The Chief Executive for the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, Hugh Hume, has welcomed a European delegation to Belfast to discuss a major anti-corruption conference taking place in The Hague later this year.
The 24th European Partners against Corruption (EPAC) and European Anti-Corruption Contact Points Network (EACN) Annual Professional Conference and General Assembly will be held in the Hague, Netherlands, on November 24 and 25 and will bring together around 120 organisations committed to anti-corruption and policing oversight from over 20 countries.
Mr Hume warmly welcomed representatives from Lithuania, France, Romania and Austria to Belfast this week as part of his role as board member of EPAC/EACN. These included Darius Mickevicius, Secretary, Linas Pernavus, President, Lucile Rolland, Vice President of Policing Oversight, Traian Barlici, Deputy Vice President of Anti-Corruption, and Ernst Schmid, Vice President of Anti-Corruption.
From 2021 until he took up his current role in the Ombudsman’s office, Mr Hume has been a member of the management board of the EPAC and EACN, and is currently serving as Deputy Vice President with responsibility for Policing Oversight.
The EPAC and EACN networks are made up of 100 anti-corruption and police oversight bodies who share knowledge and experience to combat corruption and improve policing within the Council of Europe and European Union Countries. In short, it's a strategic forum for strengthening integrity and accountability across Europe.
The aims of this year’s Conference are to promote collaboration among anti-corruption authorities and police oversight bodies across European nations, exchange best practices in combating corruption, enhancing transparency, improving law enforcement oversight, strengthening institutional networks and to facilitate policy dialogue with key stakeholders including Eurojust*, which is co-organizing the event.
The brief trip to Belfast, hosted by Mr Hume, was to finalise plans for the upcoming conference, and enabled guests to experience our city and hospitality during their two-day visit.
Speaking about the upcoming conference, Mr Hume said: “The Annual professional Conference is a unique opportunity to engage with many diverse Police Oversight Bodies.
“The Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman model is recognised internationally as best practice for independent investigations of complaints against the police. Many countries and organisations are keen to learn from our experiences. This includes countries emerging from conflict, and those seeking to embed Human Rights within policing.
“During the conference the office will lead on a number of sessions, showcasing policing oversight in Northern Ireland the work of Ombudsman Staff and emerging priorities such as police predatory behaviour. It will also be an opportunity to identify how other oversight bodies are operating and learn from their experiences.”
*Eurojust is the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation. It is a unique hub based in The Hague, Netherlands, where national judicial authorities work closely together to fight serious organised cross-border crime.