Gender-sensitive responses to terrorism and organized crime focus of OSCE, EU and EU-ACT side event at 35th Session of UN Crime Commission

The OSCE Transnational Threats Department, the European Union and the European Union Action against Organised Crime and Terrorism (EU-ACT), with the support of Spain, co-organized a side event on strengthening gender-sensitive responses to terrorism and organized crime on the margins of the 35th Session of the United Nations Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice on 4 June 2026 in Vienna, Austria. The event brought together prosecutors, criminal justice practitioners and policy experts from Central Asia and the European Union, alongside representatives of the OSCE and EU-ACT project.

“Our security is interconnected, and we are safer when we work as genuine partners,” said Ambassador Carl Hallergård, Head of the EU Delegation to the International Organisations in Vienna. “Gender equality is an integral part of this partnership. It is not an optional extra, but a cross-cutting priority in the EU’s external action.”

Women's participation in security and justice institutions in Central Asia remains low, with women concentrated in junior ranks or specialized units rather than in core operational or leadership positions. At the same time, women's involvement in terrorist and criminal structures is frequently overlooked, resulting in gaps in criminal justice responses and threat assessments. Against this backdrop, the side event examined how gender-responsive methodologies can strengthen counter-terrorism and anti-organized crime strategies, and how women's inclusion in justice institutions improves their effectiveness

“Gender equality is not a peripheral issue in security policy — it is a strategic priority,” said Ambassador María Sebastián de Erice, Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations Office and International Organizations in Vienna. “If our responses fail to integrate gender perspectives and fail to ensure women’s participation, then our analysis will be incomplete and our policies less effective.”

The event explored the OSCE's gender-responsive methodology in criminal justice and security, institutional experiences from Uzbekistan regarding women's participation in prosecution and law enforcement, and good practices from Spain related to integrating gender perspective into judicial responses to terrorism and organized crime. Discussions also highlighted the importance of mainstreaming gender considerations across prevention, investigation and prosecution efforts, including in relation to violent extremism and victim support.

“The Republic of Uzbekistan is implementing a comprehensive, cross-sectoral and gender-oriented approach to countering terrorism and organized crime, based on the rule of law, the priority of prevention, institutional co-ordination, and the systematic implementation of the Strategy for Countering Extremism and Terrorism,” said Svetlana Artykova, Deputy Prosecutor General of Uzbekistan.

Finally, Anastassiya Reshetnyak, member of the OSCE Network for Women Professionals on Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism and Radicalization that Lead to Terrorism in Central Asia shared experiences on how regional professional networks can support peer learning, professional exchange and capacity development among practitioners across the region.