Draft:Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights

The Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights is an official exercising parliamentary control over the observance of the constitutional rights and freedoms of man and citizen in Ukraine.

Overview
The Law of Ukraine "On the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights" defines the following as the purpose of parliamentary control:


 * protection of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen as stipulated by the Constitution of Ukraine, laws and international treaties of Ukraine;
 * observance of, and respect for rights and freedoms of man and citizen;
 * prevention of violations of the rights and freedoms of man and citizen or promotion of their renewal;
 * assistance in bringing Ukrainian legislation on rights and freedoms of man and citizen into compliance with the Constitution of Ukraine, as well as international standards in this field;
 * development of international cooperation in the field of protection of rights and freedoms of man and citizen;
 * prevention of any forms of discrimination in relation to a realization of personal rights and freedoms;
 * promotion of legal awareness of the population and protection of confidential personal information.

Secretariat
The Secretariat of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights is established to ensure the proper work of the Commissioner. The structure of the Secretariat, its duties and other issues related to the organization of its work are governed by the Regulations on the Secretariat of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights. The employees of the Secretariat are civil servants.

Advisory Council
The Advisory Board is a Commissioner’s structural body that provides advisory support, scientific research and study of proposals for improving the state of protection of rights and freedoms of man and citizen.

Representatives of the Commissioner
The Commissioner has the right to appoint representatives within the limits of allocated funds approved by the Parliament of Ukraine. The organization of activities and the limits of authority of the representatives of the Commissioner are governed by the Regulation on the Representatives of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, which is approved by the Commissioner.

Activities of the Commissioner
The Commissioner has the right to:


 * make proposals for improving the legislation of Ukraine in the sphere of protection of rights and freedoms of man and citizen;
 * apply to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine with a submission;
 * check the state of compliance with the established rights and freedoms of man and citizen by the relevant state bodies;
 * visit places of detention without prior notification of the time and purpose of a visit;
 * invite officials, citizens of Ukraine, foreigners and stateless persons to receive oral or written explanations from them regarding the circumstances pertinent to a case under consideration;
 * apply to a court for the protection of rights and freedoms of persons who, due to physical condition, age, incapacity or limited legal capacity, are unable to independently protect their rights and freedoms; participate in the judicial review of cases where proceedings have been initiated upon submissions of the Commissioners;
 * transmit to the relevant bodies the acts of response in case of detection of violations of rights and freedoms of man and citizen for these bodies to take measures.

State authorities, local self-government bodies, associations of citizens, enterprises, institutions, organizations regardless of the form of ownership, officials and officials to whom the Commissioner has addressed, are obliged to cooperate and provide the Commissioner with the necessary assistance.

Reforming and activities of the institution under Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets
Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets reformed the institution upon taking up the post and introduced 9 main directions of work. This is the protection of:


 * 1) Human rights in the security and defense sector;
 * 2) Rights of the child;
 * 3) Rights of citizens who suffered as a result of armed aggression against Ukraine;
 * 4) Social and economic rights;
 * 5) Equal rights and freedoms, rights of national minorities, political and religious views;
 * 6) Human rights in places of deprivation of liberty (NPM);;
 * 7) Information rights
 * 8) Rights in the judicial system and the right to fair justice;
 * 9) Work on international cooperation and European integration.

Dmytro Lubinets appointed a representative for each direction. Each one also has expert councils, which include members of the public. In the Secretariat of the Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for human rights, there is a hub of public initiatives. Public organizations can gather at the Ombudsman's Office for public discussions and hold their events.

Work on expanding the regional network of the Human Rights Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine was started. Currently, Representatives of the Commissioner works in Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Kirovohrad, Kyiv, Lviv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sumy, Volyn, Zakarpattia, Zaporizhzhia regions as well as in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Representatives are to be appointed for each region of Ukraine.

In 2022, the institution began to deal with the return of deported and forcibly displaced children from the Russian Federation and the temporarily occupied territories to the territory controlled by the government of Ukraine. The return takes place within the framework of the Bring Kids Back UA Action Plan of the President of Ukraine. In course of the tenure of Dmytro Lubinets, the Secretariat initiated meetings with relatives of prisoners of war and missing defenders of Ukraine. Representatives of the institution participate in the repatriation of prisoners of war.

Membership of the institution in international organizations
The Institution of the Commissioner is a member of international organizations and associations:


 * European Network of Equality Bodies (EQUINET).
 * International Ombudsman Institute (IOI).
 * European Network of National Human Rights Institutions - (ENNHRI).
 * Association of Mediterranean Ombudsmen (AOM).
 * Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI).
 * European Network of Ombudsmen (ENO).

The institution of the Commissioner withdrew, on the initiative of Dmytro Lubinets, from the European Ombudsman Institution after two Ukrainian children, who resided in the territory of the Republic of Austria due to Russian armed aggression, had been taken to the territory of the Russian Federation by a "human rights defender of the European Ombudsman Institution (EIO)".

Partners

 * UNICEF
 * Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
 * Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group
 * Association of Ukrainian Monitors on Human Rights Conduct in Law Enforcement
 * International Organization for Migration
 * International Renaissance Foundation