ANNUAL REPORTOF UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS 108 Violation of the right to receive state-guaranteed social benefits, including pension benefits, for internally displaced persons and civilians living in non-government-controlled areas The Commissioner received 654 reports of violations of the right to receive state-guaranteed social benefits, including pension benefits, for internally displaced persons and civilians living in nongovernment-controlled areas. A significant proportion of these appeals contains information on noncompliance with court decisions mandating the PFU to resume pension benefits. Following consideration of appeals and intervention by the Commissioner, in 132 cases the right of citizens to social benefits (including pensions) was restored, and payments in arrears were made. Example Citizen N. appealed to the Commissioner to protect her right to a pension. In her application, she stated that she was internally displaced and had been registered with the PFU in a district of Kyiv since January 2018. At the time of the application, N. was owed UAH 5,890.61 in arrears on her pension (for the period January to May 2018). The situation was complicated by the fact that the applicant had an incurable cancer and needed funds for treatment. After the Commissioner’s intervention, the money was paid to citizen N. According to the Procedure for payment of pension arrears by court decisions approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution 649 of 22 August 2018 (as amended), the PFU pays the pension arrears within the available budget allocations. At the end of the year, arrears to pensioners based on court decisions amounted to more than UAH 9 billion. Given the urgent need to address these problems with pension payments to internally displaced persons, the Commissioner sent letters to the Prime Minister of Ukraine in April and November 2019. CHAPTER 5 The letters highlighted the need to amend Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution 637 of 5 November 2014 “Certain Issues of Social Benefits to Internally Displaced Persons”, in terms of the regulation of a separate procedure for payment of pensions not paid for the month of their renewal. However, many issues affecting internally displaced persons have not been resolved through the Commissioner’s interventions, indicating a need to improve the legislation in force and ensure that relevant central executive authorities act correctly. The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has registered a draft Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine Concerning the Exercise of the Right to a Pension” (no. 2083-d of 26 November 2019) aiming to regulate pension payments to internally displaced persons and persons living in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Every citizen of Ukraine should be able to enjoy constitutional rights and freedoms in full, regardless of whether or not they are registered as internally displaced. Establishment of additional requirements and responsibilities is only allowed in cases and to the extent conditioned by the use of additional/special benefits and that is necessary to prevent abuse of the right to such benefits.