Remarks of President Wolfgang GrossruckOpening Plenary of the 22ndAnnual Session of the OSCE PA29 July 2013 | Istanbul

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Minister Davutoglu,Minister Kozhara,Speaker Cicek,Distinguished guests and colleagues,On behalf of the Parliamentary Assembly, I would like to thank our Turkish hosts for their warmhospitality in this dynamic and inspiring city. It is symbolic that we meet this year in Istanbul, acity with a long history of interaction between civilizations, a place that has served as a bridgebetween geographic regions and cultural currents. I call upon you, esteemed guests andcolleagues, to keep the symbolism of this gateway city fresh in your mind as we embark uponour work at this year’s Annual Session.Just as the Bosphorous is a gateway between Eurasia and the Mediterranean, the ParliamentaryAssembly is a gateway to connect national parliaments with each other and with the variousbodies of the OSCE. Thus I cannot stress enough the importance of friendly cooperation betweenus as equal partners, face-to-face with each other, both in and out session.However, it is critical to note that our success will not only be determined by our actions in thecoming days. To be a true success, the experiences we share here, the connections we form, andthe decisions we take through a democratic vote must be transferred into increased awareness inour national parliaments and home countries.As members of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, we must commit ourselves to greaterinvolvement in the activities of the OSCE throughout the year. The OSCE ParliamentaryAssembly can only play a strong role in the international community if the parliamentariansactively participate in our work. This includes promoting and advertising the work of the PA inall OSCE member states through events and cooperation with other organizations.After all we, as Parliamentarians, are the OSCE’s primary link to the people. This means on topof communicating the OSCE’s message of security and human rights to the people, we must also1

communicate to the governmental side the people’s desire for more accountable and responsivepolitical leadership. Here in Istanbul, that desire has been clearly displayed for the better part ofthe last month. We have seen that the people will go to great lengths to protect their fundamentalfreedoms. Whether the square is in Tunisia or Turkey, Manhattan or Madrid, it is our task to letthe public know that we stand in support of peaceful expression. And as elected representatives,we strive to include the diverse opinions of our constituents in our own official actions.We have been following the events in Turkey closely and come to this conference hall fullyaware of events which have taken place a short walk from here at Gezi Park. To be clear, we inthe OSCE stand in support of peaceful expression and assembly. Whether demonstrators stand orsit, speak or sing, they have a basic right to assemble and freely express themselves, and it mustbe respected. However, we also respect a government's duty to preserve peaceful order, andthose who commit and incite vandalism and violence should receive a proportionate and carefulresponse from law enforcement.We are not here to dwell on the situation in this country, but we would be equally remiss to openthis conference and not offer our thanks for Turkey’s extraordinary humanitarian support for therefugees of Syria. This is especially a tragedy for children and families but soldiers too arehuman beings, and we all wish for a prompt end to this conflict. I am glad several of mycolleagues, including the head of the Turkish Delegation Emin Onen have introduced resolutionsrelated to the struggle in Syria.That said our agenda here is much broader than the Middle East. At our best, our work hereshould help strengthen the OSCE and its work to modernize our implementation of the HelsinkiFinal Act as we approach the 40thanniversary of this landmark agreement.To that end your committee rapporteurs have drafted strong resolutions which we will debate.Many of you have put forward timely supplementary items to underscore specific issues. From aresolution that would call for this Assembly to have oversight of the OSCE budget to itemsaimed at strengthening environmental co-operation to reduce carbon emissions, the substantivedocuments before us reflect the commitment we all share to each other and our shared values.At the core of the OSCE is a spirit of inclusiveness. And so here, at this bridge betweencontinents, we should look beyond the OSCE’s capitals to our partners throughout the greaterEurasian world. We must strengthen our cooperation with our Mediterranean partners andacknowledge the assets they bring to this organization. We must develop more regularcooperation with the OSCE Field Missions. And as international forces withdraw fromAfghanistan in 2014, we must urge the OSCE to help ensure stability in the region throughoutthe transition period. The security of the region depends upon strong international cooperationfrom parliaments, governments and civil society.2