24 November:

OSCE flagship event: “Violence against young women and girls: sexual harassment, stalking and controlling behaviour”  

Time and location: 12:00- 14:30, Laboratorium, Skopje

This event aims to identify and address the practical challenges in preventing and prosecuting violence against young women and girls, focusing on the low rate of charges and prosecutions. Key topics include raising awareness about sexual harassment, stalking, and controlling behaviour as gendered forms of violence and understanding the long-term impact of these crimes on the well-being and development of young women and girls. A video created in collaboration with the Faculty of Dramatic Arts of the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje will be screened, followed by a debate with stakeholders. A central component will be the signing of a Declaration of Intent, representing a public commitment to counter violence against young women and girls. The Declaration outlines ten action points with concrete measures the OSCE Mission will support in 2025. Participants invited to sign the Declaration include the President of North Macedonia, the Minister of Education, representatives from local schools, youth organizations, and NGOs working to end violence against women. The President of North Macedonia and the Minister of Education will address the event. Due to medical reasons, the Head of the OSCE Mission will not attend in person but will deliver a video message. The Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission will moderate the keynote session.

25 November:

UN-led kick-off event for 16 Days of Activism against GBV (OSCE-supported event)

Time and location: 19:30-22:30, Museum of City of Skopje:

This multi-platform launch, financially supported by the OSCE Mission, will promote unity in addressing violence against women and girls (VAWG). It features open discussion panels with representatives from UN partner organisations and bilateral donors, government ministries, youth activists, NGOs, and media. The event includes a short documentary screening on GBV and an art exhibition, “Embraced Scars” by Martina Spasovska. The Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission will participate in the panel discussion.

Parliamentary Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men’s public hearing Session on the topic of violence against women and girls

Time and location: 10:00-12:00, Parliament, Skopje

At the Chairperson’s invitation, the Head of Mission will address the Committee via video message, while the Deputy Head of Mission will attend in person.

27 November:

Workshop to discuss an expert analysis supported by the OSCE Mission on “new forms of prevention of human trafficking focused on vulnerable groups, including women recommendations and key concerns.”

Time and location: 10:00-14:30, Hotel Arka, Skopje (closed event)

Women and girls are disproportionately affected by human trafficking due to their vulnerability to gender-based violence. Human traffickers often exploit gender-based inequalities. This workshop will explore strategies for preventing human trafficking, particularly among vulnerable groups, including women. The session will provide the National Antitrafficking Rapporteur with tools to monitor preventive actions and risks. Expert Marija Todorovska will facilitate this workshop.

28-29 November:

Training for Lawyers on Victims’ Rights in Human Trafficking Cases

Time and location: 10:00-16:00, Hotel Arka, Skopje (closed event)

The training aims to enhance lawyers’ capacities to represent victims of human trafficking, with a focus on women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation and forced labour. The session will address distinctions between migrant smuggling and trafficking, emphasizing the risks faced by displaced women and girls. Facilitators include Maja Koneska (Public Prosecutor) and Olja Ristova (Judge).

3-4 December:

Capacity Building for Social Workers on Combating Human Trafficking and Protecting Victims’ Rights

Time and location: 10:00-16:00, Hotel Arka, Skopje (closed event)

As part of the ongoing efforts to strengthen state responses to combating trafficking in human beings, the Mission is working closely with the National Commission for Anti Trafficking and the Ministry of Social Policy, Demography and Youth (MSPDY) on specifically targeted interventions in accordance with the Annual Plan for Implementing the National Strategy for Combating Trafficking. A key focus of these efforts is enhancing the capacity of social workers to effectively address and safeguard victims’ rights. This training initiative aims to equip social workers with essential knowledge and skills while facilitating a needs assessment for dedicated multidisciplinary mobile teams to identify vulnerable populations, including trafficking victims. By strengthening the skills and capacities of local social workers, communities will be better positioned to detect and prevent human trafficking at an early stage. The MSPDY, with the Mission’s support, will lead capacity-building sessions for social work professionals engaged in antitrafficking efforts. Given that women and girls are disproportionally affected by sex trafficking and other forms of exploitation, the training will include relevant case studies. The training will be conducted by Mr. Nazif Avdi and Ms. Irena Zdravkova, prominent experts in the area of countering THB.

10 December:

Workshop on Regional Best Practices for Women Police Network Associations (WPNAs)

Time and location: 9:30-17:30, Hotel Aleksandar Palace, Skopje (closed event)

This workshop will bring together 6 representatives from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and 12 representatives of WPNAs from the OSCE Field Operations in South-Eastern Europe. Participants will share experiences and best practices in support of the MoIA’s efforts to establish a functional and sustainable WPNA tailored to the country’s institutional setting over a 2–3-year period, in line with the Mission’s new mid-term strategy 2025-2027.

11 December:

Presentation of methodology for establishing a Femicide Watch in North Macedonia

Time and location: 11:00-14:00, Hotel Aleksandar Palace, Skopje

This presentation seeks to offer civil society organizations (CSOs) addressing gender-based violence (GBV) and key state stakeholders - such as public prosecutors, judges, police, and social service centers - a detailed overview of the proposed femicide watch methodology. It also aims to gather valuable feedback from both CSOs and state representatives to enhance the methodology. The aim is to establish a sustainable system for tracking femicide data in North Macedonia, and to contribute to the creation of a sustainable tracking model across the region. The Minister of Internal Affairs, the Minister of Social Policy, Demography and Youth, the Executive Director of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, and the Head of the OSCE Mission will address the event.

3rd meeting of the Bitola Task Force with police and Roma community representatives to discuss the issue of prostitution

Time and location: 12:00-15:00, Hotel Millenium Palace, Bitola (closed event)

Two high-profile cases of excessive police force against Roma individuals in Bitola in late 2020 led to tensions between the Roma community and law enforcement. While such tensions were not consistently visible and incidents remained relatively rare, communication between the two groups was limited primarily to sporadic confrontations. An initial fact-finding mission and situation analysis laid the groundwork for the Mission to host the first dialogue event in March 2024, which brought together Roma representatives and police officials and highlighted both the need and willingness to build mutual trust, as well as identifying a range of critical issues for discussion. Following a hiatus during the parliamentary and presidential elections in spring 2024 - along with associated changes in police management - the dialogue process resumed in October with a second event focused on improving access to identification documents. This meeting continues the dialogue and will address the issue of prostitution, focusing on its impact on Roma girls and women.