Magister Legum - LLM / Corruption is a serious problem which has many negative impacts on sustainable economic development globally. The clandestine nature of corruption makes it difficult to detect. Hence, efforts to combat corruption successfully demand comprehensive anti-corruption legislation, strong powers, as well as special investigative techniques and strategies. An effective anti-corruption regime requires a comprehensive anti-corruption legal framework which not only punishes all forms of corruption but also capacitates anti-corruption institutions. A strong anti-corruption agency is a crucial requirement and a necessary part of a country's anti-corruption strategy. The failure or the success of an anti-corruption agency depends on a variety of factors, such as powers and means to detect, investigate and prosecute corruption and related offences. The lack of trained staff, as well as the lack of adequate material resources, also affects the effectiveness of an anti-corruption agency. The anti-corruption agencies covered by this research are not empowered or resourced sufficiently, which may result in their ineffectiveness. This paper provides a set of recommendations in respect of the powers and strategies needed for a successful anti-corruption agency. / South Africa

This diploma thesis creates a general model of the Ombudsman Institution in Northern Europe and draws a comparison to the Public Defender of Rights in the Czech Republic. This thesis introduces a theoretical framework of this topic including definitions for control of public administration, ombudsman, classification of ombudsmen and historical evolution of this institution in selected countries. Based on the analysis of legislation in Sweden, Finland and Denmark, the general model of the ombudsman institution in Northern Europe is created. The comparison between this general model and the Public Defender of Rights Institution brings recommendations for Czech modifications. These recommendations include anchoring ombudsman institution in the Constitution of the Czech Republic, specifying education requirements of the ombudsman in the Public Defender of Rights Act, or increasing the number of ombudsmen, thereby dividing responsibility among several people specialized in certain areas.

The aim of this thesis is to provide a detailed and comprehensive view of the work of the European Ombudsman, in particular with respect to the way in which his office can help businessmen and economic operators. The thesis shall verify the following three hypotheses: First, the work of the European Ombudsman is not limited to the application of soft law, but also includes legality review related to maladministration of EU bodies and institutions. The second hypothesis claims that out-of-court protection of rights of individuals provided by European Ombudsman may be, under certain circumstances, more effective than judicial protection. Third, the instruments of out-of-court dispute settlement introduced by EU law are so numerous and complicated that they do not enable businessmen and economic operators to find their way in a satisfactory manner. This fact is the reason for a high number of inadmissible complaints addressed to the European Ombudsman and it wastes his resources for investigating individual complaints and launching his own inititative enquiries.

Orientador: Maria Teresa Miceli Kerbauy / Resumo: O novo arcabouço jurídico referente à participação social por meio das ouvidorias públicas e o acesso à informação, impulsionado pelas tecnologias de informação e comunicação, contribui para a introdução dos princípios da comunicação pública. A introdução da opinião do cidadão quanto à avaliação dos serviços públicos, a transparência governamental e a proteção dos direitos dos usuários, com o objetivo de promover a governança pública focada nos direitos constitucionais do cidadão e na participação da gestão pública elementos fundamentais para uma participação democrática na comunidade. Salienta-se ainda que as normas jurídicas têm como base, para a criação de ouvidorias públicas, o intuito de promover a participação da sociedade junto ao poder público, ao corresponder através de canais de comunicação legítimos de diálogo e interação, bem como fomentar a veiculação ampla e transparente de informação, com a função de fazer uso da internet para viabilizar a aproximação e o envolvimento do cidadão. Para tanto, a utilização das técnicas de pesquisa bibliografia e documental, conjuntamente com a análise de conteúdo, possibilitou mensurar o estágio dos aspectos de comunicação, informação e participação da sociedade. Assim, cumpre-se com o objetivo geral é analisar os websites dos Ambulatórios Médicos de Especialidades – AMES quanto à comunicação, acesso e transparência pública na veiculação de informações através das tecnologias digitais. O primeiro objetivo é caracterizar a comunic... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The new legal framework for social participation through public ombudsmen and access to information, driven by information and communication technologies, contributes to the introduction of the principles of public communication. The introduction of citizen opinion on the evaluation of public services, governmental transparency and the protection of users' rights, with the aim of promoting public governance focused on the constitutional rights of citizens and the participation of public management, fundamental elements for democratic participation. in the community. It is also emphasized that the legal norms are based, for the creation of public ombudsmen, with the purpose of promoting the participation of society with the public power, by corresponding through legitimate communication channels of dialogue and interaction, as well as promoting the dissemination wide and transparent information, with the function of making use of the internet to enable the approach and the involvement of the citizen. To this end, the use of bibliographic and documentary research techniques, together with content analysis, made it possible to measure the stage of communication, information and participation of society. Thus, the general objective is to analyze the websites of the Medical Ambulatory of Specialties – MAS for communication, access and public transparency in the transmission of information through digital technologies. The first objective is to characterize the communication, the t... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

Diploma thesis "The Public Defender of Rights as a Gender Equality Body" explores the jurisdiction of the ombudsman in the area of equal treatment and prohibition of discrimination (so-called Equality Body). The main focus of the work is the equality of men and women. The methodology used is theoretical-analytical legal analysis. The work starts with a theoretical analysis of basic terms and concepts relating to equal treatment and prohibition of discrimination. The institution and activities of the ombudsman are also defined in theory. This is followed by a legal analysis of three types. The first one is a procedural analysis of anti-discrimination laws (method of their enactment, past, present and proposed laws). This is followed by an institutional analysis of the Czech Equality Body and the impact of the ombudsman in the area of equal rights. The analytical research is concluded with a substantive legal analysis of selected cases decided by the ombudsman. Methods of feminist legal analysis have been predominantly used for the purposes of the analytical research. A wide area of the subject matter has been explored by use of this examination, which has produced a number of conclusions as well as a complete overview of the activities of the Equality Body in the Czech Republic. Possible changes,...

Legal status of a minor and the Children's Ombudsman in civil proceedings Abstract As the title may indicate, the main author's purpose is to address specific aspects of participation of a minor in civil proceedings, to highlight complications related to procedural (in)capacity of minors and to suggest solutions for the major issues, which the author sees especially in unsatisfactory representation of a minor and in disregard for the child's right to participation. Using concrete examples, it is demonstrated that current law does not need to be modified fundamentally in order to significantly improve position of minors as parties to civil proceedings. On top of that, in pursuit of livening up this frequent topic, the thesis provides a critical analysis of the Children's Ombudsman bill that may give rise to an entirely new office of the Children's Ombudsman, which already exists in almost all EU member states, however, Czech Republic is not one of them. Therefore, a brief comparative study of several European legislations on Children's Ombudsman will be conducted. According to the bill, the potential Children's Ombudsman's authority should apply, inter alia, to some civil proceedings. Namely, the Children's Ombudsman would be entitled to initiate or participate in vast majority of special court proceedings...

This thesis examines the international community's meager response – despite the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) – to the conflict in Tigray. Why was the response minimal, and what could be done to make R2P more efficacious in the future? The R2P framework describes the responsibilities to protect populations around the world against mass atrocity crimes, as stated in Article 5 of the Rome Statute. The study shows that R2P as a framework is flawed, and proposes the creation of an R2P ombudsman to monitor conflicts, focus the international community's attention and assist states that are struggling or failing to protect vulnerable people. The thesis draws upon a theory of political realism but also highlights the sometime significance of shared ethical norms and values.

Apparue au sein de la péninsule ibérique à la sortie des dictatures salazariste et franquiste en vue de faciliter la transition vers la démocratie, la figure de l’ombudsman spécialisé, désormais réceptionnée par la France à travers l’institution du Défenseur des droits, trouve sa raison d’être contemporaine à l’aune de l’insuffisance des mécanismes classiques de garantie des droits fondamentaux. Spécialement aménagé pour la défense des droits et libertés, l’human rights ombudsman se présente, en effet, comme une forme de protection non juridictionnelle s’inscrivant dans une perspective de complémentarité des traditionnelles voies, spécialement juridictionnelles, de recours et, à ce titre, favorise l’émergence d’un système institutionnel de protection complet. Contribuant en pratique à une consolidation indiscutable des droits fondamentaux, la protection proposée par l’ombudsman spécialisé, aussi indispensable soit-elle, n’en demeure pas moins relative. Outre qu’il ne permet pas de combler l’ensemble des insuffisances affectant les autres instances de garantie, l’human rights ombudsman souffre lui-même d’imperfections de nature à préjudicier à l’effectivité de sa mission de sauvegarde des droits de la personne humaine. / The figure of the Human rights ombudsman appeared into the Iberian Peninsula at the demise of Franco and Salazar dictatorships in order to facilitate the transition to democracy. In France this figure finds its contemporary justification due to the insufficiency of the classic mechanisms of guarantee of the fundamental rights. The Human rights ombudsman is specially designed for the protection of fundamental rights, and is indeed a form of non jurisdictional protection in a perspective of complementarity of the traditional ways, especially the court of appeal and, as such, favors the emergence of an institutional system of complete protection. The protection proposed by the Human rights ombudsman contributes to an indisputable consolidation of the fundamental rights however it is essential that it remains relative. Yet, it does not fill all the inadequacies affecting the other instances of guarantee as the Human rights ombudsman suffers from imperfections likely to prejudice the effectiveness of its mission of protection of the person’s human rights.

Šiame ribotos apimties magistro baigiamajame darbe analizuojama žmogaus teisių apsaugos institucijų sistema. Didelis dėmesys skiriamas nacionalinės žmogaus teisių institucijos, veikiančios pagal Jungtinių Tautų Generalinės Asamblėjos patvirtintus Paryžiaus principus, sampratos analizei. Pateikiama užsienio šalių nacionalinių žmogaus teisių institucijų analizė (Airija, Danija, Vokietija, Lenkija). Darbe darytina išvada, kad Lietuvoje turėtų būti steigiama nacionalinė žmogaus teisių institucija, kuri vykdytų žmogaus teisių padėties stebėjimą, didintų visuomenės žinomumą, konsultuoti valstybės valdžios institucijas žmogaus teisių klausimais, bendradarbiautų su tarptautinėmis institucijomis, užtikrintų Lietuvoje tarptautinių žmogaus teisių standartų laikymąsi, nagrinėtų individualius asmenų skundus dėl visų žmogaus teisių pažeidimų tiek viešoje, tiek privačioje srityje. Taip pat darbe analizuojamos klasikinių ir specializuotų ombudsmenų veikla ir reikšmė žmogaus teisių apsaugoje, pateikiant Skandinavijos valstybių ombudsmenų veiklos analizę bei išsamiau analizuojamas Lietuvos Respublikoje įsteigtų Seimo kontrolierių, Lygių galimybių kontrolieriaus bei Vaiko teisių apsaugos kontrolieriaus institucijų statusas. Magistro baigiamajame darbe pateikiama teismo, kaip pagrindinės žmogaus teises ginančios institucijos, veiklos analizė, prieinant prie išvados, jog teismų ir teisėjų nepriklausomumo principas yra viena svarbiausių žmogaus teisių apsaugos garantijų. Lietuvos Respublikos... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / This master’s thesis analyses the system of human rights institutions. Special focus is placed on the concept of national institutions operating in compliance with the Paris Principles approved by the United National General Assembly. An analysis of foreign national human rights institutions (Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Poland) is also offered. The study made leads to the conclusion that a national institution should be established in Lithuania to monitor the human rights situation, improve public awareness, consult state authorities on human rights issues, cooperate with international institutions, ensure compliance with international human rights standards in Lithuania, and examine complaints by individual persons regarding any violation of human rights in both public and private sectors. The thesis also analyzes the activities of traditional and specialized ombudsmen and the role they play in the protection of human rights, based on a detailed overview of the activities of Scandinavian ombudsmen. It addresses in detail the status of the Seimas ombudsmen, the Office of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsman and the Office of the Ombudsman for the Protection of Children’s Rights operating in the Republic of Lithuania. The master’s thesis also analyses the activities of courts of law as the primary institution to protect human rights, concluding that the principle of judicial independence serves as a principal human rights guarantee. The status of the Constitutional Court of the... [to full text]

Recent attacks on media freedom in South Africa, that includes the ruling ANC party’s proposal for statutory regulation of the press, have seen press self-regulation fiercely contested and the ombudsman of the Press Council of South Africa (PCSA) defending the press’ constitutional right to freedom of expression. Extensive arguments have been made by government, the public and the press for other forms of press regulation, such as statutory and independent co-regulation. In addition no accurate, detailed trends arising from complaints the ombudsman has dealt with in recent years, have been freely available on which arguments in such a debate could be based. This research analyses the complaints dealt with by the press ombudsman in recent years in order to evaluate the present self-regulatory system, which is based primarily on the theories of freedom of expression and social responsibility of the press. The analyses involves determining what trends exist in complaints cases that the ombudsman, Joe Thloloe, has dealt with since he took office in August 2007, until August 2011 when a Review of his office was published by the PCSA. The study takes a qualitative approach, with some degree of quantification, and utilises document analysis and qualitative content analysis as data collection methods to analyse 593 cases, with specific focus on government complaints which form 15% of all cases analysed. The findings reflect that the ombudsman’s approach in dealing with complaints was fair, that he displayed intolerance for transgressions and that his rulings were free of any obvious bias. This is evident in, amongst other findings, the very few appeals lodged against his rulings and even less successful appeals. In addition the press often voluntarily corrected their mistakes before prompted by the ombudsman. The findings also dispel some of the ANC’s criticisms that have led to its calls for statutory press regulation, such as the public and government’s acceptance of the self-regulation system, complaints from government largely having involved accuracy and not privacy as the ANC claimed, and that government’s failure to sign the legal waiver often resulted in cases being dismissed. The findings also point to a significant increase in complaints, specifically from government, in the year 2010, which is the year in which the ANC renewed its calls for statutory regulation. This does not necessarily reflect a sudden decline in the quality of journalism but rather indicates that the ruling party differed fundamentally in its philosophical thinking regarding the press, which was perhaps informed by a developmental model of the press rather than the social responsibility model on which the present system is based. In this sense the government sees it fit to interfere or censor the press if it feels the system is not performing. The findings show the ombudsman’s office lacked proper record-keeping from which accurate statistics could be derived, leaving a gap for criticism against the ombudsman. In addition, most often complaints against newspapers involved accuracy and fairness (such as not asking for comment). As is evident in several complaints falling outside the ombudsman’s mandate and the high number of dismissed cases, the findings also point to a lack of awareness or information of the system and of the ombudsman’s roles. In light of the theoretical frameworks that set out how the self-regulation system, which is entrenched in the notion of press freedom, can enhance the cause of press freedom by its ombudsman enforcing a socially responsible Press Code, the findings ultimately lead to the conclusion that the ombudsman’s work has advanced the cause of press freedom in South Africa during the research period. / Thesis (MA (Communication Studies))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013