Who is the ombudsman?
The current ombudsman for Barcelona, David Bondia, was elected on September 29, 2021, by the Municipal Council. Bondia, who was elected for a five-year term, took office the 6th of October, 2021 and began his work, supervising the Municipal Administration in an independent and objective way.
Eight candidacies were registered by the social entities in the municipal file between January 15, 2021 and March 15, 2021. All of them were submitted for a new ombudsman for Barcelona. The citizen support phase took place the 15th of April for a month. Citizens and social entities participated and were able to vote for that desired option. It should be remembered that it is a non binding process because it is the plenary of the Municipal Council who officially decides the new person in charge of the Sindicatura de Greuges de Barcelona. Finally, and after the vote of the different municipal groups, David Bondia was elected new ombudsman of Barcelona.
David Bondia has been president of the Institut de Drets Humans de Catalunya, a member of the Patronat de la Fundació Solidaritat UB and part of the team of the Mecanisme Català per la Prevenció de la Tortura. He has also been a member of the executive committee of the Xarxa EUROMED-Rights, and has been vice-president of the Estructura de Drets Humans de Catalunya (developing the first Human Rights Plan of Catalonia) and a member of the Consell Català de Foment de la Pau. He has participated as an expert in various international missions with the EU, AECID, the Council of Europe and UNDP, as well.
He also teaches Public International Law and International Relations at the Universitat de Barcelona. Bondia has been invited to participate in various universities in Europe, America, Africa and Asia as a human rights expert. His research has focused on international protection and national and local human rights mechanisms. As a lawyer, specialized in human rights on local scale, he has been connected to the creation and implementation of the European Charter for the Protection of Human Rights in the City, participating in working groups and advising local unions, in the Forum de Síndics i Síndiques, Defensors i Defensores Locals.
To carry out her duties, the ombudsman works with an assistant and a multidisciplinary team of advisers and technicians.
