As of January 2015, the agenda of human rights will move – from the Foreign and European Affairs Ministry to the Justice Ministry led by Tomáš Borec.
His ministry will be in charge of human rights agenda in the cabinet of Robert Fico. Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák confirmed the swap; this agenda has been under his jurisdiction since 2012. Lajčák argues, as quoted by the Sme daily, that he will be busy because of the situation in Ukraine and Slovakia’s upcoming EU presidency.
Human rights activists are satisfied with the change, too, and believe that the protection of human rights will be more efficient under Borec. “We have criticised in the long term that minister coordinated only something rather abstract, and that no specific steps have been defined,” Martin Macko of the non-governmental organisation Inakosť said for Sme.
The most important case in this area that Lajčák’s ministry had to deal with was the police raid in Moldava nad Bodvou in summer 2013. He admits that he does not have an opinion on the event, as his ministry functioned only as “a postman” in this case. He advocated the attitude of the cabinet beginning this year, when it refused to hear Ombudswoman Jana Dubovcová.
(Source: Sme)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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