Zubair Qureshi
Pakistan is an important member of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Ombudsman Association (OICOA) and can work proactively by expanding its mandate from addressing the issues of bad governance to taking up human rights violations, corruption etc and also for international peace and reconciliation.
These views were expressed by President of the OICOA, Seref Malkov prior to the 10th Board of Directors’ (BoD) meeting here at the Serena Hotel on Monday.
Representatives from OIC nations, including Turkiye, Bahrain, Morocco, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, and Bulgaria, participated in the events hosted by Pakistan on Monday.
During a media interaction, President SerefMalkov of the OIC Ombudsman Association expressed the association’s commitment to expanding its membership and collectively combating human rights violations prevalent across Muslim countries.
GadaHameed, the Secretary General of Ombudsman of the Ministry of Interior Bahrain, emphasized that the OICOA has successfully united Muslim countries in the fight against the common issues of maladministration and human rights violations.
Mediator Mohammed Benalolou of the Kingdom of Morocco highlighted the positive impact of OICOA meetings, stating that they contribute to the strengthening of good governance among Muslim nations.
Sabina Aliyeva, Human Rights Commissioner for Azerbaijan, stressed the need to fortify the concept of ombudsmanship. She acknowledged that regular OICOA meetings provide member countries with a platform to exchange ideas for better governance.
Dr. AsifMahmoodJah, General Secretary of OICOA, condemned the brutalities of Israel against Muslim countries, emphasizing the forum’s role in enhancing collaboration among member nations.
Almas Jovindah, Executive Secretary of OICOA, stated that the 10th meeting aims to enhance the capacity of member countries and extend membership to additional Muslim nations, further strengthening the collective efforts for just and rights-focused governance.
MrSeref who is also Chief Ombudsman of Turkiye which is a constitutional office in the country and addresses not only issues of mal-governance but also HR violations and corruption etc during an interview with Pakistan Observer said 95pc of complaints received through e-complaint mode (SMS, email or social media etc) while the rest were written complaints. In 2023, we received around 20,200 written complaints while 130,000 were received electronically.
The maximum time to resolve a complaint is six-month but it can be addressed much more than that time period, he said.
He urged the OIC Forum of Ombudspersons to come up with a clear condemnation of the atrocities by the Israeli forces in Gaza and give a loud and clear message to the world that we stand by our Palestinian brothers and sisters.
Chairperson of the Commission for Protection against Discrimination Bulgaria, Ana Dzhumalieva also gave a background of how the institution worked and addressed the complaints filed by the Bulgarian citizens.
She narrated several initiatives taken by the Bulgarian commission for protection against discrimination for the Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) and said it had done quite a considerable amount of work in that regard.
Indonesia’s Ombudsman MokhammadNajih also briefed the media about his office’s role in providing relief to the citizens against high-handedness and malpractices.
The OIC Ombudsman Association remains dedicated to fostering collaboration, sharing knowledge, and collectively addressing challenges faced by member countries in the pursuit of human rights and good governance.
