A/HRC/17/42 National Police takes the necessary decisions to remove those officers who do not belong in a democratic police force. 63. Under the terms of the Secretary-General’s decision on the distribution of tasks among United Nations institutions and bodies, OHCHR is the lead agency in the transitional justice and vetting process. Its role is to coordinate and support the process and monitor its execution, producing the necessary material and publishing tools to allow for the adoption of a rights-based approach to the process. OHCHR is not conducting the vetting process itself but performing a support role for those who are. The purpose of providing such support is to ensure that police officers are treated fairly in the process and that those guilty of human rights violations are removed from the police force without infringing their rights. The Independent Expert recommends that the role of OHCHR in the process be reasserted and that steps be taken to ensure that it is respected. D. The Office of the Ombudsman 64. Article 207 of the 1987 Constitution established the Office of the Ombudsman with the aim of protecting all persons against any form of abuse by the public administration. Chosen by consensus by the President of the Republic, the President of the Senate and the President of the Chamber of Deputies, the Ombudsman is appointed for a non-renewable term of seven years. Since her appointment as Ombudsman, Ms. Florence Elie has shown that she has great energy and a first-rate strategic vision, thus confirming the wisdom of President Préval’s choice. The Ombudsman was also an able co-president of the international commission of inquiry into the events that took place in the civilian prison at Les Cayes on 19 January 2010. The Independent Expert had recommended that the matter should be referred to the courts as a demonstration of the determination of the Haitian authorities to combat impunity. 65. Although she, too, was affected by the earthquake of 12 January 2010, which rendered her offices unusable, she has managed to maintain close relations with the Haitian authorities and the international community and thus been able to pursue her work, not only in Port-au-Prince, but also in other cities around the country. She herself, with the backing of OHCHR, drafted and revised a bill defining the scope and working methods of her institution and seeking to bring it into line with the Paris Principles, which concern the status of national human rights institutions. The Independent Expert has discussed with the Haitian authorities the need to enact the bill on the Office of the Ombudsman as soon as possible and to provide the Office with adequate funding. 66. The Independent Expert recalls that this institution is currently funded by several financial and institutional partners14 and that the Ombudsman, with the substantial involvement of the Independent Expert, has drafted a development plan for the Office for the coming years. He recommends that the Office organize a round table bringing together its institutional and financial partners, both national and international, with a view to sharing information with all stakeholders, planning activities and related funding arrangements with due transparency, and ensuring that the Office always remains in charge. He also recommends that the support programme, including the section on rebuilding the premises of the Office, be presented to the Interim Haiti Recovery Commission. That would demonstrate the importance that was attached to the Office of the Ombudsman under reconstruction plans in the context of re-establishing the rule of law. 14 14 OHCHR, the United Nations Development Programme and the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF). GE.11-12426