THE OSCE AND THE PROBLEM OF HUMAN RIGHTS

The main purpose of this article is to analyze themechanisms developed by the Organization for Security and Co-operation inEurope (OSCE) in order to protect the human rights. The OSCE, whichoriginally began as a series of meetings in Helsinki under the name of theConference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE), now includes fifty-sixparticipating states from throughout Europe, as well as the Confederation ofIndependent States, Canada, and the United States. The first part of this articledescribes the historical evolution and the structure of the OSCE and the secondpart focuses on the specific issues related to the protection of human rights.