Proposal for establishing a national institution (agency) to promote and protect human rights (unofficial draft)

Questions for the expert consultation on the possibilities of creating a national institution for the protection and promotion of human rights in the Republic of Slovenia
 

Ljubljana, 20 October (STA) - The feasibility of setting up a suitable national institution for the protection and promotion of human rights in Slovenia topped the agenda of a panel on human rights institutions, which took place on Monday.

Experts from around the world were welcomed by Speaker of Parliament Borut Pahor, who said that Ombudsman Matjaz Hanzek's annual report would be examined in Parliament next week.

The report of Slovenia's human rights ombudsman will be the basis for a proposal on the set-up of the institution. In his speech, Pahor noted that the conclusions of the round table, which is to wrap up tomorrow, might be a good start for parliamentary debates on this issue.

Matjaz Hanzek, whose office has organised the event, launched the initiative for establishing a special institution for human rights, with a view to have general aspects regarding human rights consistently covered. These would include the promotion of human rights, education, research and coordination of anti-discriminatory policies in the countries, explained Hanzek's deputy Jernej Rovsek.

In principle the government has backed the proposal, but the issue has also opened numerous questions in terms of system and organisation, which is why Hanzek proposed this conference of international experts, Rovsek pointed out.

Head of the Information and Documentation Centre of the Council of Europe Liana Kalcina, meanwhile, stressed that some surveys in Slovenia point to an increasing political and national indifference, which is also evident in increasingly poor election turnout.

Other factors that seem to be on the increase include hidden forms of discrimination, xenophobia, and certain forms of nationalism. Therefore, the measures taken so far in Slovenia are clearly insufficient, Kalcina observed, saying that, for this reasons the appropriate "authorities are often imprisoned by the government's policy, as their way of solving certain issues can often be seen as anti-government activity".

Kalcina highlighted the fact that Slovenia's government offices practically never publish any tenders on human rights, which would enable NGOs to obtain funds for operating in this field. For this reason an independent body for the protection of human rights would be essential to avoid any interference on the part of the authorities currently in power.