OSCE Centre in Astana organizes study tour for Ombudsman officials to strengthen institution

BUDAPEST, 25 October 2010 - Six officials from Kazakhstan's Ombudsman Institution and the General Prosecutor's Office arrived in Hungary today as part of a study trip supported by the OSCE Centre in Astana.

The six-day study tour to Hungary and Austria will acquaint the officials with the countries' Ombudsman Institutions, parliamentary representatives and human rights non-governmental organizations.

The OSCE Centre in Astana organized the tour as part of a project to support Kazakhstan's National Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman), which is being implemented in co-operation with the Danish Institute for Human Rights and the Ombudsman Office in Kazakhstan.

The tour agenda includes visits to Ombudsman Institutions in Budapest and Vienna to learn about Austria and Hungary's best practices and experience of parliamentary Ombudsman systems. Participants also will learn about the work of national human rights institutions and explore co-operation possibilities for such institutions in the OSCE region.

"During this intensive study tour, participants will learn about effective practices, enabling them to contribute to a more effective and pro-active fulfilment of their mandate," said Ambassador Alexandre Keltchewsky, Head of the OSCE Centre in Astana. "This will help them improve the overall operation of the Kazakhstan Ombudsman Institution. The study tour provides for an international exchange of experience and best practices that will contribute to Kazakhstan's aspirations to achieve high standards in providing for human rights."

In meetings with their Hungarian and Austrian counterparts, the officials from Kazakhstan will learn about the internal organization of the institutions, their daily operations and procedures for interaction with key partners from state agencies and civil society. The study tour also includes meetings with representatives of Hungary's Justice and Public Administration Ministry and Austria's Interior Ministry, members of parliamentary commissions, national human rights institutions and NGOs.

The participants will also meet with OSCE delegations in Vienna to share information about the project and their experiences from the study tour.