Foreigners’ Police respond: Report by the ombudswoman not objective

Foreigners cannot require a servile approach of a state body and demand communication in English by default.

Read more about the findings the Office of the Public Defender of Rights reported about the Foreigners' Police in Slovakia.

It is in the interest of foreigners coming to Slovakia to speak Slovak and clients also need to be critical and not put their names on unofficial waiting lists. The Foreigners’ Police has many objections against the report recently published by the Office of the Public Defender of Rights.

SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement
SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement

In the report, the ombudswoman's office staff visit immigration offices in person and survey foreigners dealing with immigration authorities in Slovakia. They find several shortcomings, most reported in the media previously (unofficial waiting lists in front of immigration offices or the lack of language skills of the officers working in the departments). The report issued a number of recommendations.

SkryťTurn off ads

The Foreigners' Police maintains the report is focused on certain aspects of handling foreigners' administrative work, and as such does not provide a full picture of the demanding activities the Foreigners’ Police has to conduct while providing its services. The Foreigners' Police wrote the aforementioned in its statement provided to The Slovak Spectator, identical to the letter it sent to the ombudswoman's office earlier this week in response to her report.

“In its content, [the report] does not objectively reflect an overall perspective of the researched area of the Foreigners’ Police service,” the police stated.

At the same time, the police perceives it as a positive evaluation that there is no mention of any discrimination practices, fundamental rights or human dignity violations in the report, neither violations of the law on protection against humiliating treatment from the state bodies. The police in their letter pointed to the number of improvements made in recent years, like the electronic appointment booking system, and declared the intention to continue if finances allow.

SkryťTurn off ads

Foreigners should speak Slovak

The rest of this article is premium content at Spectator.sk
Subscribe now for full access

I already have subscription - Sign in

Subscription provides you with:
  • Immediate access to all locked articles (premium content) on Spectator.sk
  • Special weekly news summary + an audio recording with a weekly news summary to listen to at your convenience (received on a weekly basis directly to your e-mail)
  • PDF version of the latest issue of our newspaper, The Slovak Spectator, emailed directly to you
  • Access to all premium content on Sme.sk and Korzar.sk

Top stories

Stock image.

Twice as many Ukrainians work in Slovakia now than before the Russian invasion.


Píšem or pišám?

"Do ľava," (to the left) I yelled, "Nie, do prava" (no, to the right), I gasped. "Dolšie," I screamed. "Nie, nie, horšie..." My Slovak girlfriend collapsed in laughter. Was it something I said?


Matthew J. Reynolds
Czech biochemist Jan Konvalinka.

Jan Konvalinka was expecting a pandemic before Covid-19 came along.


SkryťClose ad