The Ombudsman observed problems and has made recommendations to the Minister for Finance and the Governor of the Bulgarian National Bank. According to the Ombudsman, the rights of the citizens as consumers are often violated by credit institutions.

The EU ombudsman recently expressed his intention to draft a statement of ethical principles for EU civil servants. In order to take full account of best practice in the Member States, he sent out a questionnaire to the national Ombudsman institutions in Europe the results of which can now be found online.

The I.O.I. North American region recently published its newsletter. Vice-President André Marin informs about meetings and conferences, the "Sharpening Your Teeth"-training and his investigations.

On 3 March 2011, Mr Juris Jansons was elected to the post of Ombudsman by the Latvian Parliament.

Karen Andreasyan was elected Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia on 2 March 2011. He was nominated last week by the Armenian parliament's majority.

Monsieur Jean-Paul Delevoye, Médiateur de la République, a rendu public le rapport de la mission qu'il avait constituée sur la maltraitance financière à l'égard des personnes âgées dans les établissements sanitaires, sociaux et médico-sociaux.

On 16 February 2011, all 69 members of Parliament voted in favour of a motion by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to re-appoint Chief Justice Emeritus Joseph Said Pullicino as Ombudsman.

El Defensor del Pueblo de Navarra, Francisco Javier Enériz Olaechea, ha formulado a la Consejera de Salud, María Kutz Peironcely, una sugerencia para que no se excluya de los tratamientos de fecundación in vitro a las mujeres que, reuniendo los demás requisitos exigibles, ya son madres de un hijo.