For citizens’ rights

“Good administration requires much more than merely refraining from illicit conduct. Officials should put themselves to the service of citizens and guarantee appropriate treatment in the full respect of their rights”. Nikiforos Diamandouros, European Mediator, on April 15 presented his “2007 Annual Report” which synthesizes cases of poor administration by Community institutions along with the complaints filed by EU citizens, associations and enterprises on this issue. Now the report will undergo scrutiny by Strasbourg’s Parliament. The Charter of Rights, a step forward. Before delving into the details of his activity, the Greek jurist introduced a series of remarks on the relationship between the European Union and the citizens and on the “service” performed by Community officials. He then explained: “The year 2007 has been an important year for citizens’ rights to good administration. On December 12 the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights was promulgated” by the Parliament, Council and Commission Presidents. “The Commitment for a legally binding Charter, included in the Lisbon Treaty, reflects an increasing awareness of the need to place citizens at the centre of Europe’s interests”. From the viewpoint of the Mediator, “the Charter is innovative in recognising, for the very first time”, with article 41, “the right to good administration as one of the fundamental rights of Union citizens”. Defending citizens’ interests. The task of the European Mediator (also called Ombudsman) is to protect citizens’ interests in their relations with Brussels’ and Strasbourg’s institutions. When he receives a complaint, the Mediator intervenes with the support of his staff (actually with scarce human resources and means) with an inner inquiry, seeking firstly conciliation, and if this is not possible, reaching the stage of Court proceedings. “European bodies and institutions actively worked in the year 2007 to the resolution of complaints, to remedy injustices and correct mistakes – pointed out Diamandouros, who has been in charge since 2003 -. The number of cases solved by the interested institutions doubled in the course of the year. For the first time, 35% of the complaints filed to the Mediator were shelved thanks to a friendly agreement with the institution called into question”. “The importance of this success for claimants, and for citizens in general, shouldn’t be underestimated. I firmly believe we are making consistent progress towards a real culture of service”. Over three-thousand complaints, but only few are “admissible”. In 2007 3,211 new complaints have been submitted to the Mediator, (3,056 from private citizens and 155 from associations or enterprises), compared to 3,830 the previous year. At the same time, the number of admissible complaints (those accurately submitted on issues falling within the competence of the Mediator and the EU) increased, reaching the number of 518, which represents 16% of all complaints. This data opens a reflection on the number of inappropriate complaints filed by EU citizens. According to the 2007 Report, 58% of all complaints were sent in via e-mail or through the form available on-line, on the institution’s website. Germans and Spaniards are the most active. Germany ranks first in the number of complaints (507) followed by Spain, France, Poland, Belgium, Italy, Romania, United Kingdom. In relation to the population, the most “proactive” Countries filing complaints to the Mediator are Luxembourg, Malta and Cyprus. “In almost 70% of the cases, the Mediator was able to assist the claimant – Nikiforos Diamandouros explained – by undertaking an inquiry, transferring the complaint to the competent body or providing counseling regarding the offices which will effectively solve the problem”. This year 303 inquiries were undertaken following complaints, while the Mediator personally decided to undertake six inquiries. Lack of transparency and discrimination. Just like previous years, most of the surveys (64% of the total) involved the European Commission, followed by the EU office for personnel selection, by the Parliament and by the anti-fraud office: “This is understandable – the Ombudsman clarified – considering that the Executive’s decisions directly affect citizens.” Alleged bad administration complaints concern mostly: lack of transparency and refusal to supply information (28%); iniquity or power abuse (18%); procedural flaws (13%), unavoidable delays (9%), discrimination (8%), negligence (8%), juridical errors (5%)”.