A conference marking the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act is taking place in Bratislava on Tuesday. The event is organized by the Slovak Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, together with the civic association Mission 89 and the Office of the Public Defender of Rights. It is held under the patronage of the Slovak president with support from the Ministry of Justice.
This year’s theme is “The Helsinki Process in the Context of a New World Order: Security, Cooperation and Human Rights.” Organizers stress the importance of protecting rights, freedoms, and democracy in Slovakia, building on the legacy of the 1989 Velvet Revolution.
The Helsinki Final Act, signed on August 1, 1975, by 35 states including Czechoslovakia and the former Soviet Union, established the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. The landmark document helped ease Cold War tensions and bridge divides between East and West, bringing together NATO members, Warsaw Pact countries, and both capitalist and socialist states.
Source: TASR
