Ad Hoc Committees

OSCE PA Ad Hoc Committees are established to address specific issues or areas that can benefit from parliamentary attention. Ad Hoc Committees have been established by the Standing Committee to work on problems in Abkhazia, Belarus and Moldova as well as to address the need for greater transparency and accountability in the OSCE.

The Ad Hoc Working Group on Belarus

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Ad Hoc Working Group on Belarus was appointed in October 1998 in order to assist in the development of democracy in Belarus and facilitate national reconciliation.

The main aim of the Working Group has been to facilitate dialogue between the Government and opposition of Belarus in an attempt to promote free and fair election processes and aid in the development of democracy.

In all of its meetings, the Group has stressed the importance of participation in the OSCE process and the need to find peaceful, inclusive solutions to the country's various political problems.

Members:

  • Ms. Uta Zapf, Chair (Germany)
  • Mr. Claudio D'Amico (Italy)
  • Mr. Morten Hoeglund (Norway)
  • Mr. Pawel Poncyljusz (Poland) 
  • Lord Fred Ponsonby (UK)
  • Mr. Karl-Georg Wellmann (Germany)
  • Ms. Cecilia Wigstrom (Sweden)
 

The Ad Hoc Committee on Transparency and Accountability in the OSCE

The mandate of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Ad Hoc Committee on Transparency and Accountability, established in 2001, was extended in the spring of 2010. Emphasizing that it was time to reinvigorate the work of the Transparency Committee, the President appointed new Members, including the Deputy Speaker of the Finnish Parliament, Johannes Koskinen as Chair.

The Committee is made up of senior members of the Assembly from fourteen different countries. They are: Adil Akhmetov, Kazakhstan; Vilija Abramikiene, Lithuania; Xavier De Donnea, Belgium; Consiglio Di Nino, Canada; Pia Christmas-Moeller, Denmark; Doris Barnett, Germany; Petur Bloendal, Iceland; Riccardo Migliori, Italy; Pawel Poncyljusz, Poland; Joao Soares, Portugal; Alexander Kozlovskiy, Russia; Suzana Grubjesic, Serbia; Goran Lennmarker, Sweden; and Tony Lloyd, UK. In addition, the President and Treasurer serve as ex-officio Members of the Committee.

On 9 July 2010, in a side meeting at the Oslo Annual Session, the newly re-comprised Committee met to discuss priorities and their proposed work plan. Mr. Koskinen outlined his ideas which were included in the resolution passed later in the day “Strengthening the Involvement of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in the Corfu Process on Security in Europe.”  He particularly emphasized the need to re-focus the work of the OSCE at the political level and on political issues, raising the idea of developing a toolkit for Members of Parliament to increase their interaction with their national governments on OSCE-related issues.

  

The Parliamentary Team on Moldova

The Parliamentary Team on Moldova was established in early 2000. The Team's mandate calls on it to promote peace, stability and the rule of law in Moldova, while affirming the unity of the State, by engaging in and promoting dialogue between parties and organizations representing different sections of the Moldovan population. Resolving the status of Transnistria is a particular priority of the Parliamentary Team.

With regular visits to both Chisinau and Tiraspol, the Team works closely with the OSCE Mission to Moldova, seeking ways to continue engagement with its partners in Moldova by promoting dialogue on the course of the negotiations on the status of Transnistria.

Members:

  • Walburga Habsburg Douglas (Sweden), Chair
  • Francois-Xavier De Donnea (Belgium)
  • Michael Groschek (Germany)
  • Canan Kalsin (Turkey)
  • Pierluigi Mantini (Italy)