The General Assembly of the Association of Mediterranean Ombudsmen has welcomed the Maltese Parliamentary Ombudsman's proposal for the setting up of an International Ombudsman Law Institution in Malta, during its session held today in Tirana, Albania.

It’s with resolute determination and profound sadness that three international Ombusmen’s Associations and the Conseil International Permanent sur la Prévention et la Médiation des Conflits et des Guerres, CIPM join their voices to deplore the abduction and detention of over 200 Nigerian schoolgirls which occurred more than two months ago.

The Ombudsman for the Defence Forces, Mr. Patrick Anthony McCourt, has reported changing trends in the level of complaints reported to his Office during 2012.

The Ombudsman of Catalonia, as the Catalan Authority for the Prevention of Torture (OPCAT), has imposed himself the goal of having the Istanbul Protocol implemented in all places of deprivation of liberty in Catalonia within six months. According to this manual, the Ombudsman will lead the development of actual protocols for each type of centre.

On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the chairperson of the Austrian Ombudsman Board Günther Kräuter acknowledges the work of the Expert Commissions and the Human Rights Advisory Council.

The IOI Working Group consisting of communication experts from members’ offices met in Vienna on 16 and 17 June 2014 to evaluate the IOI’s existing communication infrastructure and publication policy.

Acting Ombudsman, Professor Margaret Griffiths, has published the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales’s Annual Report, which was laid before the National Assembly for Wales on 18 June 2014.

On 12-14 June, 2014 the Human Rights Defender of Poland was hosting the annual meeting of the Visegrad Group Ombudsmen (V4). The meeting, held in Białowieża, was attended by Ms Anna Šabatová, Public Defender of Rights of the Czech Republic, Ms Jana Dubovcova, Defender of Rights of the Slovac Republic and Ms Elisabeth Sándor-Szalay, deputy Commissioner for Fundamental Rights of Hungary.