BackIn 2009 the I.O.I. Board of Directors gave the Executive Committee a mandate to explore opportunities for an enhanced cooperation with the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights (ICC). In 2010 I.O.I. Secretary General Peter Kostelka met with UN High Commissioner Pillay to clarify the framework for future cooperation and was invited by the ICC Bureau to participate in its Edinburgh meeting in October 2010. Talks with ICC Chair Rosslyn Noonan during the Edinburgh meeting have led to a joint agenda item during the 24th General Meeting of the ICC from 17 to 19 May 2011 in Geneva.
I.O.I. Secretary General Peter Kostelka represented the I.O.I. at this meeting and outlined in his speech how ombudsman institutions are nowadays dealing with human rights violations on a daily basis, as these violations constitute the worst possible form of maladministration. In this respect he once again put particular emphasis on the crucial role ombudsman institutions play in the follow-up process of the UPR review of the United Nations.
Before the meeting ICC Chair Rosslyn Noonan informed members that she will not be able to complete her term as ICC Chairperson. Dr. Muhyieddeen Touq, Commissioner General of the National Commission for Human Rights in Jordan, will replace Ms Noonan as ICC Chair in due course. Secretary General Kostelka therefore took the opportunity of the ICC Meeting in Geneva, to meet with Dr. Touq on an informal basis.
