Annual Report | National Mechanism for the Investigation of Arbitrary Incidents 2024

In Debrecen, Hungary, Czech Ombudsman Stanislav Křeček and his deputy Vít Alexander Schorm met with their counterparts from Slovakia, Hungary, and Poland for regular multilateral talks. This year's meeting was devoted mainly to the exchange of experiences with the protection of the rights of persons deprived of their liberty and the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities. Through their activities, ombudspersons perform the tasks of a national preventive mechanism under the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture, and most of them also perform the tasks of a monitoring body under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

„I greatly appreciate the opportunity to cooperate and engage in dialogue with my colleagues from the Visegrad Four countries. All four countries have a combined population of approximately 62.25 million, and their ombudsmen receive more than 40,000 complaints each year. At our joint meetings, we always discuss current and important issues that we encounter in our work in the field of human rights. All European institutions should operate on a similar principle of sharing experiences. I am convinced that meetings in this format have a long-term and irreplaceable benefit," said Ombudsman Stanislav Křeček about the summit.

The ombudsmen also shared their methods for conducting unannounced visits to facilities, whether for the purpose of preventive protection against inhuman or degrading treatment or as part of monitoring the rights of persons with disabilities. „Together, we discussed, for example, the methodology and strategy for conducting visits to remand prisons and care facilities. We focused in particular on interviews with inmates and facility staff, documentation, and follow-up procedures. We also visited a brand new prison in Csenger, Hungary, designed for male prisoners under maximum security, built on the model of the most secure facilities of its kind in the world. It will be interesting to see what criticisms, if any, the national preventive mechanism for ill-treatment will have about the conditions in this facility with the benefit of hindsight," said Deputy Ombudsman Vít Alexander Schorm.

List of ombudsperson of the Visegrad Group: 
Czech Republic: Stanislav Křeček 
Poland: Marcin Wiącek 
Hungary: Ákos Kozma 
Slovakia: Róbert Dobrovodský

What is the National Preventive Mechanism?  
Its purpose is to monitor the protection of the rights and dignity of persons deprived of their liberty in accordance with the obligations enshrined in the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT). In 2006, the Ombudsman's agenda was expanded for the first time to include oversight of restrictions on personal liberty. Since then, the Czech Ombudsman has been the national preventive mechanism, protecting persons deprived of their liberty from ill-treatment. The team supervising the restriction of personal liberty visits places where people are deprived of their liberty. For example, they visit children's homes, retirement homes, psychiatric hospitals, prisons, cells, and other facilities. 
 

Informing residents about hazards arising from the living environment is a state responsibility and one of the measures of civil protection. Internationally, the goal has been set that every person must receive an early warning in the event of danger. In Estonia, the active development of rapid warning began in 2018, and the first stage of the system was completed at the end of 2022.

As of 19 January 2023, in cases of events that endanger people’s lives, health, or the security of the state, and during government-level exercises, it has been possible to send an alert to the mobile phones of those located in a defined danger area. The law refers to this as an area-based rapid warning. A year later, the law was amended to grant the right to send warnings also during extensive military exercises.

The area-based rapid warning is transmitted as a location-based SMS (in Estonia, the sender name is EE-ALARM). The area-based rapid warning via SMS is one of the channels for delivering alerts. For the location-based transmission of such SMS, it is necessary to process the location data of mobile devices situated in the designated danger zone. The article analyses the resulting interference with the rights of recipients and the permissibility of such processing in the case of different types of events.

Helen Ojamaa-Muru, Adviser to the Chancellor of Justice, together with two co-authors, published an article on this subject in the journal Juridica.

Members of the Committee on Direct Citizen Participation, Citizens’ Complaints, and Interaction with Civil Society heard today the candidate for Deputy Ombudsman Maria Filipova.

1 September 2025

Members of the Committee on Direct Citizen Participation, Citizens’ Complaints, and Interaction with Civil Society heard today the candidate for Deputy Ombudsman Maria Filipova.

She was presented by Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva. Delcheva reminded the MPs that on 14 August 2025, the Ombudsman Institution held a public hearing of three candidates for the position of deputy ombudsman, nominated by non-governmental organisations.

The candidates were evaluated by a committee formed by the Ombudsman, including members of the Advisory Council to the Ombudsman – Prof. Tsvetan Sivkov, Prof. Gabriela Belova, Assoc. Prof. Ralitsa Ilkova, Assoc. Prof. Aneta Antonova, and Assoc. Prof. Hristo Ormandzhiev, in accordance with a pre-announced methodology on the Ombudsman's website. The committee ranked Ms. Maria Filipova first.

Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva pointed out that Maria Filipova has a master's degree in law from the University of National and World Economy and additional qualifications and specializations in assessing the impact of legislation and public policies, implementation of EU law in Bulgaria, legal regulation and application of the Civil Procedure Code, specifics of intercultural communication, etc.

She added that Maria Filipova has many years of professional experience in the field of human rights as a practicing lawyer, junior and senior expert at the Ministry of Justice, deputy chair of the Financial Supervision Commission, and chair of the Consumer Protection Commission.

The Ombudsman pointed out that in her concept for work as Deputy Ombudsman, Maria Filipova focused on the following sensitive human rights issues: the need for direct contact with citizens on important current issues (access to drinking water, quality of public services, access to healthcare, etc.), conducting information campaigns targeting the needs of different social groups (the elderly, children, people with disabilities, etc.) in connection with the transition to the euro, protecting consumers from unfair commercial practices and unfair terms in relations between citizens and public service providers, etc.

"As evident from the proposal of the Bulgarian National Association of Active Consumers, Maria Filipova possesses the requiredy personal and professional qualities, resolve and steadfastness in defending consumer rights, which will enable her to effectively perform the duties of Deputy Ombudsman," Delcheva stated.

The Ombudsman also pointed out to the MPs that Filipova had been actively involved in issues related to citizens' rights and freedoms and, in her capacity as an expert at the Ministry of Justice, had been part of the team that drafted the new Criminal Code. She participated in public consultations, following which amendments and additions were proposed to the Enforcement of Sentences and Detention Act, the Judiciary System Act, and legislation in the field of juvenile justice.

Maria Filipova, who is currently chair of the CPC, emphasized that she would continue to maintain good communication and partnership with the media and MPs so that citizens' rights were protected without compromise.  

She added that the outreach reception meetings will be an important part of her work, so that people feel the presence of the Ombudsman close to them and recognize the Institution as their defender.

When asked by MPs in various forms whether she would accept the position of caretaker prime minister, Maria Filipova replied that she had already stated her opinion on the matter and would no longer answer hypothetical questions.