Will representatives of the Tajikistan government participate in the OSCE conference?

The next Warsaw Conference on the Human Dimension of the OSCE will take place in October 2023 in Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

The conference will be held from October 2 to 13, 2023, with the support of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) under the chairmanship of North Macedonia.

During the two-week conference, representatives of the member states of this organization and civil society will discuss issues related to human rights, fundamental freedoms, freedom of speech and the press, the rights and freedoms of minorities, and more.

The conference will be attended by representatives from 57 OSCE member states, representatives of international organizations, and civil society.

The Warsaw Conference on the Human Dimension of the OSCE is held annually in Warsaw, the capital of Poland. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the conference was canceled in 2020 and 2021.

Last year, the conference was chaired by Poland. At this meeting, representatives of the governments of Russia, Belarus, and Tajikistan did not participate.

In addition to representatives of the Tajik government, the country was actively represented by opposition activists in exile, including Group 24, the Islamic Revival Party of Tajikistan, the National Alliance of Tajikistan, as well as other civil society activists.

At previous meetings from 2016 to 2019, there were many disputes between the Tajik government and opposition activists.

The Tajik authorities have not officially explained why government representatives did not participate in last year’s conference.

Experts familiar with the situation believe that due to the harsh suppression of protests in Badakhshan in 2021-2022, where hundreds were detained, several people died, and about a dozen journalists were imprisoned, the authorities could not respond to questions regarding this issue, and therefore refrained from participation.

It is still unknown whether representatives of the Tajik government will participate in this year’s conference.