"The ombudsman is not a dragon without fire"

The Ombudsman has moved. Its offices are no longer located in the government district, but have recently relocated to the so-called Mënscherechtshaus not far from the Stäreplaz on Route d'Arlon. Into an ugly but probably functional concrete block, which houses the Ombudsman as well as the Centre pour l'égalité de traitement (CET), the Commission consultative des Droits de l'Homme (CCDH) and the Ombudsman fir Kanner a Jugendlicher (OKAJU).

There is not yet an ombudsman sign in front of the Mënscherechtshaus, but that is likely to change soon. Claudine Konsbruck's office still looks rather empty, but the new incumbent has already provided flowers.

We meet the former and the new incumbent for a chat, who even invite us on a tour of the Mënscherechtshaus afterwards. We had already conducted an in-depth interview with the former ombudsman Claudia Monti four years ago. You can tell that Monti would have loved to continue in her job, but the mandate is limited to eight years and cannot be renewed.

After Marc Fischbach (2004 to 2012), Lydie Err (2012 to 2017) and Claudia Monti (2017 to 2025), Claudine Konsbruck is now Luxembourg's fourth Ombudsman. The office of Ombudsman is one of the best-paid posts in the civil service.