EC Tells Georgia Judge Vetting Part of EU Negotiation “Fundamentals”
In a brief statement issued by the Spokesperson of the European External Action Service (EEAS), the European Commission told Georgia that the comprehensive reform of the judiciary, with an accent on the integrity of all leading positions in the judiciary, is a part of “fundamentals” – the preconditions for opening the accession negotiations.
In particular, the statement notes that “Georgia needs to establish a system of extraordinary integrity checks, with the involvement of international experts with a decisive role in the process, for candidates and persons currently appointed to all leading positions in the judiciary, in particular the High Council of Justice, the Supreme Court, and court presidents.”
The statement comes on the heels of the declarations of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Speaker Shalva Papuashvili and that the issue of “vetting” of the high justices – a term that encapsulates the definition provided in the EC statement above – was “closed” and “contrary to the Constitution.”
The EC statement also expressed concerns about the recent denigrating comments the officials made against the individual judges who supported integrity checks.
Read also:
- 20/03/24 – Dozens of CSOs React to PM, Speaker Statements on Ruling Out “Vetting” of Judges
- 15/03/2024 – Two Supreme Court Judges Disagree with Court’s Denunciation of Proposed ‘Vetting’
- 13/03/2024 – Watchdogs: Government’s Refusal of Vetting in Judiciary Hinders EU Integration
- 11/03/2024 – Supreme Court Denounces Proposed ‘Vetting’ as Threat to Judicial Independence
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