22  •  Democratization “ Empowerment of women and their participation in decisionmaking at all levels has a positive impact on the economy and welfare in general. Equality of women and men in all spheres of public life, promoting the involvement of men in housework and childcare, as well as combating gender based and domestic violence, are preconditions for the successful development of a country.” Olga Politiko, Member of the Standing Commission on Industry, Fuel-Energy Complex, Transport and Communications of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus organizations. These recommendations informed the legal opinion provided by ODIHR, in partnership with the Venice Commission, on Draft Amendments to Some Legislative Acts Concerning Prevention of and Fight against Political Corruption in Ukraine. The draft law was later adopted by the parliament and signed by the President of Ukraine. In 2015, ODIHR continued its work to improve the professionalism and accountability of parliaments throughout the OSCE region. With the support of ODIHR and the OSCE Presence in Albania, and responding to shortcomings previously identified by the European Union and Council of Europe’s GRECO reports, the Albanian parliament was one of a number of parliaments to successfully adopt a code of conduct for members of parliament in 2015. On 15 and 16 April, ODIHR held a roundtable on E-democracy in ­Warsaw. The overall objective of the event was to provide the 30 participants from governments, OSCE field operations and international organisations from South-Eastern Europe with a platform for dialogue, exchange of experiences, good practices and challenges in the use of new technologies by governments. To promote a strong democracy at the local level, where local institutions often suffer from declining trust and corruption, ODIHR, together with OSCE field operations and the Council of Europe, held a regional conference on public integrity at the local level in Budva, Montenegro in June, producing recommendations integral to ongoing reforms in South-Eastern Europe. Meg Munn (l), former Member of Parliament and Minister for Women and Equality in the United Kingdom, listens as ODIHR Director Michael Georg Link delivers opening remarks at the Expert Meeting on Good Practices for Advancing Women’s Political Participation in the OSCE Region, in Warsaw, Poland, 26 May 2015. (OSCE/ Murat Gungor)