The Ministry of Justice has been making preparations for the appointment of the Intelligence Ombudsman. The candidates to be interviewed for the position have been selected and the official proposal for the appointment should be finalised in March.
The Ministry of Justice has consulted the Chancellor of Justice to confirm that a caretaker government is able to appoint the Intelligence Ombudsman. Non-political oversight and its credibility are key aspects of the Ombudsman’s office. The Ombudsman is appointed by the government.
The new Intelligence Ombudsman cooperates with the Office of the Data Protection Ombudsman but is independent of it. The Ombudsman supervises the legality of intelligence activities and the realisation of fundamental and human rights in them.
The Act on the Oversight of Intelligence Gathering entered into force in February. The oversight system for intelligence consists of parliamentary oversight and the supervision of legality by the Intelligence Ombudsman.
Parliament passed the bills for the civilian and military intelligence acts yesterday. The acts’ entry into force requires the appropriate arrangement of the supervision of legality, i.e. for the Intelligence Ombudsman to take up his duties.
