Today, 22 October 2024, the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia discussed the 29th Annual Report of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Slovenia and the Report on the Implementation of the Tasks of the National Preventive Mechanism.

"The year 2023 showed once again that urgent and necessary changes in society are happening extremely slowly. The slowness of reforms causes a feeling of helplessness among the inhabitants, who all too often feel the inefficiency of the state and the poor functioning of its sub-systems, especially health, education, social services, but also justice. Individuals who regularly, every month, pay contributions to various state coffers rightly expect that they will get the appropriate quality services when they need them. There is a growing feeling that Slovenia is moving away from the ideal of a legal and social state and that it is becoming a society dominated by individual interests. "Solidarity and tolerance, unfortunately also due to the poor functioning of the state, are increasingly losing their meaning," said Ombudsman Svetina his introduction.

In the current report, the Ombudsman makes 86 new recommendations and draws attention to approximately 80 unimplemented past recommendations that are still relevant. "These are fewer than in previous years, which nevertheless indicates a positive trend, but I would like to point out again that our key recommendations still remain unfulfilled. I am convinced that a more consistent and faster implementation of our recommendations would significantly contribute to raising the level of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in Slovenia for everyone," emphasised Ombudsman Svetina.

He added that reforms which require the cooperation of several ministries pose a special challenge. "We still point to the need for greater coordination of responses to our recommendations, although the government's response report shows some progress in terms of coordination between departments. This must be an ongoing task for all our recommendations until their implementation and also in monitoring their impact. Due to disagreement, the government rejected two new recommendations and 24 of our previous recommendations. It is particularly worrying that the vast majority of rejected recommendations relate to the functioning of the welfare state and to various vulnerable groups," the Ombudsman pointed out.

The field of health care and health insurance is one of the numerically strongest fields in terms of the number of complaints. Unfortunately, a number of questions have remained unanswered for years in this area as well, which worsens accessibility to health services. "Already in the first days of last year, with the example of a long line waiting in front of ZD Bežigrad, it became clear that something is seriously wrong in the health care system. After a year and a half, it seems that nothing significant has changed, as we recently witnessed similar scenes in front of ZD Slovenska Bistrica. We are therefore making a new recommendation to the Ministry of Health to regulate the area in such a way that there will be no unacceptable differences between clinics and that patients will be able to see a doctor – when they need one. We emphasise that it is not only a lack of doctors, but also a chronic lack of all other medical personnel, and too often also poor organisation of work. The problems with which the complainants turn to us point to the anomalies of the system, which need a serious approach," the Human Rights Ombudsman emphasised.

The institution of the Human Rights Ombudsman also frequently dealt with children's rights last year. "I am satisfied that on the basis of our joint statement with non-governmental organisations in the field of children's rights on the renovation of the school system, our recommendation was taken into account in the last amendment to the Elementary School Act, that children who are educated at home should also be provided with the same level of knowledge as children who go to school. Primary school in Slovenia is compulsory, it is a child's right, so I expect that the state will effectively enforce it for all children in Slovenia," said Svetina.

In the National Assembly, Ombudsman Svetina also pointed out the increase in all types of violence – violence against children, peer violence, violence against women, the disabled, and the elderly, and in our opinion, all these groups need more attention and cooperation from various institutions. "Violence against children and peer violence affect children's mental health, their school success, and their inclusion in society. If we do not pay sufficient attention to its containment, the consequences can be severe," the Ombudsman stressed.

He also presented to the deputies the report of the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), which last year visited 87 places of deprivation of liberty. "During visits to care and work centres, we found that some users' personal freedom is restricted and they cannot leave the institutional care units independently, even though none of them were placed in the centre in accordance with the provisions of the Mental Health Act, which is currently the only legal basis for limiting personal freedom in social welfare institutions. It is a gross violation of users’ rights. We recommended to the Ministry of Solidarity-Based Future that it provide adequate legal bases for all such centres in the country," Ombudsman Peter Svetina said at the presentation of the NPM report.

At the end of the presentation, Ombudsman Svetina told the deputies that during his six-year mandate, the institution of the Ombudsman had handled more than 30,000 cases and identified more than 1,600 violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms. "In order to improve the work of state and local self-government bodies, the legislation or its implementation in practice, during my term of office we have made more than 500 new recommendations, of which approximately 150 have still not been implemented. It is not enough to just talk about human rights, they must be guaranteed. I am also concerned about the lack of vision. It is my wish that all of us who are in the service of the people follow the same vision and goals of strengthening the legal and social state, in which the human being is at the centre of all reforms and policies, i.e. their dignity, rights, and freedoms. A constructive, tolerant and inclusive dialogue between various stakeholders is necessary, especially between politics, experts, and civil society. Regardless of all the social challenges, human rights must remain the ideal to which we all strive," said Ombudsman Peter Svetina at the meeting.