73rd E-News Letter of Asian Ombudsman Association September 2023
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PAKISTAN ASIAN OMBUDSMAN ASSOCIATION RE-ELECTS WAFAQI MOHTASIB PAKISTAN AS ITS PRESIDENT.Wafaqi Mohtasib Mr. Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi was re-elected unopposed as President of the Asian Ombudsman Association (AOA) at Kazan (Republic of Tatarstan) on 11 September 2023. The elections to the various positions in the AOA Board of Directors were held at the 17th Meeting of the General Assembly. In addition to the election of Mr. Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi as President of AOA, the General Assembly elected Heads of Ombudsman Institutions in Azerbaijan, Hong Kong and Iran as Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer of the Association respectively. Heads of Ombudsman Institutions in China, Japan, Korea, Tatarstan and Turkiye were elected as members of the Board of Directors. |
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HONG KONG OMBUDSMAN ANNOUNCES FULL INVESTIGATION REPORT ON THE LATEST QUARANTINE AND TESTING REQUIREMENTS FOR FOREIGN DOMESTIC HELPERS.The Ombudsman, Ms Winnie Chiu, announced a full investigation report, namely “Department of Health’s Dissemination of Information of the Latest Quarantine and Testing Requirements for Foreign Domestic Helpers”. |
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KOREA SHARING KOREA’S ANTI-CORRUPTION POLICIES AT THE G20 ANTI-CORRUPTION MINISTERIAL MEETING.The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC, Chairperson Kim Hong-Il) will participate in the G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial Meeting, which is scheduled to be held on August 12 in Kolkata, India. ACRC will engage in discussions on promoting international cooperation in the prevention and fight against corruption and introduce Korea’s anti-corruption policies during the meeting. The G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial Meeting is the second in a series following the initial meeting held in 2020*, which will be convened under the Indian Presidency. |
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MACAU CCAC RECEIVES VISITING DELEGATION FROM SUPREME PEOPLE’S COURT.The Commissioner Against Corruption, Chan Tsz King, met with the President of the Supreme People’s Court, Zhang Jun, who is paying a visit to Macao, where they discussed and exchanged views on the work of integrity building.Chan Tsz King welcomed Zhang Jun who led the delegation of the Supreme People’s Court to Macao. During the meeting, he introduced the personnel training matters and the latest development of the CCAC, including the implementation of the digital case management. |
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PROVINCIAL OMBUDSMAN SINDH – PAKISTAN PROVINCIAL OMBUDSMAN SINDH EMPHASIZES ON INVESTMENT ON GIRLS’ EDUCATION.In a follow-up meeting with Education Department, the Provincial Ombudsman Sindh stated that countries that invest well in girls’ education have lower maternal and infant mortality rate, low rate of HIV /AIDS and better childhood nutrition. He added that there is a need to assess the performance of schools and quality of education through developing a system for reviewing the achievements of the schools by identifying the bench mark for assessment of their performance, and a mechanism for redressal of problems for sustained improvement. |
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THAILAND OMBUDSMAN RECOMMENDS TO APPROVE BUDGET TO SETTLE GOVERNMENT’S DELAYED PAYMENT OF FUNERAL EXPENSES.TThe Ombudsman acknowledged an appeal about Chonburi Provincial Social Development and Human Society Office’s delayed payment of funeral expenses for the elderly according to the traditional life style. The fact states that the number of passing elderlies – during the fiscal year 2020 – 2023 – higher than the budget allocated to the Department of Older Persons. |
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HONG KONG OMBUDSMAN ANNOUNCES A FULL INVESTIGATION REPORT – FAILURE TO HANDLE PROPERLY A COMPLAINT ABOUT DAMAGED AND FADED NATIONAL FLAGS AND REGIONAL FLAGS.The Ombudsman, Ms Winnie Chiu, announced a full investigation report, namely “Failure to handle properly a complaint about damaged and faded national flags and regional flags by Home Affairs Department, Chief Secretary for Administration’s Office and 1823”. |
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MACAU CCAC INVITES ICAC OF HONG KONG TO SEND STAFF TO MACAO FOR PROVIDING TRAINING.The CCAC has been sparing no effort in fighting corruption. In order to further enhance the law enforcement capacity and skills of its investigators, it has specially invited the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) of Hong Kong to send staff to Macao to launch a “continuous training programme on anti-corruption work for the CCAC’s investigators”. The Deputy Commissioner cum Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of the CCAC, Ao Ieong Seong and the Deputy Commissioner and Head of Operations of the ICAC, Yau Shu-chun, among others, attended the inauguration ceremony. |
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AZERBAIJAN THE OMBUDSMAN PARTICIPATED IN AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE IN THE REPUBLIC OF TATARSTAN.The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Sabina Aliyeva, participated in an international conference titled “Effective Practices of the Ombudsmen: National Features and Universal Approaches” held in Kazan, Tatarstan. |
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GEORGIA PUBLIC DEFENDER’S REPRESENTATIVE TAKES PART IN ENOC ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND GENERAL ASSEMBLY.The 27th Annual Conference and General Assembly of the European Network of Ombudspersons for Children (ENOC) was held in Brussels (Belgium) on September 19-21, 2023The conference was devoted to the role of independent children’s rights institutions in the unwavering realization and protection of children’s rights. |
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KOREA ACRC TO CONDUCT A DIRECT SURVEY OF 270,000 OFFICERS AND CITIZENS REGARDING INTEGRITY LEVELS OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS.The 2023 Comprehensive Integrity Assessment (CIA) to which 629 public institutions across the nation are subject began in earnest. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC, Chairperson Kim Hong-Il) announced that in Aug. it began to conduct a survey of approximately 270,000 public servants and citizens (policy customers) who have experienced major public administrative services of public institutions in order to assess the levels of integrity of public institutions. |
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PROVINCIAL OMBUDSMAN SINDH – PAKISTAN OMBUDSMAN DIRECTS EXCISE AND TAXATION DEPARTMENT TO CLEAR BACKLOG AND ISSUE NUMBER PLATES TO REGISTERED VEHICLES EXPEDITIOUSLY.Hearing a suomotu matter regarding non-issuance of number plates to 300,000 vehicles in Sindh, the Ombudsman directed the Excise and Taxation Secretary to streamline the process to facilitate the general public.The Excise Secretary Atif-ur-Rehman briefed the Ombudsman Sindh, highlighting the reasons for the backlog and steps taken to improve the situation. |
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GEORGIA PUBLIC DEFENDER MEETS REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS.On September 25, 2023, the Public Defender of Georgia met with members of the delegation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.Levan Ioseliani introduced the mandate and activities of the Office to the Special Representative for the Eastern Partnership at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Rein Dekkers. |