Belgrade Ombudsman: Number of Local Ombudspersons Must Be Increased

Belgrade (BETAPHOTO/EMIL VAS)

City of Belgrade ombudsman Mirko Valjarevic said on May 20 that there were 174 units of local government in Serbia, of which only 23 had their local ombudspersons, and that the number should be increased.

"Adopting a law on the local ombudsperson would institute this body as mandatory and regulate its status, jurisdiction, procedures and everything else needed for its operation," Valjarevic, also head of the Association of Ombudspersons of Serbia, told the Politika daily.

He said local ombudspersons were introduced in the Law on local government, but as their appointment was not mandatory, appointees' terms expired without replacements being named, most often due to staffing and financial reasons. "A candidate applying to be ombudsperson must have graduated from the School of Law, passed the bar exam and have at least five years of experience, while the salary is on a par with those received by civil servants," Valjarevic said.

According to him, there is no shortage of staff in Belgrade, but many opt for other jobs due to the pay. "In smaller communities, on the other hand, the number of those who meet the requirements is considerably lower, so local government heads find it, if I may be permitted to say, more significant to have, say, a head of administration than an ombudsperson. You have some 40 municipalities in Serbia that don't have public defenders, which is mandatory by law, let alone ombudspersons," Valjarevic said.