OSCE/ODIHR TO S.E. ROSENTHAL: USE ASTANA

C O N F I D E N T I A L WARSAW 000098 SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/RPM, EUR/CE, EUR/OHI, AND DRL/SEAS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/16/2020 TAGS: PHUM OSCE PREL PL SUBJECT: OSCE/ODIHR TO S.E. ROSENTHAL: USE ASTANA HIGH-LEVEL CONFERENCE TO RAISE OSCE'S PROFILE Classified By: DCM William Heidt, reason 1.4 (b, d) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Officials from OSCE's Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) in Warsaw told visiting Special Envoy Hannah Rosenthal that high-level U.S. participation in the OSCE High-Level Conference on Tolerance and Non-Discrimination in June 2010 in Astana would help to raise the profile of OSCE, especially ODIHR's efforts to combat hate crimes. END SUMMARY. NEED TO RAISE OSCE'S PROFILE ¶2. (C) Deputy Director of the Warsaw-based OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Douglas Wake (a retired U.S. FSO) and his staff expressed frustration to visiting U.S. Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Anti-Semitism Hannah Rosenthal January 28 that ODIHR's efforts beyond election monitoring are not widely recognized. There is little awareness in Europe or the United States -- beyond the Helsinki Commission and a small circle of civil society organizations -- about ODIHR's efforts to combat anti-Semitism and promote tolerance, Wake lamented. Wake said it would be helpful if the American Jewish community and other organizations familiar with ODIHR would work to raise awareness of ODIHR's activities, noting that Christian and Muslim groups in OSCE states are generally less familiar with the OSCE process. ASTANA HIGH-LEVEL TOLERANCE CONFERENCE ¶3. (C) Wake expressed hope that Secretary Clinton would represent the U.S. at the OSCE's high-level conference on tolerance promotion, which will take place June 29-30 in Astana. An early announcement that the U.S. plans to send high-level representatives would encourage other OSCE state to follow suit. The prospect of high-level representation from OSCE capitals would also provide an incentive for Kazakhstan to agree to robust participation of civil society organizations (CSOs). Wake asked whether the USG would be in a position to provide extra-budgetary contributions to bolster CSO participation. OSCE/ODIHR WORK ON HATE CRIMES GOES UNNOTICED ¶4. (C) Floriane Hohenberg, ODIHR Director for Tolerance Promotion, said ODIHR focuses its tolerance promotion efforts in five main areas: religious freedom, Muslim outreach, countering racism, violence and discrimination against Roma/Sinti groups, and anti-Semitism. Hohenberg and Norbert Hinterleitner, ODIHR's Special Adviser on Anti-Semitism, agreed that ODIHR's work on anti-Semitism generally helps to open doors to broader tolerance promotion efforts, in terms of engaging governments, providing training to educators, and building coalitions within civil society. Hinterleitner confided that OSCE member states often overstate the extent of their cooperation. The most common problem areas are incomplete implementation of ODIHR recommendations and failure to integrate ODIHR educational materials into the national curriculum. While there are "working-level heroes" in every country, budgetary constraints often prompt high-level officials to balk. ¶5. (C) Hohenberg expressed hope that a strong declaration at the Astana high-level conference would be a "game changer." Although not widely appreciated, a similar high-level conference in Berlin in 2004 had laid the groundwork for productive follow-up. Hohenberg stressed the importance of ODIHR's work against hate crimes, which she suggested might be a focus of the Astana conference. "Everyone knows the OSCE for election monitoring. The same should hold true for OSCE's efforts to monitor hate crimes," she argued. Hohenberg conceded that the OSCE needs a more effective communications strategy to reach a broader cross-section of civil society. "We have to get beyond talking to ourselves," she said. Wake noted that the resources of ODIHR's small public affairs shop are already stretched thin and asked whether the USG might be prepared to make an extra-budgetary contribution to strengthen ODIHR outreach. ¶6. (U) Special Envoy Rosenthal has cleared this cable. FEINSTEIN