Speakers
We are inviting a number of distinguished speakers from around the world to update us on current developments. We will be posting speakers’
biographies and abstracts on this page as the information becomes available.
If you have a particular speaker who you would like to see included in the programme please email woc@confer.co.nz
Mariana Sotto Maior
Mariana Sotto Maior is since September 2010 the Head of the Cabinet to the Portuguese Ombudsman (the National
Human Rights Institution accredited with A Status by the ICC). Before she was Deputy Director of the General
Directorate of the Policy of Justice of the Ministry of Justice (2010), Deputy Director of the General Directorate of
Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Interior, responsible for the international relations, within the Ministry of Interior
(2007-2009), and Deputy Director of the Bureau for International, European Affairs and Cooperation of the Ministry
of Justice. She had been working in the area of Human Rights, International Law and European Union Law for the
past 16 years.
Jane Martin
Dr Jane Martin was appointed to the post of Local Government Ombudsman and Vice-chair of the Commission for
Local Administration in England in January 2010. Since November 2010 she has been Acting Chair following the
retirement of Sir Tony Redmond. She has extensive knowledge and experience of public service delivery. At the
University of Birmingham and Warwick Business School she conducted research on public management and
governance in the fields of education, health and local government. She has worked in local authorities across
England as a consultant for the Improvement and Development Agency for Local Government (IDeA) and was the
first Executive Director of the Centre for Public Scrutiny. Prior to joining LGO she was Deputy Chief Executive at
the Local Better Regulation Office and a Non-executive Director of Coventry Primary Care Trust.
Dulcie McCallum
Dulcie McCallum was the first female Ombudsman for the Province of British Columbia. During her seven year term as Ombudsman, Ms. McCallum
completed over 100,000 inquiries and investigations. Of the over 15 public reports, many involved vulnerable populations most notably: Listening a
systemic investigation into BC’s largest psychiatric facility, Jericho Hill School abuse of deaf children and Fair Schools. For the three years following
her term as Ombudsman, Ms. McCallum completed a report The Need to Know, a systemic administrative review of physical and sexual abuse at the
Woodlands School, a former institution for persons with intellectual and physical disabilities.
Subsequently, Ms. McCallum worked over a period of four years in New York as one of two official NGO members of Canada’s delegation to the Ad-
Hoc Committee of the United Nations to draft and complete the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. Ms. McCallum was a special
advisor to the delegation as a constitutional human rights legal expert for people with intellectual disabilities for over 20 years. Her work included preparing a report on supported
decision, a precursor to Article 12, and acting as counsel in major disability court cases including Re Dawson [access to medical treatment], and Re Eve [sterilization] in the
Supreme Court of Canada.
In 2011 Ms. McCallum was given an award from the Canadian Association for Community Living for her contribution to the UNCPRD In Nova Scotia Ms. McCallum’s work around
the UNCRPD continues. Since ratification by Canada, Ms McCallum has been invited to conduct Forums in British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia focussing on
supported decision making and employment under the UNCRPD. She is Vice-President of NS Association for Community Living and was elected to the national board of the
Canadian Association for Community Living in 2011. She sits on CACL committees: UNCRPD Oversight and Compliance, Supported Decision-Making and National Legal Strategy
Committees.
During her work at the UN, Ms. McCallum moved to Halifax, Nova Scotia where she is presently the first female Nova Scotia Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy
Review Officer [Commissioner] appointed on February 5, 2007.
David McGee
David McGee was appointed an Ombudsman in November 2007.
He was previously Clerk of the House of Representatives, an office he had held since 1985. In that capacity he was the principal advisor to the
Speaker and Members of Parliament on parliamentary law and practice.
He was a member of the committee which reported on New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements and devised the legislation that became law as the
Constitution Act 1986. He was also a member of the panel which arranged and oversaw the public information campaigns organised for the electoral
referendums held in 1992 and 1993. As Clerk of the House he determined the final form of questions to be put to voters by way of citizens initiated
referenda.
He is the author of Parliamentary Practice in New Zealand, now in its third edition, the authoritative guide to parliamentary procedure in New Zealand.
He has also written extensively in the area of parliamentary and constitutional studies.
He was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in 1977 and appointed a Queen’s Counsel in 2000. In the Queen’s Birthday Honours of 2002 he was made a Companion of the New
Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM).
Professor John McMillan
Professor John McMillan AO was appointed Australian Information Commissioner in November 2010, to head a new office responsible for freedom of
information, privacy protection and advice to government on information management policy.
John was formerly the Commonwealth Ombudsman from 2003–2010; and the Integrity Commissioner (Acting) for the Australian Commission for Law
Enforcement Integrity in 2007. He is an Emeritus Professor of the Australian National University. He is co-author of a leading student text, Control of
Government Action.
John was a founding member in the 1970s of the Freedom of Information Campaign Committee, which led the public campaign for enactment of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982. He is a National Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration Australia; a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Law;
and former President of the Australian Institute of Administrative Law.
Mr. VENKATESH NAYAK
Mr. VENKATESH NAYAK is Programme Coordinator, Access to Information Programme, at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, an
international, independent, non-profit and non-partisan NGO headquartered in New Delhi, India. Mr. Nayak advocates for the adoption of access to
information laws in Commonwealth countries. At the international level, he has conducted awareness raising workshops on the right to information for
Members of Parliament in Africa and the Caribbean region. In 2006 he chaired a session on the right to information at a workshop for MPs organised
by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association. He has provided technical advice to the Government of Uganda for implementing an effective
access to information regime. The World Bank commissioned him to undertake scoping studies and provide technical advice for implementing
information access laws in Bangladesh and Nepal. He has recently submitted a comprehensive paper on crafting an access to information regime in
the Fiji Islands at the request of her Constitution Commission.
In India he was closely associated with the lobbying of MPs and the public education efforts surrounding the process of enacting the Right to
Information Act (RTI Act). He has also designed and conducted training programmes for senior government officers across the country for
implementing the Right to Information Act. As a member of the Task Force set up by the Government he developed guidelines for implementing the proactive disclosure provisions
of the RTI Act. He is a Co-Convenor of the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information in India. He is currently engaged in strategic litigation to expand the boundaries of
transparency with particular emphasis on the criminal justice system. His submissions to the Indian Parliament have contributed to the strengthening of draft legislation on access
to information, whistleblower protection and anti-corruption agencies.
Mr. Nayak completed his Masters and M.Phil degrees from the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). He was also a doctoral research fellow at JNU.
Sir Geoffrey Palmer
Sir Geoffrey Palmer was admitted as a solicitor in 1965 and to the bar in 1966 and practised in Wellington with O'Flynn and Christie before taking up a
British Commonwealth Fellowship to the University of Chicago where he graduated JD cum laude in 1967. He was a law professor in the United States
and New Zealand for some years before entering politics as the MP for Christchurch Central in 1979. In Parliament he held the offices of Attorney-
General, Minister of Justice, Leader of the House, Deputy Prime Minister and Prime Minister.
On leaving politics in 1990 he was a law professor at the University of Iowa and the Victoria University of Wellington. In 1994 he became a Foundation
Partner of Chen & Palmer Public Law Specialists where he remained until 2005 when he was appointed President of the Law Commission. He has
appeared extensively in the superior courts including the Privy Council.
He is a member of the Her Majesty's Privy Council, was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1991 and was made an honorary companion to the
Order of Australia the same year. He was made a member of the Global 500 Roll of Honour by the United Nations Environment Programme. He holds three honorary doctorates.
He was elected a member of the American Law Institute and is a Member of the American Association of International Law.
Since leaving the Law Commission at the end of 2010 he has been chairing the Panel of Inquiry on the 31 May 2010 Flotilla Incident for the United Nations in New York. For eight
years he was New Zealand's Commissioner to the International Whaling Commission. Sir Geoffrey is a Distinguished Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Public Law and the Law
Faculty at the Victoria University of Wellington.
Lyn Provost
Lyn Provost took up the position of Controller and Auditor-General on 5 October 2009.
She joined the Audit Office as an Assistant Auditor in 1978 before a stint in the United Kingdom and South Africa.
Lyn came back to the Office in 1985 as the Director of Professional Services, and became an Assistant Auditor-General in 1990.
Lyn's career included senior roles within the State Services Commission and Archives New Zealand, before eight years as the Deputy Commissioner of
Police (Resource Management).
As Controller and Auditor-General, Lyn's principal functions and duties are set out in the Public Audit Act 2001. In summary, they are to:
• ensure that the office carries out its obligation to conduct audits of public sector bodies, and report to Parliament on the results of the audits; and
• ensure the efficient, effective, and economical management of the Office of the Auditor-General.
Lyn is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand (ICANZ). She is on the governing board of INTOSAI and is Secretary-General of PASAI.
Professor Linda Reif, Faculty of Law, University of Alberta
Professor Linda Reif obtained her law degree from the University of Windsor (1982) and her master’s degree in law from the University of Cambridge
(1985). A member of the Faculty of Law, University of Alberta, she is the CN Professor of International Trade and from 2009 to 2011 she served as
Associate Dean (Graduate Studies). She was I.O.I. Editor of Publications from 1989 to 2009.
Professor Reif has published widely on the ombudsman and national human rights institutions. Her publications include her 2004 book The
Ombudsman, Good Governance and the International Human Rights System (Martinus Nijhoff Pub., 2004), and articles and book chapters, including
in the Harvard Human Rights Journal, Boston College Third World Law Journal, Alberta Law Review, Asia Pacific Law Review, and I.O.I. publications.
Professor Reif has provided consulting services and academic support on NHRIs to the Commonwealth Secretariat. In 1991 she was Director of Legal
Services, Office of the Alberta Ombudsman.
Rafael Ribó, Síndic de Greuges de Catalunya
Born in Barcelona on May 10 1945, Ribó was elected twice Síndic de Greuges de Catalunya. First, he was elected on June 17 2004, and took office
on July 1 of the same year. He was re-elected on February 10 2010 and took office on March 1 2010.
On June 2009, in Stockholm, Ribó was appointed President of the Board of Directors of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI), where he had
been a member since 2006. As a President and Director for the European Region, Ribó is also a full member of IOI worldwide Board of Directors.
With degrees in Economics and Law from the University of Barcelona, he holds a PhD in Political, Economic and Business Science from the same
University and is Master of Arts in Political Science from The New School for Social Research of New York.
He is a university lecturer of Political and Administration Science and since 1970 has taught at the University of Barcelona, the Autonomous University
of Barcelona, Pompeu Fabra University, the American College and the New School for Social Research.
He began his political activity in 1963 as a member of the faculty senate for the Democratic Students’ Union of the University of Barcelona. At the beginning of the 1970’s, he
formed part of the Assembly of Intellectuals of Catalonia, was one of the drivers behind the campaign to restore the Catalan language’s official status, and served as secretary of
the liaison committee for the Catalonia Assembly.
In 1977, he participated in the Catalan Culture Congress as coordinator of the institutional area, and headed up the campaign for the self-government institutions within the
Congress itself.
Elected Secretary General of the PSUC (Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia) in 1986, he has served as MP in the Catalan Parliament until the end of the sixth legislature (1980-
2001), MP in the Spanish Parliament (1993-1995) and president of the Iniciativa per Catalunya political party (1987-2000).
He has been chairman of the board of trustees of the Ulls del Món (Eyes of the World) Foundation since 2001.
He has published various books, chapters and studies such as Catalonia’s Political System, The National Question and the Catalan Nations, Handbook of Political Science,
Citizenship and Nationalism and Special Regions and European Union Treaty Reform.
His doctoral thesis was entitled: “The concept of political culture”.
He regularly collaborates with Catalan, Spanish and international newspapers and magazines.
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Alasdair Roberts
Alasdair Roberts is the Jerome L. Rappaport Professor of Law and Public Policy at Suffolk University Law School, and Faculty Director of the
Rappaport Center for Law and Public Service. Previously, he was a professor of public administration in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public
Affairs at Syracuse University, and an associate professor of public administration at Queen's University, Canada.
Professor Roberts writes extensively on problems of governance, law and public policy. His next book, America’s First Great Depression, will be
published by Cornell University Press in 2012. His last book, The Logic of Discipline: Global Capitalism and the Architecture of Government, was
published by Oxford University Press in March 2010. In 2011 it received an honorable mention from the Best Book award committee of the American
Society of Public Administration’s Section on Public Administration Research.
A previous book, The Collapse of Fortress Bush: The Crisis of Authority in American Government, was published by New York University Press in
2008. Kirkus Reviews called it "a trenchant analysis of the last eight years of American political history." An earlier book, Blacked Out: Government
Secrecy in the Information Age, received the 2006 Brownlow Book Award from the US National Academy of Public Administration, and three other academic book awards.
Professor Roberts has also won several awards for his journal articles.
Professor Roberts was elected as a fellow of the US National Academy of Public Administration in 2007. He was appointed as a public member of the Administrative Conference of
the United States in 2010. He is also an Honorary Senior Research Fellow of the School of Public Policy, University College London.
He is co-editor of the journal Governance and serves on the editorial boards of several other journals in the field of public administration.
At Suffolk Law, Professor Roberts teaches Administrative Law and Law and Public Policy.
Professor Roberts received a JD from the University of Toronto in 1984, a Master's degree in Public Policy from Harvard University in 1986, and a Ph.D. in Public Policy from
Harvard University in 1994. His web address is www.aroberts.us.
David Rutherford
Chief Human Rights Commissioner
David Rutherford took up the five-year appointment as Chief Human Rights Commissioner on September 1, 2011.
Before taking up the position Mr Rutherford was the managing director of Special Olympics Asia Pacific and prior to that he was chief executive of the
New Zealand Rugby Union. He has worked as a sport and commercial lawyer and lecturer in sports law with a particular focus on human rights law.
He is a passionate advocate for sport and promoting the rights of people with disabilities, and also has strong community links with young people and
education.
Mr Rutherford approached the Commission as spokesperson for a group of parents following incidents of serious bullying at Hutt Valley High School.
In response to the complaint, the Commission, alongside the Office of the Children’s Commissioner, examined the human rights and systemic issues
surrounding bullying in schools. The analysis, which found that school pupils who are the victims of violence, abuse and bullying lack access to the
same rights as the bullies was later confirmed by a report from the Office of the Ombudsmen about serious assaults at the school.
Responsibilities
•
Chairs the Commission.
•
Acts jointly with the EEO, Race Relations and Disability Commissioners in their areas of designated functions.
•
Has overall responsibility for the Commission’s organisational health and capability and the activities undertaken in the performance of the Commission’s functions, and for
the administration of the Office of Human Rights Proceedings.
Coordinating Commissioner
•
Human Rights Environment
PHOEBE SANGETARI
Ms Phoebe Sangetari was appointed an Ombudsman (one of 3 Ombudsmen) in Papua New Guinea on 15th November 2007 for a 6 year term. She
holds a Bachelor of Laws Degree from the University of Papua New Guinea and Masters of Laws from the Australia National University (ANU). Prior
to her appointment as an Ombudsman, Ms Sangetari served in various capacities with various Government Agencies in Papua New Guinea and has
wide experience in the Public Service in Papua New Guinea.
She served as Legal Officer then Senior Legal Officer with the Ombudsman Commission of Papua New Guinea from May 1984 to October 1993;
Legal Officer with Department of Environment & Conservation from November 1993 to1999 ; Deputy Registrar with the Department of Mining from
2000 to 2001; Assistant Secretary – Legal & Contracts with Department of Personnel Management from 2002 to 2003; Director Senior Executive
Services with Department of Personnel Management from 2004 to September 2006; and Deputy State Solicitor (International Law & Human Rights)
with Department of Justice & Attorney General (from September 2006 to November 2007)
Ms Sangetari is the second female Ombudsman in the history of the Ombudsman Commission of Papua New Guinea and she is a Member of the
Papua New Guinea Law Society.
HOWARD SAPERS
On March 5, 2009 Mr. Howard Sapers was reappointed as Correctional Investigator of Canada, having first been appointed on February 24, 2004 for a
five-year term.
Previously, Mr. Sapers was the Vice-Chairperson for the Prairie Region of the National Parole Board of Canada. From 2001-2003, he held the position
of Director of the Crime Prevention Investment Fund at the National Crime Prevention Centre. In 1993 he was elected to the Alberta Legislative
Assembly and represented Edmonton Glenora until 2001. He served as health critic, treasury critic, House Leader and Leader of the Official
Opposition. He was active on a number of committees including the Standing Committee on Legislative Officers, the Public Accounts Committee and
the Select Committee on Privacy and Access to Information. Mr. Sapers was the Executive Director of the John Howard Society of Alberta in Grande
Prairie from 1982 to 1983, and then moved to Edmonton where he served as the Society's Provincial Executive Director until 1993. Mr. Sapers has
taught courses in Criminology, Correctional Law and Communications in the Correctional Services Program at Grant MacEwan University in
Edmonton.
Mr. Sapers obtained a B.A. in Criminology from Simon Fraser University in 1979. He has a strong background in corrections, rehabilitation of offenders and crime-prevention
gained through employment and community service. Volunteer positions held have included: Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 1999 Biannual Congress on Criminal
Justice, President of the Canadian Criminal Justice Association, President of the Alberta Criminal Justice Association and Vice-Chair of the City of Edmonton Safer Cities Advisory
Committee. He is currently an Advisor to the YOUCAN Certificate Program at Ottawa’s St. Paul University, Chairman of the DND/Canadian Forces Ombudsman Advisory
Committee, and a Member of the Board of Directors of the Forum of Canadian Ombudsmen.
Mr. Sapers has received significant recognition for his contribution to the community-at-large and for his pursuit of social justice, including: the Canada 125 Medal; the Weiler Award
for Social Development; and the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal. In 2010, Mr. Sapers was recognized as a Champion of Mental Health by the Canadian Alliance on
Mental Illness and Mental Health and he received the President’s Commendation from the Canadian Psychiatric Association.
Mr. Sapers has authored several publications, including articles regarding the role of the Ombudsman, human rights and corrections, and the prevention of crime.
Associate Professor Snell
Associate Professor Snell is regarded as an international authority on Freedom of Information law and one of Australia’s leading law teachers. He was
awarded the Lexis Nexis Australasian Law Teachers Association Law Teacher of the Year Award in 2009. He has a proven track record in delivering
on consultancies and has a vast network of researchers, experts, government officials and information specialists that he can tap into for advice,
insights and feedback.
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Dr David Solomon
Dr David Solomon AM was appointed for a five-year term as Integrity Commissioner from 1 July 2009.
He was Chair of the Independent Panel appointed by the Bligh Government to review Queensland’s Freedom of Information laws in 2007-8.
He retired from full-time journalism at the end of 2005. He spent most of his career in Canberra, writing about politics and the law, for such newspapers
as The Australian, the Financial Review and The Canberra Times. He moved to Brisbane in 1992 to Chair the Electoral and Administrative Review
Commission, and, when that Commission was wound up, stayed and worked for the Courier-Mail as a Contributing Editor.
He has degrees from the Australian National University in Arts and Law, and a Doctorate of Letters. He has written almost a dozen books on
parliament, politics, constitutional law and the High Court.
Karen Stevens
Karen was appointed Insurance & Savings Ombudsman ("ISO") in May 1998. She graduated with BA and LLB degrees from Victoria University and
was admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand in 1987. Karen practised as a lawyer in the area of civil litigation and
alternative dispute resolution, before coming to complaints resolution work as the ISO. Since her appointment as ISO, Karen has qualified as an
Associate of The Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand, a Member of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) and a Fellow of the New
Zealand Institute of Management. In 2009, she also completed a Master of Laws degree from La Trobe University in Melbourne, majoring in conflict
resolution.
Anita Stuhmcke Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, University of Technology, Sydney
Professor Anita Stuhmcke is a member of the Faculty of Law at the University of Technology, Sydney. For over a decade her research has explored the
institution of the ombudsman. Anita’s research into this institution includes published research with respect to: public law ombudsmen, private industry
ombudsmen, organisational ombudsmen and human rights ombudsmen. The main aim of Anita’s research is to examine the adaptability of the
institution with the objective of facilitating the effective application of ombudsmen throughout the wider legal system.
Shoaib Suddle HSt HI QPM PPM
Federal Tax Ombudsman Pakistan
Dr. Shoaib Suddle became the Federal Tax Ombudsman of Pakistan on 3 June 2009. He has brought a paradigm shift in the way the Office of Federal
Tax Ombudsman operates. In April 2001, he was unanimously elected as the Chair of the Forum of Pakistan Ombudsman. He has played an active role
in reforming the Ombudsman’s practice in Pakistan. He has recently entered into technical assistance projects with the World Bank and the UNDP. The
projects aim at building the much-needed capacity of the Ombudsman staff in Pakistan.
Prior to this, Dr. Suddle worked for over 35 years in law enforcement. He began his police career in 1973 and has held several key positions both at
operational and strategic levels. He is regarded as a leading justice sector reform specialist in South Asia. He regularly speaks at national and
international conferences, and has extensively written on rule of law, public policy and police and justice sector reform. He is a visiting criminal justice
expert at the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute on Crime Prevention and Treatment of Offenders, Tokyo; Advisor Turkish National Police; and a
resource person with several national and international organizations, including United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Vienna. He is also International Director of Asia Crime
Prevention Foundation, Tokyo. He headed the Intelligence Bureau (Pakistan’s premiere civilian intelligence agency) in 2008-09, following his eventful stints as Inspector General
Police, Sindh; Director General, National Police Bureau; and Inspector General Police, Baochistan.
In recognition of his exceptional contribution in the field of law enforcement and public service, the government of Pakistan decorated him with the top gallantry award of Hilal-e-
Shujaat in 1996 and top civil award of Hilal-e-Imtiaz in 2008.
Dr. Suddle holds a PhD in white-collar crime and a Masters in Economics, both from the University of Wales, UK, in addition to an LLB from the University of Punjab.
Prof. Dr. Máté SZABÓ
Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, Hungary
He was elected Parliamentary Commissioner for Civil Rights by the Hungarian Parliament for six years, which position he has been holding since
September 2007. He now continues his role as the ombudsman of Hungary. Since 1st January 2012, Prof. Szabó has been the Commissioner for
Fundamental Rights.
He is specialized in civil society, social movements and political protest and the theory of law and politics as well. He has published more than 300
scientific contributions in Hungarian, English, German and on several other languages. He is a regular participant at conferences on political science,
law, and political sociology in Europe and around the world. He teaches political science and European studies.
Since he was elected ombudsman, he has been an active member of the International Ombudsman Institution and the European Network of
Ombudsmen and was elected to board member of the European Ombudsman Institute in 2010.
John R Taylor
John Taylor is the Deputy Ombudsman for Victoria. He was appointed to the position in 2004. Prior to that he was a Senior Assistant Ombudsman with
the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman.
John has had extensive experience in managing and conducting investigations and reviews across a wide range of State and Federal agencies. One
such investigation was his Investigation into an allegation about Victoria Police crime statistics – a report to Parliament tabled in June 2011.
Brian Thompson
Brian Thompson teaches and researches at the School of Law, University of Liverpool. He is an Adviser on Public Law to the Northern Ireland
Ombudsman and a Member of the UK’s Administrative Justice and Tribunals Council. A major theme in his work on the Ombudsman institution, is its
place in, and relationships with other institutions in the legal and political systems. This was reflected in his work with T. Buck and R. Kirkham in their
comparative study of the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, ‘The Ombudsman Enterprise and Administrative Justice’ (2011). His current projects
include, classical ombudsmen and human rights, and the types of task it is appropriate to give to classical ombudsmen.
Mr Mark C.A. Thomson Secretary General Of the Association for the Prevention Of Torture, Geneva (Since April 2001)
A manager of a successful international human rights NGO.
Human rights interest emerged from social and rural development work in Latin America.
Involved in adoption and implementation of international human rights norms.
Experienced in visiting places of detention and engaging with government authorities.
Public speaker on prevention of torture and other ill treatment.
Works with specialist team and wide variety of partners in all regions of the world.
PETER TYNDALL
Peter Tyndall became Public Services Ombudsman for Wales on 21 April 2008. The post came into being in 2006 by the amalgamation of three separate
posts covering public administration, the health service and local government. Peter is serving a two year term as Chair of the British and Irish
Ombudsman Association.
As Ombudsman, Peter investigates complaints made by members of the public who believe that they have suffered hardship or injustice as a
consequence of maladministration or service failure by the Welsh Government, local government, the NHS, registered social landlords including housing
associations and a range of other public bodies controlled or funded by the Welsh Government. The Ombudsman also undertakes investigations into
allegations that a member of a local authority has failed to comply with the authority’s code of conduct.
The Ombudsman works to ensure that everyone in Wales has access to an independent, objective and professional service which safeguards the rights
of ordinary people. He also seeks to play a part in developing better, fairer and more responsive public services for all of the people of Wales.
Peter was Chief Executive at the Arts Council of Wales from 2001 to 2008 and previous to that Head of Education and Cultural Affairs with the Welsh
Local Government Association. His earlier career included leadership and management roles in both local government and the independent sector in
housing and in services for disabled people.
DAME BEVERLEY WAKEM DNZM, CBE
Prior to becoming an Ombudsman, Dame Beverley enjoyed a distinguished career for over 25 years in broadcast news, current affairs and general
programming culminating in her appointment as Chief Executive of Radio New Zealand Limited in 1984 - a post she held until 1991. During this period
Dame Beverley was also President of the Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union.
In 1991 Dame Beverley was appointed Commercial Director for Wrightson Limited, a fully owned subsidiary of Fletcher Challenge which was then New
Zealand largest industrial conglomerate. In 1992 she became General Manager, Human Resources and Corporate Affairs for the company.
In September 1997 was appointed by the Government to the Higher Salaries Commission (now the Remuneration Authority). She was reappointed to
that body in 2001 and again in 2004. Concurrently she also held a number of other Government appointments, private sector directorships and
consulted widely on management issues to the state sector.
In March 2005 Dame Beverley was appointed as an Ombudsman and was appointed Chief Ombudsman in April, 2008.
In March 2008 she was elected as a Director of the International Ombudsman Institute and in June 2009 as Regional Vice President (Australasia and the Pacific) for the Institute.
She was elected President of the International Ombudsman Institute in 2010.
She is also a Director of the Pacific Ombudsman Alliance, established to strengthen integrity institutions in the Pacific and specifically to develop and support the establishment of
Ombudsman offices in the region.
Dame Beverley is actively involved in the community - she is a former President of the Rotary Club of Wellington, a Fellow of the NZ Institute of Management, and an Associate
Member of the Institute of Directors.
She has a BA in English and History and a Master’s Degree in Communications. Following completion of the latter degree, Beverley was awarded a post graduate research award
from the National Association of Broadcasters in the United States. She also has an FTCL in Speech & Drama.
She was awarded a CBE in 1990 for services to broadcasting and the community and was also awarded the 1990 Commemoration Medal. Dame Beverley was made a Paul
Harris Fellow by Rotary in 2002, and a Hunter Fellow of Victoria University in 2004.
J R Walters
Obtained the degrees BA (1977) and LLB (1980) from the University of the Western Cape. Admitted as advocate of the Supreme Court of South Africa
(South West Africa Division; as it was then called) in 1981. Has been a career prosecutor since 1981 and magistrate since 1985. Spent some time in
private practice until appointed as Acting Prosecutor-General in 2002. Appointed as Ombudsman of the Republic of Namibia in July 2004 until date.
WATARAI Osamu
WATARAI Osamu is Deputy Director-General, the Administrative Evaluation Bureau (AEB) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications of
Japan. The AEB provides the Ombudsman function through its Administrative Counseling System and receives about 180,000 complaints a year from
people with its regional offices and 5000 administrative counselors who are commissioned volunteer citizen. AEB’s Administrative Counseling system is
reinforced its independence and neutrality by the Administrative Grievance Resolution Promotion Councils which are advisory committees of specialist
from various fields.
WATARAI engaged in administrative counseling and administrative Evaluation from January 2001 to July 2006 as Director, July 2008 to July 2009 as
Deputy Director-General. After duties of promoting access to information and protecting personal information, and then promoting decentralization at the
Cabinet Office, he took up the role of Deputy Ombudsman of Japan in September 2012.
Bart Weekers
Bart Weekers is the Flemish ombudsman. Weekers (°1968) is a law graduate (K.U.Leuven), specialised in public law.
Before taking office he has worked as auditor to the Council of State, the judicial body which oversees the government and the laws it makes.
Chris Wheeler, NSW Ombudsman
Chris Wheeler is the Deputy NSW Ombudsman. He has over 25 years experience in complaint handling and investigations, as well as extensive
experience in management and public administration. He is a town planner and lawyer who previously worked in a variety of positions in State and
local government in NSW and Victoria. He also worked for some years as a solicitor in the private sector.
Chris has direct responsibility for the Public Administration and Strategic Projects Branch of the NSW Ombudsman, including oversight of the
responsibility conferred on the NSW Ombudsman under the Public Interest Disclosures Act. Chris is currently the Project Sponsor of the Dealing with
Unreasonable Complainant Conduct project being undertaken by the nine Australasian Parliamentary Ombudsman.
Qualifications
Bachelor of Town & Regional Planning (Melbourne University)
Master of Town & Country Planning (Sydney University)
Bachelor of Laws (University of Technology, Sydney)
Peter Wilkins, PhD, MIPAA
Deputy Ombudsman
Western Australia
Peter has diverse work experience in Australia, England, Malaysia and Canada including roles as an engineer, Research Fellow, consultant and thirty
years as a public sector manager in a wide range of roles. He is currently Deputy Ombudsman of Western Australia with direct responsibility for
complaint resolution and own motion inquiries. He had been for several years Western Australian Assistant Auditor General Performance Review with
responsibility for the conduct and reporting of examinations of the efficiency and effectiveness of public sector agencies.
He is an Adjunct Professor at Curtin University Western Australia. He has extensive practical and research experience regarding public sector
performance reporting and accountability and is a co-editor and contributor to a book ‘Performance auditing: Contributing to accountability in democratic
government’ published by Edward Elgar Cheltenham in May 2011.
Commisioner Nicola Williams
As Cayman's independent authority for tackling complaints against the public sector, the Office of the Complaints Commissioner is led by the
Complaints Commissioner, Ms. Nicola Williams. She brings several years of pertinent experience to her new role.
Biography of Commissioner Nicola Williams
4.11.10
Elected Vice-President of the Caribbean Ombudsman Association (CAROA), 2010-2012
23.10.09
Appointed to the judiciary of England and Wales as a Crown Court Recorder
17.8.09
Appointed as Complaints Commissioner for the Cayman Islands
1.4.2004 – 31.3.2009:
Commissioner, Independent Police Complaints Commission, London
1.9.01 – 31.3.04:
Board Member, Police Complaints Authority, London
Called to the Bar 1985. 16 years in private practice. During this time I practiced in a number of fields in the High Court, Crown Court and Court of Appeal, specializing in Criminal
Law, including three successful Commonwealth death penalty appeals before the House of Lords sitting as the Privy Council
Fellow, Royal Society of Arts
Author of the legal thriller, “Without Prejudice”, published in 1997 in both the U.K. and U.S.
Legal expert on BBC World for the OJ Simpson trial verdict in 1995
Former Chair, London Regional Advisory Council, BBC.
Founder Member, Independent Advisory Group to the Metropolitan Police Service (following recommendations arising from the Macpherson Report [1999])
Part of a delegation sponsored by the British Council, lecturing Turkish police inspectors on Human Rights.
Three times listed as one of the 100 most influential Black people in the U.K (1998; 2007-8; 2008-9).
Winner, Cosmopolitan magazine Woman of Achievement Award (Professions).
Presenting papers at a number of conferences, notably:
keynote international speaker, NACOLE 2005 (paper on dealing with police complaints in an age of international terrorism); and
Gloucester Conference, June 2006 (paper on the effect of the Somersett decision on current race and criminal justice issues in the UK)
International Funds Conference, Grand Cayman, January 2010 (paper on transparency)
“Confidentiality – A Key to Integrity”, Caribbean Ombudsman Association Conference, Curacao, November 2010.
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JOHN T.D.WOOD
JOHN T.D. WOOD runs his own international consultancy business, Baljurda Comprehensive Consulting, specialising in complaint handling,
accountability, consumer affairs, and anti-corruption measures. He was Deputy Commonwealth Ombudsman in Australia from 1994-99. Prior to that he
was for 10 years, Director of the Federal Bureau of Consumer Affairs.
He advised on the establishment of Ombudsman Institutions in Indonesia and Thailand, and designed and directed the Accountability Programme for
the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands, and was a consultant for anti-corruption institutions in Timor-Leste and Tonga. He is a Director of
the Foundation for Effective Markets and Governance, Australian National University; Chair of the Australian Direct Marketing Code Authority; a Member
of the Consumer Standing Forum, Standards Australia; Member of the International Ombudsman Institute; a Program Visitor, Regulatory Institutions Network, Research School of
Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University; a Member, Transparency International Australia; and a Life Member of CHOICE – the Australian Consumers’ Association.
He was a founding member and a past President of SOCAP (the Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals).
Kim Workman QSO
Kim Workman (of Ngati Kahungunu and Rangitaane descent) is a retired public servant, whose career spans roles in the Police , the Office of the
Ombudsman, State Services Commission, Department of Maori Affairs, and Ministry of Health. He was Head of the Prison Service from 1989 – 1993,
and oversaw a major reform in the Prison Service. He is a graduate of Massey University, and has completed post-graduate study at the University of
Southern California, and Stanford University. He is currently a Senior Associate of the Institute of Policy Studies, Victoria University.
Kim was appointed to the position of National Director, Prison Fellowship in 2000, which established the first faith-based prison unit in the British
Commonwealth, a mentoring programme for released prisoners, and in-prison restorative justice services.
In 2005, Kim was the joint recipient (with Jackie Katounas) of the International Prize for Restorative Justice. In 2006 Kim joined with the Salvation Army,
to launch the “Rethinking Crime and Punishment” Project, which is under the Robson Hanan Trust, of which Kim is Executive Director. The Trust
promotes public education, discussion and debate on crime and punishment and was established with a broader mandate to conduct or commission original research, implement
innovative crime prevention projects, and engage in public education in issues of crime and punishment.
Kim recently completed a three year term as a Families Commissioner.
