Tolerance & Non-discrimination ODIHR Hate Crime Officers Joanna Perry and Carolyn Bys, and Floriane Hohenberg, the Head of ODIHR’s Tolerance and NonDiscrimination Department, (l-r) present the highlights from ODIHR’s annual hate crime report for 2011 at the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting, Warsaw, 3 October 2012. (OSCE/Shiv Sharma) with information about tools ODIHR has developed to respond to hate crimes and were encouraged to make use of them. On 19 and 20 April, ODIHR organized a Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting focusing on combating racism, intolerance and discrimination in society through sport. During the event, participants emphasized the importance of implementing existing OSCE commitments to combat hate crimes. Participants called upon participating States to include a comprehensive definition of hate crimes in their legislation and to ensure effective investigation and prosecution of hate crimes. Participants also underlined the importance of preventive measures to achieve sustainable results in the fight against racism. They called for implementation of initiatives such as educational activities, awareness-raising and public campaigns promoting tolerance and non-discrimination in sports and through sports. Consultations with the National Points of Contact and civil society representatives on the future of the hate crime report took place prior to the meeting. In order to raise the awareness of police, prosecutors, government officials and NGOs about the concept of hate crime and associated issues within the local context, ODIHR published its booklet Understanding Hate Crimes in Albania and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. The publications were developed in co-operation with the OSCE Presence in Albania and the OSCE Mission to Skopje, respectively. Reviewing Legislation Upon the request of participating States, ODIHR conducts legal reviews on draft and existing legislation dealing with discrimination and hate crime. The aim of this activity is to help lawmakers ensure that legislation is in accordance with OSCE commitments and other international standards. The reviews also include recommendations on how potential areas of concern might be addressed. ­ODIHR’s publication Hate Crime Laws – A Practical Guide provides a basis for these legal reviews. The guide, published in 2009 in English and Russian is also currently available in Bosnian, French, German and Romanian. ODIHR also responded to requests for legislative reviews related to freedom of religion or belief. ODIHR completed comments on amendments and additions to the Law of the Kyrgyz Republic on “Freedom of Religion and Religious Organizations” and prepared an opinion on a draft Law of the Republic of Armenia that ODIHR Annual Report 2012 57