The government is planning an investigation and complaints office for suspected or alleged police assaults. A draft law is currently under review, which will end next week. The fact that the registration office is set up in the Ministry of the Interior already caused criticism during the presentation. The Ombudsman shares the concerns.
According to the draft, the reporting office is to be set up in the Federal Office for the Prevention and Combat of Corruption (BAK). The BAK is fundamentally responsible for preventing, preventing and combating corruption. The authority is part of the Ministry of the Interior.
Skepticism about investigations will remain
The Ombudsman Board, which has the task of examining alleged or suspected maladministration, welcomes the initiative “in principle” in order to be able to better deal with allegations of mistreatment. There are also a few points that would indicate that the Ministry of the Interior wants to implement a “professional investigation agency”.
From the point of view of the Ombudsman Board, the establishment of the position in a department of the Ministry of the Interior “will not or not entirely eliminate the skepticism of people and above all civil society organizations towards an investigation ‘in their own ranks'”.
Rather, there is a fear that the effect that both presumed victims and presumed perpetrators will benefit from an independent investigative authority will not be fully developed, according to the statement, which was signed by Ombudsman Gaby Schwarz.
“Instructions always in writing”
During the presentation at the beginning of March, Amnesty International sharply criticized the plans: The establishment of the reporting office in the BAK was “extremely problematic” since the office was under the authority of the Minister of the Interior and therefore did not meet the criterion of independence.
The government let it be known that “instructions must always be given in writing”. They didn’t want to create an ombudsman’s office, but a body outside the police structures with police powers – arrests, seizures and house searches.
In a report to Parliament in 2015, the Ombudsman Board stated that it would have to be in the interests of the Ministry of the Interior for the authority to be located externally. Because “an investigative authority that was detached from the police would, on the one hand, minimize allegations of ‘sweeping under the rug’ and, on the other hand, protect the police from possibly unjustified allegations”.
Control by Advisory Board
The draft law provides for control by an advisory board whose members are nominated by the Bar Association (ÖRAK), the Medical Association, the University Conference, the Federal Chancellery and the Interior, Foreign and Justice Ministries.
Five of the 13 members should come from non-governmental organizations, with the Justice and Interior Ministries having a joint right of nomination. The chairperson should be appointed at the suggestion of the President of the Constitutional Court (VfGH).
