Investigations

Tuesday, 5 January 2016
The Protector of Citizens has received a number of complaints from parents and children against the Secretariat for Education and Childcare of the City Administration of Belgrade (“Secretariat”). The complainants alleged their children had been subjected to violence in educational institutions and the educational institutions had not undertaken measures against violence, while the Secretariat’s Educational Inspectorate had not correctly and fully found all relevant facts.

After conducting an investigation into the lawfulness and regularity of operations of the Secretariat, taking into account the allegations made in the complaints and their supplements, a statement made by that authority, statements made by primary and secondary schools, a report by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development and the supplied documentation, the Protector of Citizens found that the Secretariat:

- had not fully and correctly investigated in its extraordinary inspections whether educational institutions had properly applied the regulations which govern the education process and provide for the protection of children and pupils from violence, abuse and neglect;

- had not ordered (appropriate) action to remedy the omissions and their harmful consequences;

- had not found all facts relevant for determining whether the inspected educational institutions had undertaken remedial measures as ordered;

- had not acted as required by statute in cases where educational institutions failed to comply with its orders.

The Protector of Citizens issued 79 recommendations to the Secretariat and ordered it to respond and provide information on its compliance with the recommendations within 60 days.

Monday, 4 January 2016

The Municipality of Batočina has not undertaken measures to maintain the water course for flood prevention purposes and has failed to ensure the recovery from last year’s floods. The Protector of Citizens has found that the municipal authorities treated unfairly those complainants who voiced their dissatisfaction with the work of the Municipality.

Monday, 4 January 2016

The Protector of Citizens has found that the municipal authorities of Ljig passed two administrative instruments with contradictory legal effects, thus extending a dispute in which the complainant has been waiting for a resolution for nearly eighteen years. The public authorities of this Municipality have also not fulfilled their obligation to cooperate with the Protector of Citizens.

Monday, 4 January 2016

The Protector of Citizens has found that the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment Protection did not undertake measures to provide for effective functioning of local self-government committees on handling requests and passing decisions on restitution of seized land. Some complainants claim they have not received such decision even after more than twenty years of waiting.

Friday, 1 January 2016

The Protector of Citizens has issued a recommendation to the Transport Secretariat of the City Administration of Belgrade to provide guidance to all public transport companies and to inform the users of public transport by appropriate means of the right of persons with disabilities to move with the help of service dogs in public transport vehicles. The Protector of Citizens also welcomes the timely response of the Public Transport Company “Belgrade”, which offered a public apology for the recent unacceptable and unlawful treatment of a passenger and her service dog.

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 12:12 |

An investigation by the Protector of Citizens found 30 instances of unlawful and irregular actions in the treatment of reporters of the “Istinomer” website by the Municipal Police of the City of Belgrade on 25 September 2015 and in the subsequent operations undertaken by that authority in the wake of the said event.

The most significant omissions by the Municipal Police include unlawful and improper use of physical force, an unlawful warning given to citizens that they were allegedly not allowed to record municipal police officers, repeated inspection of citizens’ identification documents during a single operation, threats by a municipal police officer who said he would destroy a recording device if the crew did not stop filming and failure to respect the dignity of the citizens against whom the officers used their powers.

Wednesday, 23 December 2015 00:00|

The work of relevant public authorities should be coordinated and directed as soon as possible towards amending and harmonising the legislative framework and passing the necessary implementing regulations which would close the existing gaps in social housing policies and enable full and effective enjoyment of the right to housing by vulnerable groups of citizens, reads a communication sent by the Protector of Citizens to the Government of the Republic of Serbia

Recommendation to the The Tax Administration and the Republic Health Insurance Fund to take all necessary measures in terms of keeping and organising its official or registry records, pursuant to the Law

Attachments:

Recommendation to the The Tax Administration and the Republic Health Insurance F