Ex-post control: Investigations of public administration Anti-discrimination General Information The AOB has a mandate under Austrian constitutional law to protect and promote human rights. Although all human rights have equal value and/or are coequal, protection against discrimination has particular significance. Fundamentally, prohibited discrimination and the realisation of human rights exclude one another. This is the reason why the AOB is dedicating an entire chapter of this report to this topic. Within the scope of its investigative activities, the AOB has encountered discrimination due to disabilities, gender, sexual orientation, as well as nationality or ethnic origin. In this chapter, a number of ex- Recommendations for improvement of statutory framework conditions emplary cases will be presented in detail. There is, however, potential for improvement at the legislative level as well. The AOB’s recommendations and Austria’s international obligations will be discussed in the following. In addition to United Nations human rights conventions, it is primarily the EU regulations and the Council of Europe's European Convention on Human Rights that define Austria’s obligations with regard Obligations in respect of protection against discrimination to protection against discrimination at the international level. The European Convention on Human Rights prohibits discrimination only in conjunction with the granting of rights set out in the Convention. A general prohibition of discrimination was agreed in the 12th Additional Protocol which, however, has not yet been ratified by Austria. At the EU-level, it is the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and three directives that primarily regulate protection against discrimination. The Charter contains a general prohibition against discrimination EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and EU directives that all member states must comply with when implementing EU law. In 2000, the EU created a framework for minimum requirements by way of the Directive on Equal Treatment Irrespective of Racial or Ethnic Origin, as well as the Directive on the Implementation of the Principle of Equal Treatment for Men and Women in Occupational Social Security Schemes. This was expanded in 2004 by way of the Directive on Equal Treatment of Men and Women in the Access to 61