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Zagreb - Ombudswoman Tena Šimonović Einwalter submitted to the Croatian Parliament the written annual report for 2021, which includes an analysis and assessment of the human rights and equality situation in Croatia and 156 recommendations for improving citizens' rights.
According to the statement issued by the Office of the Ombudswoman on Friday, a novelty in the report is a chapter on the right to good governance, which needs to be strengthened, as indicated by numerous complaints by citizens, who complained about the inability to contact public authorities, slowness, a formalistic approach, and other difficulties.
The complaints also show that citizens are often not familiar with their rights and do not know how to exercise them or how to protect themselves. That's why it's important, the ombudswoman said, that public administration bodies make significant efforts to increase accessibility, transparency, and efficiency, in order to improve the currently low trust of citizens in institutions.
Vaccination and COVID certificates polarised the public, sparked many complaints
In 2021, the dominant themes in complaints were related to the epidemic and the aftermath of the earthquake. Regardless of where they live, people affected by the earthquake have a similar impression that not enough has been done to protect their rights, especially in terms of the post-quake reconstruction. Additionally, it is said, the earthquake in Petrinja raised awareness of the difficult social and infrastructural state of that area.
Vaccination and the use of COVID certificates strongly polarised the public and prompted a number of complaints. The epidemic additionally highlighted the long-standing problem in access to healthcare, and thus the right to health, which was most felt by the elderly, people of lower financial status, and those living outside big cities and on islands.
Worrying is also the data on the lack of 116 family medicine teams, especially in Slavonski Brod-Posavina County, or as many as 200 dental healthcare teams, especially in Osijek-Baranja County.
The right to work is also threatened by some long-standing problems, such as the abuse of fixed-term contracts, non-payment of salaries, harassment in the workplace, and undeclared work.
Working from home must be regulated by a new labour act, as does so-called platform work, which refers to working over applications for passenger transport and delivery, which is estimated to employ 30,000 - 40,000 people in Croatia.