OVERVIEW  : :  7 Podgorica, 15 April 2018. Tana de Zulueta (l), head of the ODIHR election observation mission for the presidential elections in Montenegro, and ODIHR Director Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir (c) speaking with the deputy head of a polling station commission. (OSCE/Thomas Rymer) security is a false one: genuine security is that which ensures respect for human rights. ODIHR continued to build the capacity of security sector actors and to provide states with expert advice on how to provide security in a human rights-compliant, gender-sensitive way. We published a Guidance Document on the Nelson Mandela Rules about the implementation of minimum standards for the treatment of prisoners and Guidelines for Addressing the Threats and Challenges of “Foreign terrorist Fighters” within a Human Rights Framework, a topic of great relevance today. One of ODIHR’s strengths is our convening power to connect and provide platforms for different stakeholders to discuss and share good practices. In November, we organized the biannual Criminal Justice Forum in Central Asia in Bishkek, which gathered 130 criminal justice experts and practitioners from five OSCE participating States from Central Asia, as well as Mongolia. The Forum resulted in recommendations, which will contribute to legal and policy solutions that support adherence to human rights standards and more fair and efficient criminal justice systems. ODIHR’s web presence is an effective way to reach stakeholders and in 2018 we introduced a new version of Legislationline.org to increase ODIHR’s ability to shape public debate on key legislation, and a new website, paragraph25.odihr.pl, a centralized and searchable database of electoral recommendations to support institutions and civil society across the Western Balkans in their follow up efforts. We also celebrated the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this year. The Helsinki Final Act bases its human dimension commitments on the Declaration. The foundations set out in the Helsinki Final Act paved the way for a framework for international co-operation that recognize human rights, the rule of law, and democracy as core elements of security – the OSCE comprehensive security concept. There was a good reason for the adoption of the Declaration, as there continue to be valid reasons for continued efforts to implement human dimension commitments. We need to remind ourselves of this and together we must safeguard our commitments for the common good of our region and the people who live here. This requires reinvigoration of our collective efforts and a constructive approach. Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir ODIHR Director