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De Nationale Ombudsman, Netherlands

Institutional

1. October 1st, Marten Oosting stepped down as National Ombudsman, and his successor Roel Fernhout took over. Mr. Fernhout is a former professor of European migration law.
To bid farewell to Marten Oosting, the Lower House of Parliament offered him a symposium on September 27th. Two central questions were addressed: Can the Lower House and the National Ombudsman contribute to the reinforcement of their respective functions? Is it desirable to add a provision in the National Ombudsman Act as a basis for a request of the Lower House to the National Ombudsman for investigation?

At his farewell Marten Oosting was decorated Knight Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau.

On September 28, 1999 the Lower House of Parliament extended the term of office of the Deputy Ombudsman Ms Leig de Bruin by a period of one year, until the 1st of October 2000, for reasons of continuity.

2. In his annual report 1997, the National Ombudsman had asked attention for misunderstanding in society that results from the fact that the word ombudsman is not protected, and also used by other institutions, in particular in the private sector. He referred to legislative measures taken in New Zealand and Denmark. The Lower House shared the concern of the National Ombudsman and asked the cabinet for their view. August 16th, The Minister for the Interior sent the Lower House of Parliament a Memorandum about the protection of the name ombudsman. The Memorandum concludes that there is no reason for protection through legislation.
 

International contacts 

• June 10, deputy ombudsman Leig de Bruin received Mr. José Gregori, Secretary of State for Human Rights of Brazil.
  
  
• July 6, National ombudsman Marten Oosting gave a lecture in Hamburg, Germany, on Government in the Netherlands; characteristics, continuity and change, for the Hamburg Group of the German Section of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences.
  
  
• July 7, Marten Oosting received a delegation of Control Yuan, the institution that performs the ombudsman role in Taiwan.
  
  
• August 10, two staff members of the Cabinet Office, London, were received. They conduct the review of the public sector Ombudsmen in England and were interested to see what comparisons can be drawn between changes in public service in the Netherlands and the response to them, and changes in progress in the UK.
  
  
• August 23-24, Marten Oosting was invited as foreign expert to participate in the seminar on the Function of a Parliamentary Ombudsman in a Democratic State, in Jakarta, Indonesia. The seminar was organised by the National Law Development Agency, Ministry of Justice of the Republic Indonesia, in cooperation with the Centre for International Legal Cooperation of the Netherlands. It was an activity within the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministries of Justice of Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Occasion of the seminar was a bill on Human Rights and on the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnasham) of Indonesia, which at the end of August 1999 was in the third reading. The bill a.o. aims at reinforcing the Komnasham, and to give it the function of ombudsman in the field of human rights, with the required powers of investigation. Under debate is whether these subjects should also be element of aims to amend the Constitution.

Marten Oosting gave three lectures at the seminar. The other participant from abroad was Mr. Murray Allen, Ombudsman of Western Australia, who gave a lecture about his work.

• August 25th, Marten Oosting a.o. met with the Chairperson and three members of the legislation Committee of the Indonesian Parliament, with mr. Marzuki Darusman, Chairman of the Komnasham and first Vice-Chairman of the Golkar party (the party of President Habibie) and with prof. dr. Dimyati Hartono, Vice-Chairman of the PDI P (the party of Presidential candidate Megawati Soekarnoputri).
  
  
• September 9 and 10, Marten Oosting and Ric de Rooij (Director of investigation) participated in the seminar 'Ombudsmen, the Treaty of Amsterdam and European Integration', organized by the European Ombudsman in cooperation with the French Ombudsman, Paris.
  
  
• November 9 and 10, Marten Oosting will participate in the annual 'Administrative Counseling and Ombudsman Conference', in Nagoya, Japan. He has been invited to deliver a keynote speech on November

De Nationale Ombudsman, Netherlands

Institutional

1. October 1st, Marten Oosting stepped down as National Ombudsman, and his successor Roel Fernhout took over. Mr. Fernhout is a former professor of European migration law.
To bid farewell to Marten Oosting, the Lower House of Parliament offered him a symposium on September 27th. Two central questions were addressed: Can the Lower House and the National Ombudsman contribute to the reinforcement of their respective functions? Is it desirable to add a provision in the National Ombudsman Act as a basis for a request of the Lower House to the National Ombudsman for investigation?

At his farewell Marten Oosting was decorated Knight Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau.

On September 28, 1999 the Lower House of Parliament extended the term of office of the Deputy Ombudsman Ms Leig de Bruin by a period of one year, until the 1st of October 2000, for reasons of continuity.

2. In his annual report 1997, the National Ombudsman had asked attention for misunderstanding in society that results from the fact that the word ombudsman is not protected, and also used by other institutions, in particular in the private sector. He referred to legislative measures taken in New Zealand and Denmark. The Lower House shared the concern of the National Ombudsman and asked the cabinet for their view. August 16th, The Minister for the Interior sent the Lower House of Parliament a Memorandum about the protection of the name ombudsman. The Memorandum concludes that there is no reason for protection through legislation.
 

International contacts 

• June 10, deputy ombudsman Leig de Bruin received Mr. JosĂ© Gregori, Secretary of State for Human Rights of Brazil.
  
  
• July 6, National ombudsman Marten Oosting gave a lecture in Hamburg, Germany, on Government in the Netherlands; characteristics, continuity and change, for the Hamburg Group of the German Section of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences.
  
  
• July 7, Marten Oosting received a delegation of Control Yuan, the institution that performs the ombudsman role in Taiwan.
  
  
• August 10, two staff members of the Cabinet Office, London, were received. They conduct the review of the public sector Ombudsmen in England and were interested to see what comparisons can be drawn between changes in public service in the Netherlands and the response to them, and changes in progress in the UK.
  
  
• August 23-24, Marten Oosting was invited as foreign expert to participate in the seminar on the Function of a Parliamentary Ombudsman in a Democratic State, in Jakarta, Indonesia. The seminar was organised by the National Law Development Agency, Ministry of Justice of the Republic Indonesia, in cooperation with the Centre for International Legal Cooperation of the Netherlands. It was an activity within the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministries of Justice of Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Occasion of the seminar was a bill on Human Rights and on the National Commission for Human Rights (Komnasham) of Indonesia, which at the end of August 1999 was in the third reading. The bill a.o. aims at reinforcing the Komnasham, and to give it the function of ombudsman in the field of human rights, with the required powers of investigation. Under debate is whether these subjects should also be element of aims to amend the Constitution.

Marten Oosting gave three lectures at the seminar. The other participant from abroad was Mr. Murray Allen, Ombudsman of Western Australia, who gave a lecture about his work.

• August 25th, Marten Oosting a.o. met with the Chairperson and three members of the legislation Committee of the Indonesian Parliament, with mr. Marzuki Darusman, Chairman of the Komnasham and first Vice-Chairman of the Golkar party (the party of President Habibie) and with prof. dr. Dimyati Hartono, Vice-Chairman of the PDI P (the party of Presidential candidate Megawati Soekarnoputri).
  
  
• September 9 and 10, Marten Oosting and Ric de Rooij (Director of investigation) participated in the seminar 'Ombudsmen, the Treaty of Amsterdam and European Integration', organized by the European Ombudsman in cooperation with the French Ombudsman, Paris.
  
  
• November 9 and 10, Marten Oosting will participate in the annual 'Administrative Counseling and Ombudsman Conference', in Nagoya, Japan. He has been invited to deliver a keynote speech on November 9.