Protection of the rights of persons subjects to parliamentary inquiries

The project aims to address several significant challenges related to the proposed amendments to the Slovenian Parliamentary Inquiry Act (ZPPre-B). The main concern is the potential reduction of human rights protections and judicial safeguards for individuals and organisations subjected to parliamentary inquiries. In particular, the proposed legislation would limit the possibility of seeking constitutional review at an early stage and could leave investigated persons without effective judicial protection if no final report is issued. The project also addresses concerns about safeguards ensuring the impartiality of parliamentary inquiry commissions.

Another important challenge is the risk of political misuse of parliamentary inquiries, especially against NGOs, activists, and individuals who publicly criticise those in power. The project seeks to address the lack of legal knowledge among potentially affected civil society actors by providing practical information about their rights and available legal remedies. Finally, it aims to improve public and professional understanding of the proposed changes, encourage informed public debate, and strengthen civil society's capacity to respond to potential threats to the rule of law and democratic safeguards.

The project aims to prevent or mitigate harmful changes to the legal framework governing parliamentary inquiries and to strengthen the protection of human rights and democratic safeguards in Slovenia. It will conduct a comprehensive legal and comparative analysis of the proposed ZPPre-B amendments, with expert input from specialists in constitutional law and parliamentary inquiries. The project will also contribute legal expertise to relevant constitutional and referendum proceedings where appropriate.

In parallel, the project aims to inform the professional community, media, and wider public about the legal and democratic implications of the proposed changes through accessible legal analyses, public statements, website and social media publications, and media engagement. A further objective is to strengthen the preparedness of NGOs, activists, and human rights advocates who may become subjects of parliamentary inquiries. Through practical legal guidance and a dedicated educational event, participants will learn about their rights, possible risks, available legal remedies, and how to respond to requests for personal, financial, or communication-related information. Overall, the project seeks to strengthen legal awareness, public debate, and civil society resilience.

The project aims to achieve several concrete results for different target groups. The first objective is to increase the expertise and credibility of the Legal Network for the Protection of Democracy (PMVD) in the field of parliamentary inquiries. This will be achieved by holding a consultation with at least one lawyer specialising in constitutional law, preparing and publishing at least one legal analysis, and publishing at least one additional article on the topic on the PMVD website. The project will also contribute to PMVD’s participation in relevant legal proceedings. The results are primarily intended for lawyers, judges, decision-makers and other professional audiences. As part of the project, at least 10 media contributions featuring an opinion or statement by PMVD will be prepared.

The second objective is to increase the general public’s awareness and encourage a high-quality public debate on the constitutional-law aspects of parliamentary inquiries. Journalists, engaged citizens and other interested members of the public will gain access to clear and professionally substantiated information through website publications, social media, a newsletter and media appearances. The reach of publications on the website and social media will amount to at least 25,000 views, and at least one PMVD newsletter presenting the topic will also be sent. The project will also include analysis and monitoring of responses to the publications.

The third objective is to improve the legal protection, preparedness and resilience of non-governmental organisations, activists and human rights defenders. Through practical training, they will gain knowledge about their rights, the limitations of parliamentary inquiry committees, the protection of personal and other data, and the available legal remedies. As part of the project, at least one letter will be prepared for institutions and companies that may provide parliamentary committees with access to data; the letter will be sent to at least five institutions or companies, and the responses and content of the letters sent will be monitored. An attendance list will be prepared for the event, which will be attended by at least 15 people. At least 80% of participants will consider themselves better prepared, following the training, for a potential parliamentary inquiry concerning them or their NGO. The project will thus contribute to greater legal awareness, the preparedness of civil society, and the protection of democratic standards and the rule of law.