Regional ombudspersons: an institution in the service of citizens’ rights - CPR (11) 7 Part II

Rapporteurs :
Doris ANSARI, United Kingdom
Chamber of Regions
Political Group: ILGD

Hans Martin TSCHUDI, Switzerland
Chamber of Regions
Political Group: ILGD

----------------------------------

EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM

Regional ombudsperson and the Council of Europe

In 1975, when only few countries in Europe had established the institution of ombudsman, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe recommended that the Committee of Ministers invite the governments of those member states, which had not yet done so, to consider the possibility of appointing at national, regional and/or local level persons discharging functions similar to those of existing Ombudspersons and Parliamentary Commissioners (Recommendation 757/1975).

The Committee of Ministers of COE recommended in 1985, after laying down principles for the relation between individuals and administrative authorities in Resolution (77) 31 and Recommendation No. R(80) 2, to the governments of the member states to consider the possibility of appointing an Ombudsman at national, regional or local level or for specific areas of public administration, with special importance giving to human rights matters (Recommendation No. R (85) 13).

Round Tables with (mainly national) ombudspersons were organized by the Council of Europe in Florence (7 - 8 November 1991), Lisbon (16 - 17 June 1994), Limassol (8 - 10 May 1996), Malta (7 - 9 October 1998), Zürich (21 - 24 November 2001) and Oslo (3 - 5 November 2003).

Since various European countries had established ombuds-institutions on the regional and local level, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe called from 13 to 15 November 1997 to an international conference in Messina (Italy) on „Making the protection of rights more accessible to citizens: the ombudsman at local and regional level“, bringing together regional and local ombudspersons from the COE member states.

According to the wishes of the participants of the Messina conference the Congress launched a comparative analysis of the role and the different approaches to mediation adopted by local and regional ombudspersons in Europe.

In 1999 the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in Europe drew up the Recommendation 61 (1999), the Resolution 80 (1999) and an explanatory memorandum on the role of local and regional mediators/ombudspersons in defending citizens rights, and recommended

In 2003, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe laid down essential characteristics for any institution of ombudsman to operate effectively and recommended that the governments of COE member states create at national level (and at regional and local level as appropriate), where it does not already exist, an institution bearing a title similar to that of „parliamentary (regional, local government) ombudsman“, preferably by incorporation into the constitution, exhibiting these characteristics (Recommendation 1615/2003).

Organized by the Commissioner for Human Rights of the COE, Mr Alvaro Gil-Robles, and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in cooperation with the Ombudsman of Catalonia the First Round Table for Regional Ombudsmen in Barcelona on 2 and 3 July 2004 discussed the respective tasks and competencies of regional and national ombudspersons, especially concerning housing rights and the right to a healthy environment.

The spread of ombudsmanship

The institution of ombudsman has achieved a position as important authority to protect human rights and the rule of law on a global scale. Originated in Sweden, where the first parliamentary ombudsman was elected in 1809, the institution spread throughout Europe and the world since the 1960s. Its basic purpose is the control of public authorities by a person independent of the executive, receiving complaints against public authorities and with the power to investigate and to make reports and recommendations, to ensure that they act in accordance with the law.

The spread of ombudsmanship can be related to a number of developments in democratic societies, concerning the relationship between state and citizen. Public administration took over responsibilities for the well-being of its people, like social security, education, housing, urban planning, health, culture, sport facilities and others. The increase of public duties lead to a growth of administrative bodies and regulations, confronting citizens with a huge bureaucracy and a complex system of legal provisions to regulate more and more aspects of human life.

Citizens have to know their rights and the means to enforce them to have full access to the benefits of the welfare system and their civil and social rights. Court proceedings often lack the necessary efficiency and speed and are connected with financial burdens, making it difficult, especially for disadvantaged citizens, to enforce the rule of law and guarantee their rights.

In this context administration is not seen only as subject to the rule of law, but also as a service to the citizen, expressed in ways like citizen-friendliness, service-mindedness or the citizen as customer. In reality, the functionaries of the state, called civil servants, not always correspond to this concept.

Ombudspersons improve the chances of citizens to obtain their rights, have access to social benefits and reduce the gap between them and public authorities. They can provide advice, inform citizens about their rights and the means of action available, remind public official of their duty as public servants, mediate in conflicts between citizens and public authorities, investigate complaints and give recommendations to the administration or in case of insufficient regulations to the legislative bodies.

A strong impetus to the ombuds-idea gave the aspirations to democracy and human rights in those countries, who experienced before war, dictatorship and disregard of human rights. Many of those nations established ombudspersons with particular responsibility for protecting human rights, mainly on the national level.

Over the last decades several centralised states have become decentralised to a large extent, setting up bodies of elected representatives on the regional level, granting administrative and legislative autonomy and passing important competences to regional and local authorities. This development gave impetus to set up ombudspersons on the regional and the local level.

Variety of regulations and names

Ombuds-institutions are incorporated in the constitutional and legal system of each state: small and large countries, some with a long democratic tradition, others now setting up a system to guarantee the rule of law; central organised nations and countries with decentralised political and administrative structures like a federal system; constitutional systems that bind the administration closely to law-regulations, offering judicial means of control by administrative and constitutional courts, others without such strict regulations for the administration.

For this reason the institution of ombudsman is characterised by a high degree of differentiation in organisation, function, legal regulations and even name: The ombudsman of the Nordic countries is called médiateur in France and French speaking countries, difensore civico in Italy, protector of citizens` rights in Slovenia, commissioner for citizens` rights in Poland, parliamentary commissioner for administration in the UK, provedor de justica in Portugal or defensor del pueblo in Spain. The German speaking countries call the same type of public official Volksanwalt (Austria), Landesvolksanwalt (Vorarlberg, Tyrol), Bürgerbeauftragter (Germany) and Ombudsmann (Switzerland).

On the other hand the term ombudsman is used today for all kinds of persons and institutions with the task to help people or protect certain values: ombudspersons for children, patients, minorities, people with disabilities, nature, animals, customers, clients of insurances or tourist agencies, set up by law, public authorities, private enterprises, newspapers or being simply complaints offices.

Classical ombudsman and parliament

The universal use of the term ombudsman and the mentioned differences make it necessary to define the characteristics of the classical ombudsman. Generally he is seen as an independent high governmental official who receives complaints against government agencies and officials from aggrieved persons, who investigates and, if the complaints are justified, makes recommendations to remedy the complaints. In the European tradition he is elected by a legislative body, as normally national and regional ombudspersons in the member states of the COE (with the exception of the French Médiateur).

In the context of the constitutional concept of separation of powers with parliament not only as legislative body, but with the right and duty to control the executive branch of government (system of „checks and balances“), it is consequent to have ombudspersons elected by and reporting to the parliament.

For this reason ombudspersons sometimes are seen as an organ of parliament, but also as an authority separated from all branches of government, because of their independent position and their service directly to the citizen.

Federal systems and decentralisation

In federal states competences of legislation and administration are divided between the national and the regional (state) level. Some originally highly centralised countries have decentralised to a large extent over the last decades, often granting both administrative and legislative autonomy to some or all regions. Today we find in some countries a high degree of local and regional self-government, where the central authorities are not allowed to deal with matters that fall exclusively in the competence of regional and municipal authorities.

In this case a national ombudsman, unless there are explicit provisions, has no legal power to deal with complaints about maladministration or violation of human rights on the regional and/or local level.

It is desirable to offer to the citizen the right to appeal to an ombudsman in all cases when he has problems with public authorities, no matter if it is on the national, regional or municipal level. In the case of local and regional self-government and divided competences therefore it is justified to appoint ombudspersons on all levels of territorial authority with autonomous administrative powers which may affect the rights of citizens.

Regional ombudspersons in Europe

While almost all members of the European Union and most COE member states have established an ombuds-institution on the national level, we find in Europe classical ombudspersons on the regional level mainly in countries with a federal system or autonomous regions, with regional representative bodies and a high degree of local or regional self-government.

In Austria the Volksanwaltschaft (national ombudsman board of 3 members, elected by the national parliament) acts in seven of the nine Bundesländer (states) also as regional ombuds-institution on the basis of constitutional state-law and reporting regularly to the respective Landtag (regional parliament). The Bundesländer Vorarlberg and Tyrol established their own ombudspersons (Landesvolksanwalt), elected by the Landtag and reporting to it. All three institutions have within their jurisdiction the administration of the municipalities, this way covering all levels of administration.

In Belgium we find ombudspersons on the national, regional and local level. As regional ombudspersons act the Flemish Ombudsman, the Médiateur de la Région Wallonne and the Mediateur de la Communauté francaise.

In Bosnia & Herzegovina the regional ombuds-institutions in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republica Srpska are composed of three members, representing the nationalities, but acting as a unity. After the end of the term of the national ombudsman installed by the Stability Pact, on the national level the same concept, born out of the tragic history, was realized.

In Germany the Land Rheinland-Pfalz was one of the first regions in Europe to establish a regional ombudsman (Bürgerbeauftragter) in 1974. Only three of the other Länder followed the example to set up a parliamentary ombudsman (Bürgerbeauftragter): Schleswig-Holstein (restricted to social affairs) in 1988 and after the unification Thüringen and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. On the national level (Bundestag) and the regional level (Landtag) the Petition Committees of the parliaments are handling complaints of citizens about the administration. Because of this special situation the Petition Committees are widely accepted as members or observers in international meetings and organisations of ombudspersons.

Italy has not yet established a national ombuds-institution, but has the highest number of public administration ombudspersons in Europe. 16 regions appointed a difensore civico, as did many municipalities from big cities to small mountain villages to control the local administration.

In the Russian Federation the Duma elects a national ombudsman (human rights commissioner), in the republics and regions of the Federation we find a growing number of regional ombudspersons (28 at the time).

In Serbia and Montenegro regional ombudspersons can be found for Montenegro, the Vojvodina and (appointed within the Stability Pact) the Kosovo.

In Spain exist in addition to the Defensor del Pueblo on the national level 10 regional ombudspersons, mainly in the autonomous regions with a variety of terms like Defensor del Pueblo (Andalucia, Navarra, Castilla - La Mancha), Sindic de Greuges (Catalonia, Valencia), Diputado del Comun (Canary Islands), Valedor do Pobo (Galicia), Justicia Mayor (Aragon), Ararteko (Basque Country) and Procurador del Comun (Castilla y León).

Switzerland set up Europe’s first local ombudsman in the city of Zürich in 1971. Only three of the cantons (Zürich, Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft) and two other cities (Bern, Winterthur) adopted the concept. The French speaking canton of Vaud appointed (not by parliament) a médiatrice, in some other cantons proposals are made to set up an ombuds-institution.

In the United Kingdom we find besides the Parliamentary Ombudsperson regional ombudspersons for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Gibraltar as well as Local Government Ombudspersons in England (dividing the territory in three regions), Scotland and Wales and some special ombudspersons, like for legal services in England/Wales and Scotland, for pensions, housing etc.

In some countries local ombudspersons have regional importance because of their responsibility for plural municipalities, like the British local government ombudspersons, or the number of inhabitants covered, as those of big cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Milan or Rome.

The special tasks of regional ombudspersons

The function of regional ombudspersons does not differ basically from that of national ombudspersons. We can’t even say that the territory and population of their jurisdiction is smaller, since some regional ombudspersons have a larger constituency as national ombudspersons of small countries and we find local ombudspersons with higher numbers of citizens and cases to handle as some regional and national institutions.

In contrast to national ombudspersons in centralised states, who control administration on all levels including the municipalities, regional ombudsman are restricted to the competences of the territorial authorities of their region. In federal states or autonomous regions on the other hand the national ombudsman is restricted to the competences of the national level. This does not lead to a hierarchy of ombudspersons, every ombudsperson acts within his jurisdiction and competence on the national, regional or local level.

Even considering the diversity of legal systems and distribution of competences between the different levels of administration, the decisions of regional and local authorities tend to deal more directly with the life and interests and thus the rights of concerned citizens. Public services like social welfare, housing, public health, education and employment, but also urban planning and environmental issues often fall in the responsibility of regional and local authorities and are not or at least not individually decided on by national authorities.

As statet in the conclusions of the First Round Table of Regional Ombudsmen in Barcelona, certain social rights such as the right to employment, social care, a healthy environment or housing became accepted as fundamental rights.

Housing is a basic human need and recognized as a human right in texts like the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Revised European Social Charta. Since they do not provide the possibility of individual appeal, it should be a special task of regional ombudspersons to grant access to housing for all citizens, especially for vulnerable categories such as immigrants, unemployed and senior citizens.

The wide range of monitoring powers of ombudspersons investigating possible violations of environmental rights can be a precious tool for making recommendations to the administration, proposals to amend existing legislation and publishing specific reports on environmental issues. The granting of competencies to regional ombudspersons in environmental matters constitutes a valuable instrument for ensuring the right to a healthy environment.

Considering these competences regional and local ombudspersons play a special and important role in defending citizen’s rights and particularly in guaranteeing the implementation of their social rights, including those laid down in the European Social Charta.

The experience in countries with regional ombudspersons shows clearly, that a higher percentage of the population is corresponding to the services of the ombudsman, making regional administration much more effectively supervised as by a distant national ombudsman. For this reason also regional ombudsman help in a very effective way to guarantee access to civil and social rights and the rule of law.

The proximity between ombudspersons and citizens has clear advantages for the citizen: Not only is the access easier, the ombudsman is also more acquainted with the regional and local authorities, localities, problems and customs. This helps to mediate in conflicts and find solutions. For this reason, mediation is considered a special strength of regional (and local) ombudspersons.

The easier access destines regional and local ombudspersons also to provide advice to citizens, to inform them about their rights and their own means of action available.

Referring to the establishment of local ombudspersons it has to be taken into consideration, that proximity to the local authorities may cause problems in small communities, as far as the independence and the impartiality or its appearance is concerned. A too narrow sphere of competence in terms of geographical area and the number of citizens covered may also not desirable for reasons of effectiveness. The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities recommended in the appendix to Resolution 80 (1999) in those cases to form associations of municipalities. Another solution, found in some countries, is to give the competence of supervising the local administration to the regional (in some cases the national) ombudsman.

Despite the restrictions of competence to the administration of the regional (and mostly also local) level and the strengths in mediation and advice, the main duties of regional ombudspersons remain the same as of national ombudspersons. Therefore the principles governing the institution, the guarantees of independence, powers and means of action have to be generally the same.

Principles for the institution of ombudsman have been laid down in a number of documents, issued by the General Assembly of the United Nations in Resolution 48/134, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities in Europe of the Council of Europe in Recommendation 61 (1999) and Resolution 80 (1999), the International and the American Bar Association, the International Ombudsman Institute, the United States Ombudsman Association and lately the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Recommendation 1615 (2003) and the Commissioner for Civil Rights Protection of Poland, Prof Dr Andrzej Zoll in the draft of an “International Charter of the Effective Ombudsman” (VARIA 41 of the European Ombudsman Institute).

The institution of regional ombudsman

As a principle, every citizen should have the right to appeal to an ombudsman in all cases of conflict with public authorities, no matter if it happens on the national, regional or municipal level. In cases of regional autonomy and self-government, the solution of appointing a regional ombudsman is preferable by far to the solution of extending the national ombudsman’s competence to the regional authorities.

According to the Resolution 48/134 of the General Assembly of the United Nations and in similar words the Recommendation 1615 (2003) of the General Assembly of the COE the institution of ombudsman should find its fundamental empowerment in the constitution of the state, and in particular in a legal act, to guarantee the ombudsman independence of other bodies of state authority and autonomy in decision-making. This applies also to regional ombudspersons.

Independence is crucial to create credibility for the office among the citizens, particularly those who complain. To strengthen the independence from the executive branch of government and the agencies under its control the election by the regional parliament (and not appointment by the government) is essential. Since in parliamentary systems the majority of the legislature mostly is identical with the parties who form the government, a qualified majority as necessary quorum to elect the ombudsman would strengthen his impartiality.

The term of office should be the same or longer as the term of the parliament, with the possibility of re-election. The law should define the functions and activities incompatible with the office and the remuneration, comparable to that of high officials of government and administration of this level. Guarantees of immunity and the return to the previous or an equivalent position at the end of his term may also strengthen ombudsman´s independence.

If provisions for dismissal of the ombudsman are deemed necessary, the reasons and procedures have to be transparent and clear, requiring a qualified majority of votes sufficiently large as to imply support from parties outside government.

The ombudsman has to be provided with the necessary staff, premises, technical services and financial means necessary to perform his duties effectively, appropriate to the extent of his territorial competence and the number of citizens he has to serve. He should be empowered to recruit directly the members of his staff and dispose on his own budget as laid down by parliament.

The choice of the ombudsman

The essential qualities of every ombudsman as regards his functions are independence, impartiality, competence and social awareness. He should be of high moral standards and widely accepted, not be influenced by (or subjected to pressure from) the organs of any authorities, political parties, economic interests etc.

Since independence and impartiality must also be seen by the citizens, it is advisable to avoid appointing active politicians or persons who may have connections with the authorities under their control, associated with their careers, functions, political or economic interests etc.

The ombudsman must have the qualifications consistent with his duties, including adequate knowledge of the legal regulations, the working and rules of administration and the political system. The choice should also be based on considerations of the professional experience, social engagement, communicative abilities and moral standards of the candidates.

The ombudsman should be appointed as an individual with the exception of being part of a collegiate body. For the citizen, often confronted with an anonymous bureaucracy, it is important to see the ombudspersons as a person, willing to listen to his complaints and helping to solve his problems.

During the term of office, the ombudsman should restrain from any activities contradictory to his duties and from any involvement in partisan political activities.

Powers and functions of regional ombudspersons

The field of competence should extend to all acts and conduct of the regional (and if within the mandate the local) administrative authorities. The powers of the national and regional and eventually local ombudspersons should be distributed in such a way that all activities and conduct of public authorities are covered and no gaps are left which would leave citizens unprotected.

If there are no local ombudspersons, the competence should include the local administration, in lack of a national ombudsman federal authorities within the territory of the regional ombudsman could be included, if permitted by the constitution.

The competence should include the private administrative sector, therefore all matters relating to the operation of the territorial authorities in their capacity as holders of private rights, e.g. in regard to enterprises, housing projects, real estate or employment.

Dealing with maladministration, the field of competence should not be reduced to violations of the law (as usually in court procedures) and the principle of equity, but include delays, irregularities, negligence, unjustified and impolite conduct and lack of impartiality, fairness, transparency, efficiency, integrity etc.

Most of those principles of good administration have been laid down explicitly in the European Code of Good Administrative Behaviour, accepted by the European Parliament on proposal of the European Ombudsman on 6 June 2001, and in the Committee of Ministers Recommendation No R (80) 2 and Resolution (77) 31. Even not being part of binding regulations on the national and regional level, they may act as a guideline for the conduct of public authorities and the judgment of ombudspersons on all levels.

The main function of the regional as of any ombudsman is to receive complaints against public authorities, to investigate them, to make reports and recommendations and in this way to ensure that the public authorities in his territorial competence act in accordance with the law and the principles of good administration.

In the context of the European Convention on Human Rights, being applicable in all member states of the COE, any violation of human rights is a special and severe case of maladministration within the competence of any ombudspersons, also on the regional and local level. Therefore it would be recommendable to state in the regulations of the ombudsman his duty to guarantee human rights.

As service-institution directly accessible for the citizen the ombudsman should also provide advice, inform the citizens about their rights and the means of action available to enable them to obtain their rights on their own.

The proximity to the citizen and the officials of administration on the regional (and local) level facilitates the dialogue, making mediation and the quest for solutions an important function of regional and local ombudspersons.

Advice, information, dialogue and mediation help to narrow the gap between citizens and public authorities. As a link between citizens and the state the ombudsman could be provided with the task to accept suggestions of individuals or organisations of the civil society to modify laws, regulations or administrative decisions and transmit them (eventually adding his own opinion) to the parliament or the respective authority.

Familiar with cases of maladministration and because of their experience in this field ombudspersons are often aware not only of the effects, but also the causes of maladministration. This enables them to suggest suitable remedies to avoid a repetition of unacceptable situations, making suggestions and proposals to the authorities if the problem relates to the organisation and functioning of their offices, procedure or the interpretation of the regulations. The same action may be taken in relation to the parliament to modify or amend the legislation.

Finally the ombudsman should be empowered to act on his own initiative, whenever he is aware of acts, conduct and/or situations which may harm the rights of individuals or a category or group of individuals.

Regional (as other) ombudspersons can promote social cohesion by helping to avoid the use of long and costly judicial proceedings, narrowing the gap between citizens and public authorities, promote fairness, respect for the rule of law and for minorities´ rights and readiness to listen to citizens´ needs. Beyond that they can improve the transparency and efficiency of administration and the quality of services, to promote sound public management.

Access to the ombudspersons

Access to the ombudsman must be open to every natural or legal person who considers that he is suffering from maladministration (in a wide sense) of the authorities within the ombudsman’s mandate. Any limitation or discrimination based on nationality, race, sex etc is contrary to the general principles which govern the protection of human rights.

The access should be as easy as possible and the services of the ombudsman free of charge. Complaints, statements and suggestions can be brought forward personally (oral) and in writing, including the use of electronic technologies (Email, fax, telephone). The office should be open every working day, sometimes beyond regular working hours. Considering the size of the territory, the establishment of local offices or special appointment dates outside the seat of the institution should facilitate the contact to the ombudsman.

Citizens should be able to speak to the ombudsman in person, if they desire. Often confronted with an anonymous bureaucracy, citizens should witness the ombudsman as personality, serving their needs, and not only as head of a huge ombuds-bureaucracy.

The procedure must be flexible and without unnecessary formalities to facilitate the utilization by simple and underprivileged citizens. Delays and complications are to be avoided, the clients be kept informed of the initiatives taken by the ombudsman, the development and the outcome of his case. For any compromise or friendly settlement the clients´ prior consent must be obtained.

Any citizen calling on the ombudsman has to be granted confidentiality, unless he wants to have his case with his full name discussed with the concerned authorities. Before the publication of a case of maladministration in a way, that the client can be detected as a person, his prior consent must be obtained.

To facilitate the access, the ombudsman should inform regularly the public about his existence, identity, purpose, procedures and powers as well as the best way to reach him (address, office hours, outside office hours). It will be advisable to be available on the internet with a special homepage and a complaints formulary.

Complaints outside of the field of competence should be forwarded to the national, local, special, European or another regional ombudsman, if within his responsibility. Other complainants should be informed about the competence of the ombudsman as well as the possibilities to receive help and information by other institutions or means, like court actions, consumer advocates, counseling offices, special consultants, NGOs, psychologists, therapists, etc.

The ombudsman’s means of action

The ombudsman must be guaranteed free access to all documents, files and archives of the administrative authority concerned which he requires in order to perform his duties. This applies also to documents and files of other authorities and courts, if they relate to a case within the mandate of the ombudsman.

He should be empowered to conduct inquiries, including hearing witnesses, making local inspections and obtaining the opinions of experts, disposing of the necessary financial means.

The official responsible for the act or conduct at issue must be available to answer the ombudsman’s questions and to help him carry out his tasks. The ombudsman on the other hand should give him the chance to respond to the complaint before making the final conclusions of the case.

In order to ensure effective freedom of access, appropriate means or penalties should be laid down and imposed for any refusal, obstacle, impediment or other form of obstruction on the part of a civil servant or public official.

The ombudsman should be able to approach the organ of the authorities responsible for adopting the relevant provisions regarding administrative action, the organisation of services, regulations, procedures etc in order to suggest any ways in which the authority’s observance of individual rights might be improved.

The authority concerned should be required to take the ombudsman’s recommendations, suggestions and initiatives into consideration and respond to them in a prescribed period. If the authority is not willing to follow them, it has to state the reasons which in its view prevent it from giving effect to them.

The results of the ombudsman’s actions should be laid down in special, periodic and annual reports to the parliament or in other documents and made public by whatever means appropriate. The ombudsman as a public official should be entitled to inform the public about his work, his suggestions and proposals, cases of maladministration, the rights of the citizens, the principles of good administration and human rights issues.

In case of differing opinions between the ombudsman and the authority referred to about the field of competence of the ombudsman or the interpretation of relevant laws and regulations, the ombudsman should be empowered to apply to the constitutional or administrative court for interpretative and binding judgements.

International cooperation of ombudspersons and human rights institutions

There is no formal education or university degree to become an ombudsman. The holders of the office come from different professional and personal backgrounds, as civil servants, judges, advocates, politicians, journalists, university teachers and others. Many of the institutions have been set up in recent years, not relying on a long-year experience in this field.

Cooperation and exchange of ideas and experience therefore are most helpful. The cooperation of ombudspersons of all levels in the European Ombudsman Institute (EOI), world-wide contacts through the International Ombudsman Institute, seminars and conferences organized by the EOI, the European Ombudsman and regional associations support the daily work and the further development of the ombuds-idea.

Considering the binding nature and wide concept of the European Convention on Human Rights as interpreted by the European Court of Human Rights, and the fact that the concept of human rights has evolved and expanded to include not only political, but also economic and social rights, ombudspersons must be seen as human rights institutions and be aware of it, even if the protection of human rights is not explicitly mentioned in their statute.

There is no contradiction between the mandate of the ombudsman in the classical term, which is to prevent and fight maladministration, and the mandate to defend human rights. The difference between the two mandates is more symbolic than real, since the most serious example of maladministration is the violation of a human right.

For this reason, the issue of human rights should be included in the education and the exchange of ideas and experience of ombudspersons and their staff members. Cooperation with human rights institutions, like the COE Commissioner of Human Rights, and participation in Round Tables for ombudspersons, organized by the COE and with special focus on human rights issues, may help to popularize the Convention and to be aware of the applicability to all levels of government. For this reason it seems appropriate to include regional and local ombudsman in the Round Tables and information networks of human rights.