The report was presented by Ombudsman Vlasta Nussdorfer, who called for good and responsible governance and added that solutions for improving the respect of human rights in Slovenia did not require a lot of money.

She assessed that cooperation between ministries in this field was weak, with certain bodies facing a shortage of staff. Inspection services also need to be strengthened and they need to act, Nussdorfer stressed.

The ombudsman pointed to the overcrowdedness of institutions housing persons with mental and physical disabilities, which according to her work in "shameful conditions".

Nussdorfer has meanwhile noticed progress in the respect of the labour legislation. But not everybody who works is paid and some employers still do not pay social contributions for their workers, she said, adding that inspection services should act.

The opposition New Slovenia (NSi) warned that the recommendations from the ombudsman were repeated every year, which is something Slovenia should not be proud of.

NSi MP Blaž Pavlin pointed to the delays in the processing of complaints related to the rights to social transfers, and was also critical of the lack of responsiveness of the Health Ministry, as emphasised in the report.

The opposition Democrats (SDS) said that poverty was still a huge problem in Slovenia. Energy poverty is also a problem, said MP Eva Irgl, noting that it was faced mostly by single elderly women, households with the lowest income, pensioners and unemployed.

The opposition Left said that human rights should be respected without exceptions. "For young people, buying an apartment in Ljubljana is science fiction," said Željko Cigler, adding that supervision over payment of wages and contributions was insufficient.

The coalition Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) focused on the elderly, with Jurij Lep saying that retirement homes were overcrowded and prices of services too high, which was why retirees were leaving for retirement homes abroad, mostly to Croatia.

The ruling Marjan Šarec List (LMŠ) pointed to faculty buildings being inaccessible for students with disabilities. More should be done in this field, said Aljaž Kovačič, who was also critical of delays in the processing of complaints at the secondary level.

The coalition Social Democrats (SD) said that there was still much room for improvement in all fields of human rights. SD deputy Meira Hot said that the ombudsman was a "mirror to the state", adding that numerous initiatives meant that people trusted the institution.

The ombudsman's report is a thorough and analytical review of the situation of human rights in Slovenia, said the Modern Centre Party (SMC). Its MP Mojca Žnidarič said that the lawmakers should be critical of the areas where the ombudsman had detected insufficient progress.

Žnidarič also touched on hate speech, saying that the SMC would not accept the idea that hate speech in Slovenia was only an apparent fabrication.

Speaking on behalf of the Italian and Hungarian minorities, the Italian MP Felice Žiža commended the ombudsman for helping make progress in the use of Italian and Hungarian languages in the areas populated by the respective minorities.

Source: STA