Dunja Mijatović ( sr-cyr, Дуња Мијатовић; born 8 September 1964) is a Bosnian human rights expert and activist, serving as the

Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent and impartial non-judicial institution established in 1999 by the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe, to promote awareness of and respect for human rights in the council's 46 member states. Th ...

. She was elected by the

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The Assembly is made up o ...

on 24 January 2018 and took up her new post on 1 April 2018. Mijatović is an expert on

media law Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass el ...

and

media regulation Mass media regulations are rules enforced by the jurisdiction of law. Guidelines for media use differ across the world. This regulation, via law, rules or procedures, can have various goals, for example intervention to protect a stated "public inte ...

, who served from 2010 to 2017 as the

OSCE The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, prom ...

Representative on Freedom of the Media (RFoM).

Early life and education

Dunja Mijatović is the daughter of politician Tatjana Ljujić-Mijatović, the former member of the

Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina The presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Predsjedništvo Bosne i Hercegovine, separator=" / ", Предсједништво Босне и Херцеговине) is a three-member body which collectively serves as head of state of ...

during the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

. Having studied in a variety of countries, Mijatović earned her B.Sc. at the

University of Sarajevo The University of Sarajevo ( Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian: ''Univerzitet u Sarajevu'' / Sveučilište u Sarajevu / Универзитет у Сарајеву) is a public university located in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the largest ...

in 1987. She then pursued a joint M.A. in

European studies European studies is a field of study offered by many academic colleges and universities that focuses on current developments in European integration. Some programmes offer a social science or public administration curriculum focusing on develop ...

at a variety of universities (

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

and

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

),CV
OSCE RFoM graduating in 2002 with a Master’s thesis on "The Internet and Freedom of Expression". Mijatović is a native speaker of

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and ...

. She is also fluent in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and has a working knowledge of French and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Career

Throughout her career, Mijatović has been engaged in media issues across a multitude of disciplines, with substantial experience in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

, as well as intergovernmental settings. As early as 1998, as one of the founders of the BiH Communications Regulatory Agency, she helped create a legal, regulatory and policy framework for the media in a complex post-war society. She was also involved in setting up a self-regulatory press council and the first free media helpline in Southeast Europe.Short Bio
European Commission

EU and Council of Europe posts; lecturing at home and abroad (2007–2010)

In 2007, Mijatović was elected Chair of the European Platform of Regulatory Agencies, the first woman and the first person from a non-EU Member State to hold the post. Prior to that appointment, she chaired the

Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...

's Group of Specialists on "Freedom of Expression and Information in Times of Crisis". During her chairmanship, the CoE Committee of Ministers adopted a Declaration on the “Protection and promotion of investigative journalism” and issued Guidelines on "protecting freedom of expression and information in times of crisis.” As an expert on media and communications legislation, she has worked in a number of countries. In addition, she has lectured, in her home country and abroad, on various aspects of media freedom and regulation. Since 2000 she has taught media regulation at the Universities of Sarajevo and Banja Luka and, among other teaching positions, has lectured at the Academy for Political Excellence (2007-2009) and has served, since 2008, as a permanent lecturer with the joint OSCE / Ministry of Security project on "Media, Security and Hate Crime".

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (2010–2016)

In 2010 Mijatović succeeded

Miklós Haraszti Miklós Haraszti (born 2 January 1945, Jerusalem) is a Hungarian politician, writer, journalist, human rights advocate and university professor. He served the maximum of two terms as the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media from 2004 to ...

as the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (RfoM). In accordance with the 1997 Directive that established the post, Mijatović aimed to fulfil her mandate as

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media functions as a watchdog on media developments in all 57 participating member states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The representative provides early warning on viol ...

by observing relevant media developments in OSCE participating States, advocating and promoting full compliance with OSCE principles and commitments concerning freedom of expression and free media, and sending early warnings and implementing rapid responses in cases of non-compliance. In March 2013 she was reappointed for a second three-year term as OSCE RFoM Representative.

Council of Europe Commissioner on Human Rights (2018–present)

On 24 January 2018, Mijatović was elected by the

to serve as the Council's Commissioner on Human Rights for a non-renewable term of six years. She took up her new post on 1 April 2018.

Recognition

*2015 – Médaille Charlemagne pour les Médias Européens

References

External links

The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media's website
*Representative's Twitter account: @OSCE_RFoM
Representative's Facebook pageRepresentative's YouTube channelThe Commissioner for Human Rights (Council of Europe)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mijatovic, Dunja 1964 births Living people Politicians from Sarajevo Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina University of Sarajevo alumni Bosnia and Herzegovina women in politics Bosnia and Herzegovina women activists Freedom of expression Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe Council of Europe people