The research report "Electronic petitions and modernisation of petitioning systems in Europe" based on a project carried out on behalf of the Petitions Committee of the German Bundestag by TAB (Office of Technology Assessment at the German Bundestag) was recently published.

With the financial support of the IOI the Association of Mediterranean Ombudsman (AOM) held a training session on the topic “The Powers of the Mediator and the Ombudsman in the Defense of Human Rights”.

The General Secretariat is pleased to announce that a new training session will be held from 16 to 19 September 2012 in Vienna, Austria. This time the training session for investigative ombudsman staff will be conducted by renowned trainers in cooperation with the Edinburgh-based Queen Margaret University (QMU) which has an excellent reputation as a centre for ombudsman and complaint handling practice

Polish Human Rights Defender Prof. Irena Lipowicz visited Jordan in December 2011 and deepened the bilateral relations with the Jordan Ombudsman institution by signing a Memorandum of Understanding.

Several IOI member institutions that act as a National Human Rights Institutions (NHRI) based on the Paris Principles will participate in the 25^th annual meeting of the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC) that will take place in Geneva, Switzerland.

Fiona Crean, Ombudsman of Toronto, Canada, submitted the Annual Report on the year 2011 to the Mayor and the City Council

The new Act, concerning the organisation of the Office of the Commissioner as well as new investigation methods entered into force on 1^st January 2012

The Office of The Ombudsman, Hong Kong and the Commission against Corruption, Macao are pleased to announce that, with subsidy from the I.O.I., a regional training programme on complaint management will be organised in Hong Kong and Macao between 21 and 25 May 2012 for the Asia and Australasia & Pacific Regions.