The President of the Republic Mr Nicos Anastasiades received today, at the Presidential Palace, the annual report of the Commissioner for Administration and Human Rights Protection, Ms Maria Stylianou Lottidis.
Handing over the report, Ms. Lottidi said that this is the report for 2020 as well as individual reports of the Commissioner's Office, an institution that completed 30 years of existence in 2021.
She added that these show the role and the many responsibilities of the Commissioner and who willingly responds for the sake of citizens.
As the Commissioner said, "undoubtedly at the heart of it was the pandemic that tests the resilience of each state and citizens individually in terms of limiting their rights. Clearly, we had to and we were at the side of every citizen in order to stop any possible violation that was beyond the intended purpose within the framework of proportionality and the necessity of the measures.
Apart from this, however, I would like to note the timeless role of the Commissioner to stand by every governor, every person, every citizen and to point out any maladministration, to seek the removal of any injustice. To highlight some of the interventions of 2020 such as moving the asphalt units in Dali, it was a special intervention that we made and I am very happy to realize that there is a decision already by the Cabinet to move them, but also our continued role in every vulnerable group of the population such as all migrants, asylum seekers, people with disabilities, but also our fellow citizens who are in a more difficult position than us and need the social benefits. And so in this way we have contributed, and you will see it in the reports, to ensure that the benefits to which they are entitled are paid in due course so that they too can have a decent living.
In addition to the annual report, I would like to refer to our special publication on our interventions related to COVID-19 and our newly operationalized competence, which is the National Mechanism for the Monitoring of Forced Returns launched in 2018 and operationalized in 2019. We are now monitoring the returns of irregular migrants, i.e. those who have lost their residence permits and whether there is any violation of their rights from the moment of their deportation until they board the plane."
The Commissioner also delivered special publications for 2020 on monitoring the implementation of the UN Convention on Persons with Disabilities and on the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman and Degrading Treatment. This means that we visit any place or person subject to restraint whether it is in prisons or detention centres or in a reception area or in old people's homes or a mental hospital."
He also handed over a report from the Anti-Discrimination Agency which imposes fines as in the case of the TEPAC, he said.
He also handed over a guide publication for prisoners new to prisons to know their rights and finally, he delivered the first edition of the National Human Rights Authority, thanking the President and members of the Cabinet for contributing to the independence of the Authority by exempting officials of the Office of the Commissioner of Administration from general examinations and participating in special subject examinations set by the Commissioner.
For his part, the President of the Republic thanked and congratulated the Commissioner "because indeed, the completion of 30 years since the establishment of the institution rewards the thought and the need to create the institution through a multitude of actions concerning the protection of human rights in general, without going into details, moreover, the diversity of the issues you deal with are recorded through most of your action reports. And it is particularly satisfactory that - and it does not bother the State in the least - when and where it is found that there are violations of fundamental rights, even through the failure or negligence of some to strictly observe laws, regulations and policies, you point this out, ensuring the independence of the institution on the one hand and on the other hand pointing out what the Government should do or be more careful in what it does.
In this way you have made a significant contribution to correcting distortions, to correcting many times incorrect administrative decisions either by ministries or by the central government in the form of the Council of Ministers, which is why I want to reiterate that I am completely satisfied with the work you are doing, you have shown that you dare to intervene where and when you need to intervene and this is important, and this is what protects the independence of the institution.
Of course, the reports will be studied carefully, so that appropriate instructions can be given to the competent authorities to be even more diligent in the performance of their duties."
PM/EX/SX
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