A large number of complaints are received every day by her office every day with allegations of human rights violations, Commissioner for the Administration and Protection of Human Rights, Maria Stylianou Lottides said on Tuesday.

In an address to mark International Human Rights Day, the commissioner said the recent expansion of her office’s responsibilities allowed her to intervene more effectively in cases where human rights violations exist.

During 2024, she said, she was called to deal with numerous cases, either based on complaints or through investigations, of human rights violations.

Lottides said she had handled interventions on issues of racism and discrimination, equality, the rights of the LGBTQI+ community, accessibility for people with disabilities, prison living conditions and support for victims of torture and refugees.

She also dealt with cases of access to and use of electronic state services by vulnerable groups of the population, violence against women and hate crimes against third-country nationals.

“As a human rights institution we have submitted reports on issues related to, among others, benefits for people with disabilities, the use of the European disability card, the examination of applications for international protection by Syrians and gender discrimination,” she said.

“This day reminds us that respect for human value and dignity, the creation of solidarity networks and the cultivation of a culture of respect for all people must remain the goals of all,” she added.

Lottides said the equal enjoyment of human rights constitutes the foundation of freedom, justice and peace and all people have the right to them. The state must respect these human rights absolutely, she said.

“Building international human rights law… requires continuous effort,” she added because the guarantee of human rights “does not always exclude their violation”.