Mediation and alternative dispute settlement are, without doubt, useful, effective and child-friendly methods in both child protection and criminal justice. This method is scarcely used in Hungary since its application is hindered by the absence of training of childcare specialists and legal problems, stated Ombudsman Máté Szabó.

The Deputy head of department for observance of the rights of child, non-discrimination and gender equality Mr. Sergiy Ponomariov took part in the V session of the Forum for minorities, dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.

On 6 December 2012, IOI Secretary General and Ombudsman Peter Kostelka welcomed a delegation of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) of the Republic of Korea at the Austrian Ombudsman Board (AOB) in Vienna.

The Pacific Ombudsman Alliance published its Issue 29 of the Pacific Ombudsman Alliance Network News.

It is a special edition reporting on the fourth Pacific Ombudsman Alliance members’ meeting and associated activities last month in Wellington, New Zealand. 

On 6 December 2012, the Fundamental Rights Agency of the European Union (FRA) published its new report "Access to justice in cases of discrimination in the EU – Steps to further equality". This report examines the process of seeking redress in cases of discrimination.

Barry Fleming, Citizens' Representative for Newfoundland and Labrador, was recently reappointed. He will serve for another term of six years.

On 29 November 2012, Ontario Ombudsman André Marin announced an investigation into the province’s services for adults with developmental disabilities who are in crisis situations, after several desperate families complained their loved ones risked being sent to homeless shelters or jail because there was nowhere to care for them.

On 30 November 2012, Secretary General Peter Kostelka and Martin Kreutner, Chair of the International Transitional Team of the International Anti-Corruption Agency, signed a Memorandum of Understanding.