The Protector of Citizens is the first institution that the citizens of Serbia would turn to in case their human rights were violated; this is the result of a public opinion survey “Human Rights in the Eyes of Serbia’s Citizens” conducted in November 2020.
The survey, conducted by Belgrade Center for Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Team in Serbia and Ipsos Strategic Marketing, shows that as many as 26.4 percent of Serbian citizens stated that they would first address the Protector of Citizens if their human rights are jeopardized, which is a 7 per cent increase compared to previous year.
"I am pleased that the citizens have recognized the true intention and will of the Protector of Citizens to be a mainstay and support to citizens who cannot exercise their rights before the competent state bodies. This is reflected in manifold increase of citizens’ addresses to this institution during 2020", the Protector of Citizens, Zoran Pasalić stated.
Due to the pandemic, the Institution of the Protector of Citizens has had several times more work this year than in previous years, which was why we reorganized the way our Secretariat works, increased the number of own initiative investigations and intensified monitoring over citizens' rights exercise, Mr. Pasalić has said.
The Protector of Citizens would keep intensifying the control over the work of competent bodies regarding the realization of guaranteed rights of citizens, especially when it comes to vulnerable categories of the population, taking into account the altered living conditions imposed by Covid-19 pandemic, Mr. Pašalić underlined.
The survey has shown that the citizens recognized the right to health, freedom of movement and media freedoms as most jeopardized rights in Serbia in 2020, the year marked by COVID-19 pandemic.