The new ombudsman is convinced that an ombudsman should be "a terrible pain in the neck", particularly for the state. "I understand my new office as a protection of citizens against their own state," said Matjaz Hanzek after being appointed Slovenia's new ombudsman in parliament earlier in the day.

Hanzek announced his plan to establish closer links with NGOs, and to be in touch with the media on a daily basis in order to "send threats to those state institutions which have failed to do what they should have".

The new ombudsman will attend a rally which will begin shortly in the centre of the Slovene capital in support of illegal immigrants and against intolerance. "I'd go there whether an ombudsman or not," he said.

Commenting on the issue of illegal immigrants in Slovenia, Hanzek said the current problems are partly a result of the government's failure to do as much as it should have, and the fact that the government became aware of the issue all too late. "I'm not saying there would be no issue of illegal immigrants if the state had began dealing with it earlier, but the problem would not be as acute or painful ... as it is", Hanzek said.