The European Ombudsman, P. Nikiforos Diamandouros, will visit Slovenia on 26 and 27 January on the latest leg of his tour of the accession countries. During his visit, the Ombudsman will meet with the Slovene Prime Minister, Mr. Anton Rop, and President, Mr. Janez Drnovšek and with the Human Rights Ombudsman, Mr. Matjaž Hanžek. Mr. Diamandouros will also address students at the University of Ljubljana on the topic "The role of the Ombudsman in improving the quality of democracy".

Commenting on the upcoming visit, the Ombudsman said: "We are just over three months away from the Union's most ambitious enlargement to date. I am continuing my tour of the accession countries to encourage citizens to learn about the rights they will enjoy from 1 May and to make full use of these rights."

Programme

On Monday 26 January, the European Ombudsman will have a discussion with his Slovene counterpart, the Human Rights Ombudsman, Mr. Matjaž Hanžek. This should help further develop co-operation between the two offices so as to ensure that citizens' rights in Slovenia are fully protected. Mr. Diamandouros will then meet the President of the Slovene Parliament, Mr. Borut Pahor, and representatives from the Parliament's Deputy Groups. In the afternoon, Mr. Diamandouros will speak on "The European Union: rights, remedies and the European Ombudsman" at a meeting organised by the European Commission's Delegation. He will then address students in the University of Ljubljana's Faculty of Social Sciences.

On Tuesday 27 January, the Ombudsman will meet the President of the Constitutional Court, Ms. Dragica Wedam Lukić. This will be followed by a meeting with the Prime Minister, Mr. Anton Rop and then with the President, Mr. Janez Drnovšek. The official visit will end with a press conference at the Ombudsman's Office.

Background

In the months leading up to the enlargement of the Union, the European Ombudsman will visit the ten accession countries in order to inform citizens of their rights. Slovenia is the fourth country on the Ombudsman's information tour, following his missions to Estonia, Hungary and Malta in 2003.

 

For further information, please call Rosita Agnew, Press Officer, tel. +33 6 78 16 06 19.