CONFIDENCE IN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM WILL BE RESTORED WHEN THE LAW IS APPLIED INDISCRIMINATELY
Have the capacities in the justice system improved in terms of personnel potential, and the dilemmas around recruiting the judicial and prosecutorial staff?
Have we made a qualitative step forward in the methodology of assessing the work quality of the judges and the public prosecutors according to the complexity of the cases?
Will the law on managing movement of cases in courts and the digitalization of the justice system solve the problems of the duration of the procedures?
These are the three questions on which today, at the Club of Deputies, during the tenth session of the National Convention on the European Union in North Macedonia on the topic “The current challenges in the Macedonian justice system through the perspective of the recommendations of the national convention on the European Union in North Macedonia”, organized by the European Movement, Macedonian and Slovakian experts, university professors, representatives from the Supreme Court, the Basic Criminal Court, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Judicial Council, lawyers and other representatives of the civil sector debated.
The dialogue was opened by the national coordinator and the president of the European Movement, Mileva Gjurovska, who pointed out that during the last 9 sessions by Working Group 3, for Justice and Fundamental Rights, of the National Convention on the European Union for Chapter 23, more than 100 recommendations were debated and accepted, which encompass vital segments of the reforms of the justice system.
“In the last 4 years, since the National convention started operating, not only did we learn how to lead a structural dialogue, we also managed to increase the visibility of the need to improve the justice system in our country, and a higher expertise, which through expert analysis helps to implement EU standards an achieve better functionality”, said Gjurovska.
That through these debates from the NCEU all the capacities of the country have prepared for the upcoming process of negotiations with the EU confirmed the chief of the Slovak association for foreign politics from Bratislava, Tomas Strazay.
“The total 43 debates from NCEU so far, through which more than 1000 experts have passed, are proff that this platform is a successful instrument for the EU integration process, for which Slovakia is trying to get to the negotiations stage as quick as they can. The Macedonian and Slovakian experts should continue to work on the mutual stability and EU perspective, whether it’s about EU members, or member candidates”, explained Strazay.
When it comes to the perception of the justice system, it was mentioned on the debate that the confidence is low, and that that should be the incentive for bettering the conditions on that front.
“The problem isn’t just the quality of the laws, but the way they are implemented as well. Even the worst law can be a good law if it is implemented non-selectively. The ministry of justice is working in that direction to create optimal conditions for the justice system to become effective and efficient”, explained the minister of justice, Nikola Tupanchevski.
He added that the justice system will be better the moment we prove as a country that for all of the serious crimes, no matter from which sphere they are – economic crime, computer crime, there will be sentences that are proportional to the law. So in that direction, he encouraged the courts, prosecutors, and all other institutions that “dispense justice” to be up to the task.
In regard to the new methodology for judge evaluation, Minister Tupanchevski believes that its results will improve the situation drastically.
“The EU standards regarding the number of judges is clear – there should be 21.5 judges per 100,000 people, and according to that standard, we have more judges than we need in our country. But it’s a fact that optimization and rationalization should be done about the justice system, because the biggest burden on courts falls in Skopje, since it is the largest city with the largest number of inhabitants”, said Tupanchevski.
Some new solutions were announced like the Law on Pardons, with which the President will not be able to pardon anyone before there is a court process for them, so he will be able to pardon only after the final judgment. The new law, as the minister said, has specified deadlines and competences of the institutions, and the president will have the final word
Regarding the possibility of vetting in the judiciary, he pointed out that the comparative experience in neighboring Albania showed that it is not the best recipe or algorithm for solving situations.