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Citizens Legitimize the Work of an Ombudsman

'Citizens are the focus of our work. We are trying to assist them, to point to the authorities' failures and mistakes, to prevent and eliminate the consequences of violations of regulations. This is why our work causes many problems to be resolved even during the proceedings and with no need for official recommendations,' said Aniko Muskinja Heinrich, the Provincial Ombudswoman, presenting the Provincial Protector of Citizens - Ombudsman (PPCO) 2014 Annual Report to the Parliament of Vojvodina yesterday.  

In her brief address to the MPs, the Provincial Ombudswoman pointed out that dissatisfied citizens addressing the Ombudsman rarely state which public authority specifically has violated their rights with its (non)action. In her opinion, citizens are not bound to know it, because it is up to the Ombudsman to assess which public authority has actually failed to do its work or acted contrary to the regulations. In her opinion, a more efficient operation of the PPCO could be achieved by passing a law regulating that a filed complaint would be handled according to the citizens' place of residence and the address of the public service within the local self-government complained about.

In the debate after her introductory address, the MPs expressed completely divergent opinions about the Report. While ones claimed it was good, clear and detailed, especially the research studies and the parts pertaining to national minority rights, others expressed their astonishment and resentment, especially with regard to its introductory remarks deemed too politicizing and full of random and untrue statements.  The latter went as far as to claim the PPCO went out of the scope of its jurisdiction and, instead of a Report, presented a pure political pamphlet.

This year's PPCO Annual Report has 137 pages, whereas its introduction - as the most often mentioned part in the debate - is only four pages long. It also states that the relations in Vojvodina are heavily influenced by factors and circumstances beyond the Provincial limits. This claim has been confirmed in this parliamentary debate, especially bearing in mind the current campaign against the Serbian Ombudsman. The Provincial Ombudswoman, upset by the turn the debate took, also pointed to this fact in her final address, concluding that verbal public attacks on ombudspersons seemed to be coming into fashion.