On behalf of the institution of the Ombudsman, Assistant to the Head of the Center for Human Rights, Dr Simona Drenik Bavdek and Jerneja Turin, adviser at the Center for Human Rights, attended the General Assembly of the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI), which took place on 28 and 29 October 2024 in Brussels

The ENNHRI General Assembly discussed key guidelines for the preparation of ENNHRI's new strategic plan and reviewed the work of nine working groups dealing with areas such as artificial intelligence, the rights of the elderly, economic, social and cultural rights, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the environmental crisis and human rights, migration and asylum, human rights in the economy, legal issues, and communication about human rights.

The participants pointed out the growing populism and intolerance in European countries and the limitation of the civil society space and national institutions for human rights. They also discussed the European Commission's report on the state of the rule of law in the EU, its member states and candidate countries, as the rule of law is one of the priority tasks of the

On the second day of the General Assembly, elections were held for the new leadership of ENNHRI. The representative of the Ombudsman, Dr Simona Drenik Bavdek was also elected to the board. The new management of ENNHRI will begin its three-year term in March 2025. This election is a recognition of the successful work of the Ombudsman in recent years and confirms the expertise and competence of the candidate.

The Slovenian Ombudsman has had the right to vote in ENNHRI, which brings together 49 European national human rights institutions, from January 2021, when it obtained international accreditation with status A according to the Paris Principles. It has been a member of this network since 2014. ENNHRI works to strengthen respect for human rights in Europe and represents the common voice of national institutions at the European level. The network supports national institutions in their work and accreditation processes in the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), while also helping those institutions facing various threats.