46  : :  CONTACT POINT FOR ROMA AND SINTI ISSUES “ ODIHR’s Status Report Warsaw, 6 June 2018. Zuzana Havírová, a Roma activist from Slovakia, speaks about public and political participation of Roma at an ODIHR consultation workshop. (OSCE/Idaver Memedov) is an important tool in assessing the progress and achievements by states in implementing their commitments towards Roma and Sinti, as well as in ascertaining the main obstacles that continue to impede Roma and Sinti people’s capacity to play a full and equal part in our societies. Given the long-standing under-representation of Roma and Sinti in public and political life and the importance of participation as a precondition for inclusion, this third status report focuses on enhancing participation in public and political life.” Dan Pavel Doghi, Chief of ODIHR Contact Point for Roma and Sinti Issues majority of OSCE participating States with sizable Roma and Sinti populations, through responses to a questionnaire. Other contributors included OSCE field operations, Roma civil society, and inter-governmental and international organizations. In December in Vienna, during an event organized in co-operation with the Italian Chairmanship of the OSCE, ODIHR presented the Status Report to representatives of OSCE participating States and Roma civil society. The discussion that followed concentrated on the progress achieved thus far, as well as remaining challenges in implementing the commitments in the area of public and political participation of Roma and Sinti. Ahead of that launch event, ODIHR organized a consultation meeting with 12 Roma civil society representatives (5 women, 7 men) to discuss their views of the Status Report’s findings and formulate recommendations for follow-up action by participating States and OSCE institutions and structures. As part of the consultation process to prepare the report, ODIHR organized a consultation workshop in June in Warsaw, bringing together 22 Roma experts (12 women, 10 men) from civil society organizations across the OSCE region. During the meeting, participants discussed developments and challenges related to the participation of Roma and Sinti, including women and youth, in public and political life over the last five years.