OSCE/ODIHR Opinion on the Draft Law Amending and Supplementing the Ombudsman Act of Bulgaria rights and States have an obligation to protect individuals against the abuse of such rights by third parties, including private actors.23 States may thus be in breach of their international obligations if they fail to prevent, investigate, punish and redress the abuse of human rights by private actors.24 Hence, the extension of the mandate to also cover the private sector allows the Ombudsman to properly protect and promote equality rights in a more comprehensive manner, particularly in such areas as housing, services, goods and employment.25 With the inclusion of acts or omissions of the private sector into the mandate of the Ombudsman, the Draft Amendments fulfill one of the key recommendations of the SCA to Bulgaria, which is also explicitly stated in General Observation 1.2.26 19. At the same time, once the Draft Amendments are adopted, the Rules of Procedure should be amended to reflect the extension of the mandate to acts and omissions of the private sector (e.g. in Article 9 par 1 of the Rules of Procedure). 2.3 20. 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 Protection of Citizens and Other Natural Persons Article 2 of the Ombudsman Act states that the Ombudsman’s mandate covers the rights and freedoms of citizens only. The Draft Amendments, while amending Article 2, maintain this limitation. Generally, the majority of basic human rights and fundamental freedoms should apply to everyone and not just to citizens. Section A.2 of the Paris Principles also states that an NHRI should be given “as broad a mandate as possible”. This should be reflected in the Ombudsman’s mandate, also, in particular, in the context of its capacity as NPM,27 under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT). 28 That being said, Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that certain rights, e.g. the right to take part in the conduct of public affairs, to vote and to be elected, and to access public services, may indeed only apply to citizens. 29 Irrespective of these limitations, it is recommended that the Ombudsman should have the mandate to protect and promote the human rights of citizens and noncitizens alike. This is in line with recommendations made with regard to NHRI-related E.g. OHCHR, Report to the UN Human Rights Council on the Role of Prevention in the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights A/HRC/30/20, adopted on 16 July 2015, par 52, available at http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/RegularSessions/Session30/Documents/A_HRC_30_20_ENG.docx. ibid. UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit, op. cit. footnote 4, page 145. Available at http://nhri.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/ICCAccreditation/Documents/SCA%20GENERAL%20OBSERVATIONS%20ENGL ISH.pdf. See also the Venice Commission’s comments on the Bulgarian Constitution in this respect: Opinion on the Constitution of Bulgaria, CDL-AD(2008)009, 31 March 2008, pars 55-57, available at http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2008)009-e; see also Venice Commission, Opinion on the Draft Law on the Review of the Constitution of Romania, CDL-AD(2014)010, 24 March 2014, par 49, available at http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/default.aspx?pdffile=CDL-AD(2014)010-e. The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (hereinafter “UN CAT”) was adopted by the UN General Assembly by Resolution 39/46 of 10 December 1984. Bulgaria signed the UN CAT on 10 June 1986 and ratified it on 16 December 1986; the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment was adopted by UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/57/199 on 18 December 2002. Bulgaria signed the OPCAT on 22 December 2010 and ratified it on 1 June 2011. UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (hereinafter “the ICCPR”), adopted by the UN General Assembly by Resolution 2200A (XXI) of 16 December 1966. Bulgaria signed the ICCPR on 8 October 1968 and ratified it on 21 September 1970. 8