Ombudsperson of the Republic of Macedonia

Development of the institution The Ombudsperson (People’s Defender) is established by Article 77 of the 1991 Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia. The first Law on the Ombudsperson was adopted in 1997, when the first Ombudsperson was elected and whose activities started in With this law, the institution was given the mandate to protect the constitutional and legal rights of citizens when they are violated by the bodies and institutions of the state administration or other institutions with public authority. With Amendment XI, the election procedure of the Ombudsperson was upgraded, and the constitutional changes raised the importance of the institution and its role in the protection against discrimination and the fair and equal representation of the communities in the state institutions and units of the local self-government 2

Development of the institution Amendment XI confirmed the principle of double voting for the election of the Ombudsperson, requiring the majority of the votes of representatives from the non-majority communities in Macedonia. In 2003, a new law was adopted, which decentralized the institution and thus regional offices were opened. In 2009, the Law on the Ombudsperson was amended, which brought new specialized departments for the protection of rights of children and disabled persons, protection against discrimination and fair and equal representation, as well as a department for the prevention of torture and all other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of punishment. 3

Mandate To protect the constitutional and legal rights of citizens in cases of violation from the state administration bodies and by other bodies and organizations with public authority. To submit recommendations, opinions and criticisms towards the authorities regarding the general situation within its mandate. The proceedings before the Ombudsperson are initiated by submitting a complaint. The Ombudsperson may start a proceeding at own initiative, if he/she decides that violations exist. 4

Number of submissions per year Citizens continually request greater protection from the Ombudsperson The violations of rights are even more in number

Mandate In 2009, the Law on Ombudsperson was amended, and three new departments were established A specialized department for the protection of rights of children and disabled persons which, besides working on cases, monitors the situation and conducts research A specialized department for the protection against discrimination and the fair and equal representation of communities was established, which acts upon submission, upon its own initiative, as well as conducts special research, analysis and reports 6

Although in 2011, the number of submissions regarding discrimination has significantly risen, citizens still fail to report these cases. In 19 cases, the Ombudsperson has determined that discrimination exists on various grounds, to 11 of which it has been intervened.DISCRIMINATIONwww.ombudsman.mk

Of all submissions, 47.92% were regarding rights in the family, 16.67% regarding violations of other rights in the educational facilities, 12.5% on domestic violence, 5.25% on health protection, 5.56% on physical and mental mistreatment in schools and other facilities, 2.08% on the rights of children with special needs, 0.69% on sexual abuse, and 8.33% on other rights. RIGHTS OF CHILDREN IN

National Preventive Mechanism Upon the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture, the Ombudsperson started acting as the National Preventive Mechanism, with the option of cooperating with, and including, CSOs and humanitarian organizations based on previously given consent. With the changes to the law in 2009, a specialized department for the Prevention of torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and punishment – The National Preventive Mechanism – was formed The NPM started actively working in April, 2011, and presented the first annual report in May,

Mandate of the NPM Acting as the NPM, the Ombudsperson has the mandate to conduct regular announced or unannounced visits. The announced visits have the purpose of monitoring the conditions in places of detention in a given period, and to oversee the improvement or deterioration of the accommodation and treatment of detained persons. The unannounced visits have the purpose of inspecting the already established conditions in places and objects of detention, and to decrease the risk of distorted presentation of the facts. The mandate as the NPM is to regularly inspect the treatment of detained persons with the purpose of prevention of torture, to give recommendations to the relevant institutions and to submit advise and analysis regarding the current or draft legislation. 10

regular preventive visits : - 12 police stations; 3 correctional facilities; 1 educational-correctional facility and 2 other places of open or semi-open character special reports submitted to the relevant authorities. THE OMBUDSPERSON AS NPM The specialized reports contain situation analysis and recommendations for the overcoming of the confirmed shortcomings; they are of confidential character – 18 regular visits, 11 of which in police stations, 5 prisons and 2 other places of detention. Additionally, 6 follow-up visits were conducted, with the purpose of inspecting the implementation of recommendations from 2011 (4 in police stations, 1 prison, and 1 educational-correctional facility). Of all 18 preventive visits, 17 were unannounced, whereas 1 was announced.

Promotional activities of the Ombudsperson Although, in line with the legal framework, the Ombudsperson only protects the rights of citizens in cases of violation, in the past period the institution undertook significant promotional activities in the area of human rights The institution has published over 30 thematic reports, dedicated to some of the areas of work of the Ombudsperson, in particular non- discrimination and fair and equal representation, prisons, health, children, education, social protection, pension and disability insurance and the police. The Ombudsperson Bulletin is issued twice a year. 12

Promotional activities of the Ombudsperson The Ombudsperson paid special attention to the education of the state administration regarding the rights of citizens. Thus, several training sessions were conducted, for the representatives of state agencies and CSOs on the mandate of the Ombudsperson, roundtables on the NPM, and debates on discrimination Regarding the promotion of the role of the Ombudsperson, TV shows were organized, a theater play on anti-discrimination was produced, as well as other promotional activities in the educational system. 13

Status and organizational structure of the Ombudsperson The institution was based on the classical model of national parliamentary ombudspersons in the European countries and represents a special, autonomous, independent, professional and expert institution. The institution has 78 employees. They have the status of civil servants, selected by the Ombudsperson through the Agency for Public Administration. Equal representation is taken into great account, and therefore there are 47 females and 31 male, and the multi-ethnic concept and the fair and equal representation of communities is reflected into the composition of the employees (ethnically, there are 39 Macedonians, 28 Albanians, 3 Serbs, 3 Roma, 2 Vlachs, and one Turk, Bosnyak and Croat each. 14

National Human Rights Institution – Recommendations of the Sub-Committee on Accreditation The Ombudsperson gained status ‘B’ in October, 2011, and aligned with institutions such as those of Austria, Belgium, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary and Sweden. The Sub-Committee recommendations refer to: MANDATE – The Ombudsperson Law predicts a broad protection mandate, but not the mandate to promote human rights. Therefore, the institution is encouraged to lobby for a wider mandate in which all provisions from international and domestic instruments will be included, as well as the promotion of human rights 15

National Human Rights Institution Appointment, composition and pluralism: Provide for wider pluralism in the selection of Deputies and the Secretary General. The process of employing and selecting the Ombudsperson to be more transparent, to ensure pluralism, as well as a wider consultative process, including more civil society actors. The SC encourages the Ombudsperson to lobby for amending the law in the election: with public calls, increasing the number of potential candidates with a greater range of profiles, promoting wider consultations and participation in the selection, and pluralism among the employees. 16

National Human Rights Institution * Financing: With the ratification of OPCAT, the Republic of Macedonia appointed the Ombudsperson as the NPM. However, it did not provide for the necessary resources to realize this additional task. The SC requests the government of Macedonia to provide the necessary financial resources needed for the functioning of the NPM, as per Article 18 of OPCAT. Communication with the international human rights system: The SC pointed out that it is necessary to strengthen the communication with the international bodies, especially with the UN Human Rights Council and the special mechanisms, and to follow the application of recommendations of international bodies regarding the functioning of the national system. 17

Despite the increased acceptance of the Ombudsman’s recommendations, adequate reaction to the practices leading to violations of human rights still lacks An effective approach towards the resolution of negative conditions that the Ombudsperson mentions in the Annual Reports, as well as the NPM reports, is needed The extension of the mandate by including promotion of human rights Promotion and advocating for harmonization of domestic law with international standards, as well as initiating ratification of international instruments Needs and upcoming challenges

Needs and upcoming challenges National Human Rights Institution Strengthening the mechanisms for election with the purpose of ensuring greater trust in and independence of the Ombudsperson. Initiating a special budgetary program for the NPM, to secure functional and operative independence of the NPM. Strengthening the communication with international bodies, especially with the UN Human Rights Council and the special mechanisms, as well as to follow the implementation of recommendations of international bodies regarding the functioning of the national system. 19