ANNUAL REPORT OF 2019 ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE SEIMAS OMBUDSMEN’S OFFICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA Ombudsmen’s Conference4 organised by the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office on 26 September 2019, which provided an opportunity not only to share and exchange experience, but also to assess the progress of neighbouring countries in the area of ensuring social and economic rights. It should be noted that the proper implementation of social and economic rights is necessary not only from the central point of view, i.e. from the statewide perspective, but also at the municipal level, because self-government institutions, being closest to the individual and having better understanding of the actual needs of the individual, can make optimal decisions in this area and, accordingly, there is a need for the educational work in order to emphasise that social and economic rights are a safeguard of human dignity5. It is necessary to emphasise that the State must take the required measures to ensure that economic and social rights are fully implemented. In many cases, the protection and enforcement of these rights requires large resources that States may not have. However, their lack does not give the State the right not to take the necessary actions or to keep them postponed and delayed. The State must provide the maximum possible protection and ensure these rights within the limits of its own resources, and must demonstrate its commitment to make progress towards their better protection. In accordance with these imperatives, in the near future, i.e. in 2020-2022, the Seimas Ombudsmen will also pay due attention to ensuring social and economic rights of socially vulnerable persons, investigating complaints, performing the functions of the Institution of the National Prevention of Torture and the National Human Rights Institution. 4 http://www.lrski.lt/naujienos/732-siaures-bei-baltijos-salikonferencijoje-lietuvos-demesys-ekonomini-bei-socialiniteisi-uztikrinimo-svarbai.html. E.g., Vainiutė, Milda. Konstitucija – orumo garantas. Savivaldybių žinios, 30 November 2019, No 19(879), p. 32. 5 EVERYONE COUNTS 6 MANDATES OF THE SEIMAS OMBUDSMEN Article 73 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter – the Constitution) establishes that the Seimas Ombudsmen have the duty to investigate the citizens’ complaints about the abuse of office by or bureaucracy of state and municipal officials (except judges). The second part of the same article provides that the powers of the Seimas Ombudsmen shall be established by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Seimas Ombudsmen (hereinafter – the Law on the Seimas Ombudsmen, the Law). Article 3 of the Law, which was amended to take account of the new obligations of the Republic of Lithuania as as a member of the international community, states that there are three main objectives (mandates) of the activities of the Seimas Ombudsmen. It should be noted that in addition to the handling of complaints provided for in the Constitution, following the ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment by the Republic of Lithuania at the end of 2013, the Seimas Ombudsmen were empowered to perform the national prevention of torture, and from 1 January 2018 onwards – were assigned the functions of the national human rights institution. Investigation of complaints The powers of the Seimas Ombudsmen to investigate the citizens’ complaints about the abuse of office by and bureaucracy of officials arise from Article 73 of the Constitution and are enshrined in the Law on the Seimas Ombudsmen. The investigation of complaints accounts for the bigger part of the Seimas Ombudsmen’s activities to which the particular attention is devoted. With a view to achieving that the person’s right to the proper public administration becomes real, the Seimas Ombudsmen, by exercising