FOREWORD Twenty years ago, OSCE heads of state and government adopted the 1994 Budapest Document “Towards a Genuine Partnership in a New Era,” in which they reaffirmed that human rights and fundamental freedoms, the rule of law and democratic institutions are the foundations of peace and security. They also emphasized the need for protection of human rights defenders. The need for this is firmly rooted in the Helsinki Final Act of 1975, the 1990 Document of the Copenhagen Meeting of the Conference on the Human Dimension of the CSCE and other OSCE human dimension commitments, all of which recognized the essential role of human rights defenders and civil society in fulfilling our common goals in the OSCE. There can be no guarantee of fundamental freedoms or human rights in a world where human rights defenders continue to be persecuted for their work. At the 2010 OSCE Summit in Astana, participating States again acknowledged the important role played by civil society and free media in helping them ensure full respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy and the rule of law (Astana Commemorative Declaration, 2010). Despite these assurances, civil society organizations have repeatedly brought to the attention of the OSCE, including ODIHR, ongoing issues of concern that hinder their work in defending human rights, as well as the serious risks they sometimes face. On the margins of the 2012 OSCE Ministerial Council in Dublin, a network of civil society organizations issued a joint declaration in which they expressed grave concern for the security of human rights defenders in the region and called on the OSCE to develop guidelines on their protection.1 In response to this appeal, and in line with its mandate, ODIHR embarked on the project to develop the present Guidelines. There have been many achievements over the two decades since the adoption of the Budapest Document. But it is also clear that many challenges remain for human rights defenders, and that new, serious challenges have arisen. It is our hope that these Guidelines on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders will serve as a basis for a renewed, genuine partnership between governments and human rights defenders to effectively address these challenges and combine efforts with the shared objectives of promoting respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the OSCE region. Ambassador Janez Lenarčič Director, OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights 1  “Dublin Declaration – Security of human rights defenders: time for OSCE to act”, adopted by the participants of the Parallel Civil Society Conference, Dublin, 5 December 2012, <http://www.civicsolidarity.org/ sites/default/files/dublin_declaration_on_human_rights_defenders_final.pdf>. Guidelines on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders ix