Assistance to Commissions 3 and 4 of the Ombudsmen Board

Research Topic & Roadmap

Since 1 July 2021, the Ombudsman Board has been responsible for the protection and promotion of human rights in Austria. In essence, it is about identifying risk factors for human rights violations at an early stage and eliminating them.

Throughout Austria, the Ombudsman Board has established one federal and six provincial commissions. These commissions are oriented towards the focal points of the examination specified by the Ombudsman Board. They report to the Ombudsman Board on any visits and inspections, make assessments of human rights violations and recommend measures to prevent them. The Office of the Commissions 3 and 4 is located under the programme line “Human Dignity and Public Security” at the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Fundamental and Human Rights (LBI-GMR).

Research Focus

The commissions of the Ombudsman Board are a central component of the national preventive mechanism against human rights violations. They have unrestricted access to all places of deprivation of liberty as well as facilities for persons with disabilities and carry out monitoring visits there nationwide. They also observe all measures of command and coercive power by administrative authorities. For example, command and coercive power, such as during deportations, demonstrations and police operations, are scrutinised. The commission’s report the results of their examination to the Ombudsman Board. They can make proposals for findings of maladministration, recommendations and suggestions for measures of official supervision.

Research Method

In addition to the preventive monitoring carried out by the commissions, anyone can also turn to the Ombudsman Board on their own initiative with human rights complaints.

• Project Title: Support for Commissions 3 and 4 of the Ombudsman Board (NPM)
• Project Responsibility: Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Fundamental and Human Rights
• Project Leader LBI-GMR: Caroline Paar– Commission 3 and 4 of the Ombudsman Board
• Project Duration: Commission 3: 1 June 2021 to 30 June 2027/ Commission 4: 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2024
• Funding Sources: Commissions 3 and 4 of the Ombudsman Board
• Programme Line LBI-GMR: Human Dignity and Public Safety