Ombudsman

The US State Department's 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, which was published on Tuesday, warned that countries in the Balkans and south-east Europe have continuing problems with media freedom, censorship and violence against journalists, while officials are not being sanctioned for rights violations.

Ombudsperson Renate Weber is asking Prime Minister Florin Citu to state the reasons why the 20 decisions adopted by the National Committee for Emergency Situations (CNSU) since the beginning of the year have not been published in the Official Journal.

The resulting riots refocused attention on a controversial decision to resurrect a notorious motorized police brigade and triggered more talk of strengthening a mechanism to monitor police behaviour. But experts say its effectiveness depends on the readiness of those at the top to act.

Ljubljana – Human Rights Ombudsman Peter Svetina has voiced criticism over the procedure in which the Environment and Spatial Planning Ministry wants to change the environmental protection act. The ministry’s actions are not in line with modern democratic standards, which has recently become an established modus operandi of the ministry, the ombudsman says.

Poland's Supreme Court Judge Malgorzata Manowska speaks during the sixth day of the sitting of the Supreme Court judges in Warsaw, Poland, 23 May 2020. EPA-EFE/TOMASZ GZELL

National leader of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) Marcel Ciolacu said on Tuesday that if the lawmakers of the ruling coalition "force" Renate Weber's being removed from office as the Ombudsman, the Social Democrats will challenge the decision with the Constitutional Court.

Ljubljana – The Equal Opportunities Ombudsman has appealed for tolerance in the wake of a paint balloon attack on a fresco of Ljubljana’s St Nicholas Cathedral, warning the act could count as discrimination.

Complaints to consumer protection authorities point to a major increase in the number of people disgruntled with the delays in courier deliveries, a trend recorded on social media since the first lockdown.

The Monitoring Group on Democracy, the Rule of Law and Fundamental Rights of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs in the European Parliament will discuss the situation in Bulgaria for the second time. The subcommittee meeting will be virtual, the BNR said.

More than 13,000 people have turned for help to the public defender in 2020, according to data provided by Ombudsman Diana Kovacheva. The statistics also show that 23,865 people have filed claims through collective complaints and petitions.