# Warsaw Rights Conference Turns to Rule of Law > Public, indexable content from MEDIA-SOCIETY.COM Press & Creators Network. - Canonical URL: https://www.media-society.com/warsaw-rights-conference-turns-to-rule-of-law/?lang=fr - Content type: Article - Language: FR - Last modified: 2026-10-06T07:55:13+00:00 ## Summary Media-Society.com // More than 1,800 participants confront torture prevention, capital punishment and counterterrorism safeguards The Warsaw Human Dimension Conference entered its first full rule-of-law day on Tuesday, bringing governments and civil-society representatives together to examine torture, capital punishment and human-rights protections in… ## Content Media-Society.com // More than 1,800 participants confront torture prevention, capital punishment and counterterrorism safeguards The Warsaw Human Dimension Conference entered its first full rule-of-law day on Tuesday, bringing governments and civil-society representatives together to examine torture, capital punishment and human-rights protections in counterterrorism. The meeting formally opened on Monday, 5 October, rather than Tuesday as initially understood, and will continue until 15 October. A forum under pressure Organised by Switzerland’s 2026 chairpersonship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, with support from the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, the conference is expected to draw more than 1,800 participants. More than half of those registered represent civil society. Ten plenary sessions and about 90 side events will address democratic institutions, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law across the OSCE region, according to the official opening statement. The scale of that participation matters. Human-rights defenders, journalists and independent organisations often bring evidence that is missing from government accounts. Their presence allows allegations of abuse, discriminatory policy and democratic decline to be raised directly with state representatives. Opening the conference, OSCE Chairman-in-Office Ignazio Cassis described it as a place for “holding ourselves to the commitments that we have made” and preserving dialogue when relations between states have become increasingly difficult. Swiss State Secretary Alexandre Fasel connected the meeting to Russia’s war against Ukraine, pressure on democratic institutions and the shrinking space available to journalists and rights defenders. OSCE Secretary General Feridun H. Sinirlioğlu likewise argued that human rights remain central to the organisation’s understanding of security rather than an optional addition to it. Torture prevention moves to the centre Tuesday’s principal session examines the prevention and eradication of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. It also covers the abolition of capital punishment and the protection of human rights when governments combat terrorism. Elina Šteinerte, a member of the United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture, is providing the introductory remarks. The Swiss chairpersonship is also presenting a roadmap intended to help participating states implement their existing obligations against torture. The conference programme places these questions within a wider sequence of discussions. Freedom of assembly, association, religion or belief and the protection of human-rights defenders follow on Wednesday. Later sessions will examine discrimination, judicial independence, elections, trafficking, displaced people, media freedom, minority rights and violence against women and girls. The breadth of the agenda reflects the OSCE’s concept of comprehensive security. Torture prevention depends not only on formal prohibition, but also on access to lawyers, independent monitoring of detention facilities, credible investigations and remedies for victims. Counterterrorism measures present a similar challenge: governments have a duty to protect the public, but security policy cannot suspend the absolute prohibition of torture or remove effective judicial oversight. Civil society must be able to speak safely Holding the conference is not enough to guarantee meaningful participation. Some activists arrive from countries where organisations face registration restrictions, surveillance, prosecution or hostile political rhetoric. Others may be unable to travel or may fear reprisals when they return home. Conference organisers and participating states therefore have responsibilities beyond providing speaking time. Allegations raised in Warsaw should be documented and followed up. Governments should answer substantive claims, while OSCE institutions must remain able to work independently with people reporting abuses. The European Times’ advance coverage of the Warsaw conference highlighted the growing administrative, financial and political pressure facing civil-society organisations. The opening figures now show that civic groups remain central to the gathering despite that environment. Dialogue without enforcement The conference is not a court and cannot issue binding judgments. Nor does it negotiate an enforceable final agreement. Its influence comes from public scrutiny, documentation and the ability to compare state conduct with commitments that all OSCE participating states have accepted. Its format also reveals institutional strain. Since 2022, successive OSCE chairpersonships have convened the Warsaw Human Dimension Conference after participating states failed to reach consensus on holding the organisation’s traditional Human Dimension Implementation Meeting. This arrangement has preserved a rare regional forum where officials and independent advocates can address one another directly. At the same time, the need for a chair-led alternative demonstrates how consensus rules can obstruct the OSCE’s formal human-rights work. From declarations to protection The central question in Warsaw is whether repeated commitments can produce measurable protection. A torture-prevention roadmap will matter only if states permit independent visits to places of detention, investigate credible allegations and hold perpetrators accountable. Appeals for media freedom require action against impunity for attacks on journalists. Commitments on elections depend on independent observation and genuine political competition. The conference cannot resolve every dispute dividing the OSCE region. It can nevertheless preserve an increasingly scarce form of accountability: governments hearing evidence from the people affected by their policies, in a public forum built around standards they have already promised to uphold. --- Source: MEDIA-SOCIETY.COM Press & Creators Network