Der Vorstand des International Ombudsman Institute (IOI) traf sich vom 11. bis 15. Mai 2025 zur jährlichen Sitzung in Rabat (Marokko). Das IOI ist das einzige globale Netzwerk für mehr als 200 parlamentarische Ombudseinrichtungen weltweit. Die Volksanwaltschaft beherbergt das IOI Generalsekretariat seit 2009 in seinen Räumlichkeiten in Wien und Volksanwalt Achitz, der auch das Amt des IOI-Generalsekretärs innehat, nahm an der Rabat-Sitzung des Vorstands teil.

Die jährliche Sitzung des IOI-Vorstands bot die Gelegenheit zu einem dreitägigen Austausch mit produktiven Sitzungen, die Beschlüsse über Projekte und Services für IOI-Mitglieder im kommenden Mitgliedschaftsjahr brachten.

Es werden neue Trainingsformate angeboten und aktualisierte Versionen der IOI-Best-Practice-Papers auf der IOI-Website veröffentlicht. Der Vorstand beschloss außerdem, das Angebot der Regionalsubventionen im Mitgliedsjahr 2025/2026 fortzusetzen. Im Rahmen dieses Subventionsprogramms können IOI-Mitglieder Fördergelder beantragen, die dabei helfen, wichtige und interessante Projekte mit Bezug zur Ombudstätigkeit in den jeweiligen Ländern oder Regionen umzusetzen.

Neue Mitglieder aus Afrika, der Karibik und Lateinamerika, Europa und Nordamerika wurden in der IOI-Familie willkommen geheißen, und der Vorstand verabschiedete den IOI Strategieplan für den Zeitraum 2024-2028. Präsentationen der verschiedenen Ausschüsse und Arbeitsgruppen informierten den Vorstand über den Fortschritt wichtiger Reformbestreben, zum Beispiel in Bezug auf die IOI-Statuten und die Reisepolitik für IOI-Vorstandsdirektoren, sowie die Stärkung der Beziehungen des IOI zu internationalen Organisationen, die eine engere Kooperation und höhere Sichtbarkeit von Ombudsman-Institutionen weltweit zum Ziel haben.

Der Vorstand verließ Rabat in der Gewissheit, dass das IOI seinen Mitgliedern auch im nächsten Mitgliedschaftsjahr eine breite Palette interessanter Aktivitäten und Unterstützung anbieten wird.

On May 28, 2025, the Constitutional Court of Georgia granted Public Defender’s constitutional lawsuit No. 1606, which challenged the regulation approved by Decree No. 445 of July 17, 2020, according to which the residential and non-residential premises in state ownership on the balance sheet of the Ministry of Defense of Georgia was not allowed to be transferred to a person who did not have Georgian citizenship.

According to the Public Defender, the disputed norm was discriminatory in nature, since, unlike Georgian citizens, it excluded the transfer of state-owned land to a person who did not have Georgian citizenship, even if the person was the heir of the legal owner of the land, the person had proved the actual ownership of the land and the documentation required for the transfer of the land had been submitted to the Ministry. According to the Public Defender, such differentiated treatment had no reasonable explanation.

In the case under consideration, the Constitutional Court of Georgia compared a person who did not have Georgian citizenship, whose legator lawfully owned the property on the balance sheet of the Ministry of Defense of Georgia, and who had failed to register the ownership of the said land during his lifetime, and a citizen of Georgia, whose legator lawfully owned the said property and who had also failed to register its ownership during his lifetime. The Constitutional Court, in relation to the given legal relationship, considered the comparable persons to be essentially equal subjects. The Constitutional Court explained that in a certain legal relationship the legal status of a citizen of Georgia differed from the status of a foreigner, however, in the context of the legal relationship identified in the case under consideration, citizenship did not change the nature of the legal interest of the heirs.

According to the Constitutional Court, in the given case, different treatment of essentially equal persons could not be justified by the interest of saving limited state resources. In order to justify the differentiation, it was necessary to substantiate not only that the resources were insufficient for everyone, but also to demonstrate the rationality of the differentiation itself. The Court did not consider the disputed regulation to be a mechanism encouraging citizens to engage in the field of defense and security either. In particular, according to the Constitutional Court, the transfer of the land to the heir was made without any condition of succession. Accordingly, the latter’s acquisition of the property did not constitute a guarantee of his involvement in the field of defense or in any way increased such expectations. Accordingly, the Constitutional Court considered the disputed norm to be discriminatory and declared it unconstitutional in relation to paragraph 1 of Article 11, of the Constitution of Georgia.

Constitutional Court’s ruling is available at:

https://constcourt.ge/ka/judicial-acts?legal=17972

Unter Leitung von Bundestagspräsidentin Julia Klöckner ist am Mittwoch, 21. Mai 2025, der Petitionsausschuss des Bundestages zu seiner ersten Sitzung in der neuen Wahlperiode zusammengekommen. Die Abgeordneten konnten sich in der konstituierenden Sitzung zunächst nicht auf einen regulären Vorsitzenden verständigen. Der von der AfD-Fraktion für den Vorsitz vorgeschlagene Abgeordnete Manfred Schiller (AfD) erhielt in geheimer Wahl nicht die erforderliche Mehrheit. Der AfD-Fraktion fällt im Petitionsausschuss das Vorschlagsrecht für den Vorsitz zu.

Die Abgeordneten verzichteten zunächst auch auf die Benennung eines stellvertretenden Vorsitzenden. Mit der kommissarischen Leitung des Ausschusses betraut wurde der dienstälteste Abgeordnete des Ausschusses Andreas Mattfeldt (CDU/CSU). Im Petitionsausschuss sind 26 ordentliche Mitglieder vertreten, darunter neun Abgeordnete der Unionsfraktion, sechs der AfD-Fraktion, fünf der SPD-Fraktion und drei Abgeordnete der Fraktion Bündnis 90/Die Grünen sowie der Linksfraktion.

Die Ausschussmitglieder

CDU/CSU: Simone Borchardt, Dr. Marlon Bröhr, Benedikt Büdenbender, Wolfgang Dahler, Heiko Hain, Nicklas Kappe, Andreas Mattfeldt, Christian Moser, Johannes Rothenberger.

AfD: Nicole Hess, Olaf Hilmer, Kurt Klaus Kleinschmidt, Angela Rudzka, Manfred Schiller, Jörg Zirwes.

SPD: Jan Dieren, Daniela Rump, Stefan Schwartze, Ruppert Stüwe, Serdar Yüksel.

Bündnis 90/Die Grünen: Corinna Rüffer, Tina Winklmann.

Die Linke: Michael Arndt, Ina Latendorf, Sören Pellmann.

(hau/21.05.2025)

i è svolto Martedì 3 Giugno 2025i a Roma un incontro istituzionale tra il Coordinamento Nazionale dei Difensori Civici e il Presidente dell’INPS, Avv. Gabriele Fava, finalizzato a porre le basi per la definizione di un Protocollo d’Intesa tra le due istituzioni.

A introdurre i lavori il Presidente del Coordinamento Nazionale Marino Fardelli, Difensore Civico della Regione Lazio, insieme a una delegazione di colleghi provenienti da diverse realtà territoriali:

• Guido Giusti, Difensore Civico della Regione Emilia-Romagna
• Francesco Cozzi, Difensore Civico della Regione Liguria
• Gianalberigo Devecchi, Difensore Civico della Regione Lombardia
• Paola Baldovino, Difensore Civico della Regione Piemonte
• Giacomo Bernardi, Difensore Civico della Provincia Autonoma di Trento.

Nel corso dell’incontro, il Presidente Fardelli ha sottolineato l’importanza strategica di una collaborazione strutturata con l’INPS, ricordando che nell’ultimo triennio circa 3.000 istanze trattate dai Difensori Civici hanno riguardato problematiche legate all’Istituto: ritardi, disallineamenti informativi, difficoltà nell’accesso ai diritti.
Ha quindi rilanciato la proposta di un Protocollo d’Intesa nazionale, capace di garantire tempi certi di risposta, procedure condivise e canali diretti di interlocuzione, al fine di offrire risposte tempestive, qualificate e coordinate ai cittadini.

All’incontro sono intervenuti anche i Vicepresidenti del Coordinamento, Paola Baldovino (Piemonte) e Guido Giusti (Emilia-Romagna), che hanno espresso pieno sostegno all’iniziativa, sottolineando l’esigenza di rafforzare la sinergia tra le istituzioni per migliorare l’efficienza amministrativa e tutelare con maggiore efficacia i diritti sociali, soprattutto per le persone più fragili.

Il Protocollo, attualmente in fase di definizione, rappresenta un passaggio concreto verso una cooperazione stabile tra il sistema della Difesa Civica e l’INPS, nella prospettiva di rafforzare la rete delle tutele nel nostro Paese.

Chief Ombudsman Mr. Akarca Met with Youth in Bingöl

Chief Ombudsman Mr. Mehmet Akarca, together with Ombudsmen Mr. Ertunç Erkan Balta, Mr. Sadettin Kalkan, Mr. Abdullah Cengiz Makas, Mr. Özcan Yıldız, and Secretary General of the Ombudsman Institution Mr. Mehmet Doğan, met with youth at the conference titled “The Ombudsman Institution and Universities in the Century of Türkiye” held at Bingöl University.

In his speech at the conference, Chief Ombudsman stated, “The Ombudsman Institution, which exists in many countries around the world and acts as a bridge of peace in the implementation of human rights, is an oversight mechanism whose roots go back to the Ottoman Empire. Ombudsman Institution, which King Charles XII of Sweden, influenced by the influence of the Ottoman system, established in his country, has today become one of the cornerstones of the ways of seeking legal remedies in many countries worldwide.”

Emphasizing that a decision issued by the Ombudsman Institution affects millions of citizens facing the same issue, Chief Ombudsman underlined that their objective is to ensure that the rights of individuals are protected and the understanding of good administration is established.

Highlighting that universities not only expand the boundaries of knowledge through scientific research but also play an active role in the emergence of new ideas, perspectives, and values that sprout in the intellectual world, Chief Ombudsman noted, “This is precisely why these institutions of education, which nurture the nation’s intellectual capital, its scholars, and the future leaders, are among the fundamental forces that lay the groundwork for the future of society through the knowledge they produce and the accumulation of knowledge they provide. The rich and innovative intellectual atmosphere of our universities shapes the vision guiding social progress and plays a key role in shaping the future of our country.”

Providing examples based on several complaints lodged by university students, Chief Ombudsman explained:

“In previous years, a student lodged a complaint to the Ombudsman Institution of Türkiye. He had been late in paying his tuition fee during the registration renewal period, and as a result, his right to education was suspended for an entire semester. We found this situation this situation inconsistent with the principle of fairness and issued a Recommendation to the university administration, stating that the decision infringed upon the student’s right to higher education. Consequently, the student was able to complete his registration and regained his right to continue his education. In another complaint, several students residing in dormitories of the Higher Education Credit and Hostels Institution (KYK) reported that limited internet access in their rooms made it difficult for them to access academic resources. Upon this this complaint, we corresponded with the relevant institutions, requested technical reports, and eventually, improvements were made to enhance internet access. Although this may appear like a minor step, it positively affected every student’s right to education.”

Stating that their aim is to transform Türkiye from a consumer that merely imports knowledge and technology from abroad into a leading country that produces, develops, and exports knowledge on a global scale through its own internal dynamics, Chief Ombudsman emphasized that universities lie at the heart of this vision. He stressed that achieving progress in science and technology, generating original ideas, and establishing high value-added production models is only possible through an academic ecosystem that researches, questions, and produces.

Chief Ombudsman underscored that building a Türkiye that advances through knowledge is achievable solely through the visionary and transformative approach that universities will undertake on this journey.

Chief Ombudsman, Mr. Mehmet Akarca, Made Contacts in Bingöl

Together with the delegation of the Ombudsman Institution of Türkiye, Chief Ombudsman, Mr. Mehmet Akarca, paid a visit to the Governor of Bingöl, Dr. Ahmet Hamdi Usta as part of the “Ombudsman Meets with Youth in Bingöl” program.

Chief Ombudsman also paid a visit to the Deputy Mayor of Bingöl, Mr. Hasan Çeçen, and Head of Bar of Bingöl, Attorney Yusuf Ketenalp.

Following the “program, Chief Ombudsman and the accompanying delegation also paid a visit to the Rector of Bingöl University, Prof. Dr. Erdal Çelik.