In Ireland, while the Office of the Ombudsman has limited powers in this area, the office undertakes outreach as it has an important role in trying to educate people about the rights of migrants and ensuring they are treated with dignity and respect when accessing the services of the state. It does so through an outreach programme involving collaboration with NGOs and visits to migrant centres and direct provision centres (accommodation housing international protection applicants), and engaging with public participation networks and the diplomatic corps. The purpose of this outreach is to make NGOs and individuals aware that the services of the Office of the Ombudsman are available not just to citizens but to all who live in Ireland irrespective of their status. In terms of engaging with CSOs there was interest from participants in how this could be further developed and how ombudsperson institutions could develop stronger links with civil society. At the same time, risks were recognised in relation to moving beyond “arm’s length” relationships with such groups. There was also variation in the approaches and value which particular CSO groups could add to the ombudsperson’s work. The role of intermediaries, both formal organisations but also community organisations and leaders, is important and these could play a key role in reaching particularly vulnerable individuals and groups. Reaching out to international bodies could also be helpful to create pressure from above as well as through working with organisations on the ground within a jurisdiction. Own-initiative investigations In Serbia, the use of own initiative investigations is of critical importance in sectors like security, intelligence, and the armed forces and where there are vulnerable groups such as asylum seekers and refugees – these are all areas where there is under- reporting of complaints. Both media reports and anonymous complaints can provide prompts for own initiative action. Own initiative powers also allow the ombudsperson to alleviate some of the issues that arise from Serbia being a transit country. Even if an individual has moved on, the investigation of issues raised can continue. In Belgium, the office’s focus is on individual cases but systemic action can be taken in the following situations: where there are large numbers of complaints about a particular area or issue; where issues recur frequently without being resolved; and where there is evidence of a very severe breach of human rights even where it may not be widespread.
Engagement with civil society The Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman’s outreach and engagement function is relatively new, having only been operating for the last few years. This has involved significant engagement with CSOs in the charity sector. Traditionally, in Denmark, the office has not had a practice of conducting outreach and this is an area where the organisation could consider doing more, building on the developments being led by the Dutch National Ombudsman and the UK’s Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman. The current presumption is that, outwith monitoring work, people will find the ombudsperson institution. In relation to Serbia, there used to be good cooperation with civil society in terms of both the ombudsperson’s NPM mandate and the national rapporteur on human trafficking mandate. In recent years, as a result of a change of ombudsperson, there has been a lack of proactivity in relation to human rights issues and some prominent civil society organisations are now refusing to work with the ombudsperson. The relationship with CSOs has become more tense and some of the advisory panels and institutional mechanisms for cooperation no longer exist. The Greek Ombudsman cooperates not only with local NGOs involved in helping asylum seekers and refugees, but also international organisations and NGOs, such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), EU bodies such as Frontext, and Council of Europe bodies. This allows the office to be more visible. The office also engages in groups working with asylum seekers and refugees that meet every one to two months. The organisation also meets regularly with consular bodies from countries where high numbers of migrants are coming to Greece, which allows sharing of information and feedback. In terms of accessibility and publicity, the Belgian Federal Ombudsman holds a monthly meeting with Myria (the federal agency responsible for protecting the fundamental rights of foreign nationals in Belgium). The meeting is attended by CSOs working to support and protect asylum seekers and refugees. There is also close collaboration with other ombudsperson institutions and stakeholders. Information is provided to individuals about the office through a range of approaches including an Ombuds Tour (focusing on the public in 2023 and social workers in 2024), working with experts by experience in relation to poverty, providing plain language information and FAQs on its website, and having an easy to read brochure and short video clip.
56 | Access to Public Services and Access to Justice for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Northern Ireland
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