PRESS - CONFERENCE OF THE OMBUDSMAN ON THE STATE OF RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOM IN 2024

15.04.2025, SKOPJE

The Ombudsman, Mr. Naser Ziberi, today, at the Office of the Ombudsman, held a press conference, at which he presented the Annual Report on the Level of Ensuring Respect, Promotion and Protection of Human Freedoms and Rights in 2024,which, in accordance with the legal obligation, he submitted to the Parliament of the Republic of North Macedonia on March 27.

" In the reporting year 2024, the Ombudsman acted on 3,148 complaints each, from which in the Ombudsman institution were 2,705 complaints were received, and 443 cases were transferred from the previous year. The largest number of complaints received are in the field of civil status and other internal affairs 408 or 15.08%; followed by complaints relating to the protection of rights in the field of justice 360 or 13.31%; from consumer rights 284 or 10.5 0 %; from the field of children's rights 200 or 7.39%, from penal and correctional institutions 184 or 6.80% ; from labor relations 182 or 6.73%; from the property and legal area 130 or 4.81%; from social security and social protection 114, or 4.21%; from pension and disability insurance 108 or 3.99%; from urbanism and construction 107 or 3.96%; from finances and financial operations 94 or 3.78%; from the area of protection of rights in police powers 92 or 3.40%; from non-discrimination and appropriate and fair representation 53 or 1.96%; from the prosecution 49 or 1.81%; from health care 33 or 1.22%; from the environment 32 or 1.18%; from the action of the Public Prosecutor as a mechanism for civil control 25 or 0.92%; from housing relations 18 or 0.67%, from education and science and the rights to protection of persons with disabilities 14 or 0.52%; from the area of electoral rights 13 or 0.48%, for the action of the Public Prosecutor as a friend of the court 7 or 0.26%, as well as other rights 184 or 6.80% complaints.

The biggest number of ascertained injuries - 173 or 23.28%, were in the area of civil conditions and other internal works, from which 164 cases or 94.80%, were done after the indications on Ombudsman for removal of the ascertained injury. Then, follow the complaints from the area on the judiciarywherewere96 injuries were found or 12.92%, of which in 65 cases or 67.71% have accepted the indications on The Ombudsman. In the complaints from the area on consumer rights, were as curtained injuries in 76 cases or 10.23%, of which in 67 cases or 88.16% was done after the indications on Ombudsman for removal on the ascertained violation ", informed the Ombudsman, Mr. Ziberi, at today's press conference.

The Ombudsman, in his presentation on the work of the institution in 2024, and on the observed conditions with respect for and exercise of citizens' rights, among other things, emphasized that "the first half of the work of the Institution in 2024 was marked by the problem with the issuance of personal identification documents, especially travel documents, which affected thousands of citizens who massively submitted complaints to the Institution on various grounds."- inability to schedule an appointment for photography, slow production and approval of travel documents, "prolonged delivery of already prepared documents and the like." "For the efficient resolution of cases related to this issue, teams from the Ombudsman in cooperation with the competent services of the Ministry of Interior assisted in resolving these problems. In this segment, the cooperation of the Ministry must be highlighted, which is an example of good cooperation between the two institutions," said the Ombudsman, Mr. Ziberi. The Ombudsman also addressed the legal uncertainty that arose after the Parliament passed the amendments to the Laws on Obligations and Enforcement, primarily in the statute of limitations for enforcement.

"After these amendments, citizens gained hope that the decades-long problem with the so-called "debt slavery" would somehow end. However, due to the refusal of the courts and bailiffs to implement these amendments in practice, they remained victims of legal labyrinths, especially since the Constitutional Court on two occasions made two opposed decisions on the same amendments. Once, they did not conflict with the Constitution, and a few months later, these amendments violated the legal system and repealed them," said Ziberi.

Speaking about prison conditions at the press conference, he said there has been no progress in this segment.

"The capacities are still such that they lead to inhumane conditions for accommodation and treatment due to overcrowding. This, in turn, leads to situations where these people are still forced to sleep "in shifts", in the corridors, in a word, in extremely inhumane and inhumane conditions. Mutual calculations among the prisoners are a consequence of the previously stated. Here, I would add the information about the lack of adequate staff and guard service, so, in addition to the prisoners, the employees are also put at risk for their safety. This situation is also reflected in the hygiene, which is at a very low level, and the prisons do not even carry out the derivatization of the premises, which leads to the appearance of insects and other pests", emphasized the Ombudsman, Mr. Naser Ziberi.