Ombudsman: Number of complaints received up by fifth in 2012

The Czech ombudsman, Pavel Varvařovský, said on Tuesday that his office had received one fifth more complaints in 2012 than the previous year. Mr. Varvařovský said the increase was due to the impact of government social reforms and austerity measures implemented in response to an ongoing recession in the Czech Republic. He also said Czechs had become more aware of their rights and more determined to seek justice. The Ombudsman’s Office, which is based in Brno, received nearly 8,650 complaints last year, with issues surrounding social security the most common.