Ljubljana, 4 July (STA) - Human Rights Ombudsman Zdenka Čebašek-Travnik told the STA on Wednesday that her office was drafting a request for a constitutional review of the cut in pensions paid from the budget stemming from the act on the balancing of public finances. She urged those interested to provide their opinions.

 
Čebašek-Travnik said that a key reason for requesting a constitutional review was that the pensions had been cut unequally.

The largest groups among the affected are around 8,000 pensioners who delivered a part of their years of service in the former Yugoslavia and some 7,500 WWII veterans. Also affected are almost 4,000 former refugees and 2,700 people formerly covered by military insurance.

While the Constitution allows different treatment, the ombudsman believes that the legislation does not provide provisions that would allow it in this case.

The cut in pensions paid from the budget - which sets the ceiling for such pensions at EUR 1,450, while leaving pensions lower than EUR 622 intact - increases with the level of the pension between the two amounts.

Čebašek-Travnik moreover said that she had scheduled a meeting at the Pension and Disability Insurance Institute (ZPIZ) in regards to the issue.

The request will be filed in a few-weeks time, she noted, explaining that her office wanted to study and argument all the points in the request.

Her statement comes after the Pensioners' Association ZDUS expressed hope that her office would take up their initiative for the constitutional review.