A former Taiwanese diplomat was arrested in Kansas City, USA, on charges of violating US federal labor law. The Control Yuan investigation concluded that the underpaying and possibly overworking of housekeepers were clearly against human rights and that obvious administrative mistakes had occurred. 

The Québec Ombudsperson appeared before the National Assembly Committee on Institutions for consultations on a bill respecting independent police investigations. She gave nine recommendations to improve Bill 46 in the interest of the public and the police.

Regional consultation on the new draft by-laws has started in February 2012. Members are invited to thoroughly consider the draft by-laws and to send comments and remarks to the competent Regional Vice-President and the Secretary General until 30 March 2012.

The former Irish Ombudsman Kevin Murphy, who succeeded the first Ombudsman Michael Mills in 1994, passed away on 4 March 2012.

The US Ombudsman Association (USOA)  is currently planning its annual conference scheduled for October and seeks speakers interested in sharing their subject matter expertise relevant to the public sector ombudsman profession.

The Austrian public broadcasting company ORF expands its services for deaf and hearing impaired persons. This includes the popular weekly TV-Show “BürgerAnwalt” in which Ombudspersons Peter Kostelka, Gertrude Brinek and Terezija Stoisits present current cases.

The European network of equality bodies (EQUINET) published a new perspective on Equality Bodies and National Human Rights Institutions. It aims to tighten the links developed between equality bodies and national human rights institutions.

The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) published a performance report on the work of his office in 2011. The FTO could raise the amount which was refunded to Pakistan’s taxpayers and also enhanced the processing time of complaints.