Summary of the Report to Parliament Year 2010 the OMBUDSMAN of SPAIN Summary of the Report to Parliament Year 2010 Translation of El Defensor Del Pueblo
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THE OMBUDSMAN OF SPAIN Summary of the report to Parliament Year 2010 THE OMBUDSMAN OF SPAIN Summary of the report to Parliament Year 2010 Translation of El Defensor del Pueblo. Resumen del Informe a las Cortes Generales año 2010 All parts of the text of this publication may be reproduced providing the source is credited. Under no circumstances may reproductions of this document be used for profit. Photos: Ombudsman of Spain, Povedano and M. Robledo ISSN: 2172-2447 Depósito legal: BI 2402-2011 Defensor del Pueblo Pº Eduardo Dato, 31 28010 Madrid-Spain http://www.defensordelpueblo.es [email protected] An Institution that knows no rest María Luisa Cava de Llano y Carrió Acting Ombudsman Thomas Jefferson once said ‘The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.’ In keeping with this maxim, as every year, this Institution is presenting this summary of its Annual Report intended to be a more readily accessible publication so that the citizenry will be able to know the work done by this Office. Nevertheless, it is difficult to summarize the work of an Institution such as the Ombudsman. The figures we are also presenting in this summary provide an idea of how difficult this is indeed. In 2010, nearly 35,000 complaints were processed, meaning a 56% increase over those cases processed in 2009. More than 400 resolutions were put forth, which were accepted in eighty percent of the cases, not to mention the many times this Institution does not need to issue recommendations or suggestions in order for the administration to recognize its error and proceed to correct it on their attention being drawn to the error in question for the first time. Added to this Institution’s regular work this year were the tasks this office has had to undertake on being designated the National Prevention Mechanism Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (NPM). Taking NPM tasks upon itself has also meant more work, as revealed in the ex officio inquiries – which is where the cases opened by the NPM are recorded – which have increased in number from 260 in 2009 to 466 in 2010. This additional workload has been successfully undertaken without any budgeting compensation whatsoever, given that the current economic circumstances have meant that this Institution’s Budget has had to be cut by 2.11 percent. Following ten years in this Institution as the First Deputy, when Enrique Múgica ended his term of office, I have taken on the role of Ombudsman, as is set forth by the Law governing this Institution. My motto has always been and shall always be that ‘standing in’ is not a synonym for ‘standing still’, or a parenthesis in the defense of the fundamental rights. And it is with this motto that we have brought this year of 2010 to a close, this being a year in which this Institution has operated at top per- formance, proof of which are the results we are now presenting. 3 Summary • An Institution that knows no rest, by María Luisa Cava de • Migrations and Equal Treatment: This Institution believes Llano y Carrió, acting Ombudsman the time has come to make a commitment to integration Page 3 policies Page 76 • The crisis has marked 56% rise in the number of complaints dealt with by the Ombudsman in 2010 • Education: The Ombudsman’s Office calls for a pact on Page 5 educational matters Page 86 • Statistics. Close to 35,000 cases handled in 2010 Page 15 • Health Care: The inequalities among Autonomous Communities in the health care benefits provided are the • Year-end status of complaints filed in 2010 leading health care-related complaints Page 24 Page 94 • 17,449 collective complaints • Social Affairs and Employment: The inequalities among Page 28 Autonomous Communities regarding dependency and problems resulting from rising unemployment are the • 466 ex officio complaints major social policy-related complaints Page 30 Page 98 • 448 recommendations to the Public Administrations • Taxes and Duties: The economic crisis and Page 35 unemployment gave rise to numerous complaints related • 106 recommendations, 219 suggestions to paying taxes Page 37 Page 105 • Suggestions accepted • Economic Activity: Widespread discontent among the Page 39 citizenry concerning the treatment dispensed by the financial institutions as reflected by the large number of • Reminders of legal duties complaints lodged in 2010 Page 43 Page 108 • Appeals of Unconstitutionality • Housing and Urban Planning: The Ombudsman’s Office Page 52 puts forth a reminder as to urban planning and housing meeting basic needs not necessarily linked to the market • Administrations which have failed to comply or have or profitability notably delayed their responses to the Ombudsman’s Page 114 official notifications requesting information Page 54 • Environment: The Ombudsman’s Office calls for more stringent environmental prevention by the public powers • Management summary Page 121 Page 57 • Civil Servants: The cutbacks due to the economic crisis, • Supervision of Public Administrations civil servants’ leading complaint Page 61 Page 127 • Justice: This Institution successfully saw to the widow’s • National Torture Prevention Mechanism: The NPM has pension being granted to battered women who had visited 231 places where people are deprived of their waived the compensatory pension liberty during its first year in operation Page 62 Page 131 • Prisons: Overcrowding, the major problem of Spain’s • Other Affairs prison facilities Page 135 Page 66 • Institutional Relations • Citizenship and Public Safety: The Ombudsman’s Office Page 139 advises of a police circular which may give rise to massive arrests of aliens Page 71 4 The Ombudsman of Spain. Summary of the report for 2010 The crisis has marked a 56% rise in the number of complaints dealt with by the Ombudsman in 2010 By sectors of administrative activity, the complaints lodged by citizens as individual complaints reflect the effects resulting from the economic crisis. Most outstanding are those related to the economic planning sectors, such as those regarding the measures taken by the banks and tax-related meas- ures. Also outstanding were the employment and Social Security-related issues and the housing- related issues. Under the heading of collective complaints, most had to do mainly with public sector employees. Underlying many citizen complaints are problems related to the scarcity of budget resources at all levels of the Public Administration. Processing the complaints in these cases inevitably leads to it being possible to achieve effective so- lutions, as those responsible for administrative aspects proper excuse their insufficient response either openly or in a veiled manner based on the many economic difficulties dragging public budgets down today. In many letters, citizens simply explain the precariousness of their situation, due to being out of work or as a result of the extreme difficulties they are confronting trying to make ends meet or provide a solution to personal or family con- flicts which are beyond even the protective work of the ad- Aguilar y Cava de Llano with José Bono ministrations and hence that which this Institution can pro- vide. These are complaints which, on not falling directly within the field of supervision entrusted to the Ombudsman, tionally having proceeded to partially uphold the appeal. are not accepted for processing, although, in each case, an Among many other questions, the Court clearly redefined attempt is made to provide the citizens in question with the the framework of action and cooperation of this Institution best guidance so that they may exercise their rights before with the Catalonian Ombudsman on ruling the phrase ‘of an the respective instances. exclusive nature’ which was included in the wording of Ar- ticle 78.1 of the Statute as being unconstitutional. Thus, 2010 has also been marked by a growing demand from the legal doubts posed over these years regarding the private citizens and public groups who have been coming to scope of this Institution’s field of supervision have been the Ombudsman so that this Institution bring before the settled once and for all, said scope covering all of Spain’s Constitutional Court an appeal of unconstitutionality regard- administrations, bar none, naturally including the adminis- ing a certain provision of law. In 2009, the filing of an appeal trations inherent to this Autonomous Community. Now that was requested for the substance of seven laws, between this period of legal uncertainty has been overcome, it has state and Autonomous Community laws, whilst in 2010 been possible to continue processing citizen complaints these requests have risen to 41 regulatory provisions, al- normally in regard to the actions taken by the Catalonian though solely in three cases did this Institution deem it Administration. necessary to take the respective action before the high court. Another of the challenges which this Institution has taken upon itself in 2010 was that of starting up the specific Another matter of which special mention may be made is activity falling thereto in accordance with Spain’s National that related to the ruling handed down in the appeal of Preventive Mechanism Against Torture and that which is unconstitutionality which this Institution filed on 2006 set forth under the new sole final provision of the Organic against certain rules of Organic Law 6/2006 of July 19th, Law governing the Ombudsman’s actions. Even without which passed the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia cur- availing of extraordinary resources for these purposes, the rently in force. The Constitutional Court rendered a deci- effort made by this Institution’s entire staff has made it pos- sion in June 2010 concerning the interpretational scope of sible to undertake the mission entailed in this new assign- most of the articles challenged by the Ombudsman, addi- ment.