Performance record The television programme „BürgerAnwalt“ (“Advocate for the People”) which is broadcast by the Austrian public television channel ORF, is an important platform for the matters of the AOB. At the same time, this is the most important advertising medium. This programme has been running since January 2002. Each week, an average of up to 330,000 households follow the studio discussions. In the reporting year, the viewer record was 507,000. The members of the AOB discuss cases with representatives of various authorities and endeavour to find a solution to the everyday problems of those affected. After the broadcast, every episode is available for online viewing for a week on the TVthek website of the ORF. 1.5 International activities 1.5.1 International Ombudsman Institute (IOI) ORF TV programme The IOI, whose headquarters are located at the AOB, supports around 180 independent ombudsman institutions from more than 100 countries. It sees its main responsibility in the global promotion and development of the ombudsman concept as well as in supporting and connecting ombudsman institutions worldwide. In addition to expanding training offers for IOI members and the development of cooperation agreements with partner organisations, two objectives were particularly important for the IOI in 2016: (1) the support of ombudspersons who exercise their mandate under extremely difficult conditions, and (2) the IOI World Conference held in in Bangkok in November 2016. Focal points 2016 Reports about ombudspersons who are subject to extreme pressure or even concrete threats while exercising their independent mandate are on the rise. As the only global organisation for the promotion of ombudsman institutions, the IOI takes this alarming development very seriously and supports its members in every possible way. In a workshop organised by the Catalan Ombudsman in Barcelona, the IOI Board of Directors discussed strategies on how to best help the affected ombudspersons. In close cooperation with the Polish Ombudsman, a catalogue of actions was developed with guidelines for supporting the “Ombudsman under threat”. In this context, steps and actions that the IOI can set down were defined – in close agreement with the affected institution – in order to demand and strengthen the independence of the institution and its ability to act freely. Barcelona workshop lays down guidelines 23