OSCE/ODIHR Opinion on the Draft Law Amending and Supplementing the Ombudsman Act of
Bulgaria
I.
INTRODUCTION
1.
On 3 February 2017, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
(hereinafter “OSCE/ODIHR”) received a request for a legal review of the Draft Law
Amending and Supplementing the Ombudsman Act of Bulgaria (hereinafter “the Draft
Amendments”) from the Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria.
2.
On 7 February 2017, the OSCE/ODIHR responded to this request, confirming the
Office’s readiness to prepare a legal opinion on the compliance of these Draft
Amendments with OSCE commitments and international human rights standards.
3.
This Opinion was prepared in response to the above request.
II.
SCOPE OF REVIEW
4.
The scope of this Opinion covers only the Draft Amendments, submitted for review,
which will be reviewed within the framework of other provisions of the Ombudsman
Act of Bulgaria, as well as the Rules of Procedure of the Ombudsman Institution
(hereinafter: “Rules of Procedure”), as appropriate and relevant. Thus limited, the
Opinion does not constitute a full and comprehensive review of the entire legal and
institutional framework regulating the protection and promotion of human rights and
fundamental freedoms in Bulgaria.
5.
The Opinion raises key issues and provides indications of areas of concern. In the
interests of conciseness, it focuses more on those provisions that require improvements
rather than on the positive aspects of the Draft Amendments. The ensuing
recommendations are based on international standards, norms and practices related to
national human rights institutions (hereinafter “NHRIs”), as well as relevant OSCE
commitments. The Opinion will also seek to highlight, as appropriate, good practices
from other OSCE participating States in this field. Moreover, in accordance with the
2004 OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality and commitments to
mainstream a gender perspective into OSCE activities, the Opinion’s analysis takes into
account the potentially different impact of the Draft Amendments on women and men.1
6.
This Opinion is based on an unofficial English translation of the Draft Amendments
provided by the Office of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria, which is
attached to this document as an Annex. Errors from translation may result.
7.
In view of the above, the OSCE/ODIHR would like to make mention that this Opinion
does not prevent the OSCE/ODIHR from formulating additional written or oral
recommendations or comments on the respective legal acts or related legislation
pertaining to the legal and institutional framework on the protection and promotion of
human rights in Bulgaria in the future.
1
See OSCE Ministerial Council Decision No. 14/04 “2004 OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality”, 7
December 2004, par 32, available at http://www.osce.org/mc/23295.
3