Regret over dismissal of Kyrgyz Ombudsman

The Danish Institute for Human Rights expresses its gratitude to the former Ombudsman of Kyrgyz Republic, Mr. Bakytbek Amanbaev, for the partnership and cooperation during the last years; a partnership that was greatly valued.

Since the appointment of Mr. Amanbaev to the position of Ombudsman of Kyrgyz Republic in 2013, the Danish Institute for Human Rights has been engaged in a cooperation with our sister institution in Kyrgyzstan in strengthening its institutional capacity to fully implement its mandate of human rights protection. The partnership and cooperation between our two institutions during the last year and a half can be characterised by shared values, mutual understanding and amicability and strong cooperation for achievement of sustainable results.

“In a very short time, Mr. Amanbaev has succeeded to achieve concrete results through his active work to strengthen the Ombudsman Institution and to lead the direction of proactive work on protection and promotion of human rights. Under his skilful leadership, the Ombudsman Institution conducted active work on raising awareness on human rights, strengthening its analytical work, optimizing the structure and functioning of the institution and to increase its outreach to the people of Kyrgyzstan,” Evguenia Klementieva, programme manager for the Eurasia region, explains.

Ombudsman is essential for Kyrgyzstan

It is a serious matter that Kyrgyzstan is now without an Ombudsman. The Kyrgyz Republic has repeatedly made statements at the international level, including at the Universal Periodic Review in January 2015, that the existence of independent national human rights institutions – such as the Ombudsman Institution – is a significant achievement in the country's pursuit of democracy and the rule of law.

“We sincerely hope that the progressive work started by Mr. Amanbaev will be further strengthened by his successors and that the cooperation between our two institutions will be continued in the future,” Evguenia Klementieva says.

The Danish Institute for Human Rights has confidence that in the nearest future, reforms on ensuring the institutional independence of the Ombudsman of the Kyrgyz Republic will be conducted in line with the Paris Principles. Conclusively, the institute would like to thank Mr. Amanbaev for the partnership with us and we wish him great success in his future deeds.