Europe News

OSCE to push for internet freedom in 2012

Jan 12, 2012, 12:04 GMT

Vienna - Freedom of speech for internet users will be one of the priorities for Ireland as it chairs the Organization for Security and Co-Operation in Europe (OSCE) this year, Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore said Thursday.

Gilmore, who is also deputy premier, told OSCE delegates in Vienna that 'the continuing threat to fundamental freedoms and human rights in a number of OSCE participating states is a cause of real concern.'

The 56-country organization is currently deadlocked over the issue of online rights. Last month, Russia blocked a decision on protecting the rights of internet users at the annual OSCE ministerial conference.

Gilmore also said his country would focus on the settlement of the long-lasting conflicts in the breakaway provinces Transdniestria in Moldova and Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan, as well as tensions in Georgia.

'We in Ireland know all too well the devastating cost of conflict,' he said, referring to the conflict in Northern Ireland, which has spilled over to Ireland in the past.

Ireland took over the chairmanship of the 56-country OSCE at the start of the year.

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