   In the northern part of the Luhansk region, the Special Monitoring (Mission) SMM monitored four checkpoints, with the main focus on the checkpoint at the Svatovo-Severodonetsk junction. The SMM observed military traffic and talked to local residents going into the conflict zone as well as people leaving it. The SMM observed a bus with women and children from Rubezhnoye (100 km north of Luhansk). The SMM talked to passengers on several buses travelling to Svatovo and Lisychansk respectively. Most of the passengers, having spent some time away from the conflict zone, were going back to look after their elderly relatives, who had not left.   The SMM observed heavy military equipment being transported by ...

OSCE Mission to Skopje promotes democratic values in youth party branches ahead of elections. Raising awareness among the youth branches of political parties on the importance of democratic values in an election process was the aim of a conference organized by the OSCE Mission to Skopje and the MOST non-governmental organization on 14 to 16 March 2014. More than 55 representatives of 19 youth branches from different political parties came together to discuss their role within their organizations during election time, as well as lessons learned from political practice. “Through direct and sincere discussion, the youth branches successfully challenge a trend towards polarization of the political landscape in the country. Ahead of the campaigns for the presidential and parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for 13 and 27 April, the conference sent a positive message with clear proposals to encourage dialogue between young activists of different political orientat...

What do you think about drugs for a civil servant?

A new fund launched in Skopje today offers grants to municipalities, students, teachers, parents and schools for organizing activities that bring members of different communities together. The “Building Bridges Fund” is a joint effort by the Ministry of Education and Science, the Swiss Embassy and the OSCE Mission to Skopje. Among the Fund’s Advisory Board Members are the well-known music artists Toni Zen, Adelina Tahiri and Rebeka. The Fund is based on the premise that the cultural and linguistic diversity of the country can be an extraordinary asset if channels for communication and exchange exist between the communities. Diversity should be seen as enriching. Negative attitudes towards diversity undermine the development and stability of a country. The Fund can help prepare students for an integrated future in a diverse Europe. The main aim of the Fund is to foster interaction among different communities as a way of increasing their mutual understanding and acce...