FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The National Association of Judges of the Republic of Albania has considered the statements and comments of Prime Minister Edi Rama regarding the decision of the GJKKO, which decided to suspend Belinda Balluku from government positions, following the request of SPAK, as political pressure.
The Prime Minister addressed the Constitutional Court to challenge the decision of the Constitutional Court, describing it as an open interference of one power in the powers of another.
"I appealed, of course as prime minister and not as Edi Rama, and certainly not for an individual, a minister who in this case is also deputy prime minister, but for the principle. For the principle of not violating the balance between powers. For the principle of non-interference of an independent power in the composition of the independent executive power. For the principle of not taking the powers of the prime minister and the president from a prosecutor and a judge.
"If the suspension of a minister by a prosecutor and a judge were to be legitimized today as a legitimate right of justice, then extending the judiciary's arm beyond the dividing line with the executive and with Albanian political life itself would create a dangerous and threatening precedent," Rama declared.
In the reaction of the Judges' Association, any statement regarding judicial issues is political pressure.
"The separation and balance of powers is one of the fundamental principles of democracy, therefore the independence of the judiciary, the final arbiter for resolving all disputes, constitutes a cornerstone for building a state of law. This independence is put at risk not only by concrete actions aimed at limiting the sphere of competence of this power, but also by any act or statement that is perceived as a threat or political pressure on judicial activity or that lowers the reputation of the justice bodies in the eyes of the public and, in this way, undermines its trust in these bodies," the reaction states.
Reaction:
The National Association of Judges of the Republic of Albania has been closely following the public communication of the Prime Minister of the country for several days regarding the judicial case in charge of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, which is being reviewed simultaneously by the Constitutional Court, as well as by special courts.
The Association expresses its concern and indignation regarding the approach that the head of the executive branch has chosen to take regarding this issue, which is part of the jurisdiction of the judiciary. Under the guise of a complaint about the usurpation of executive and legislative powers by the judiciary, there is actually a message of pressure on the justice bodies that have the issue in question to consider. Also, such daily messages fed to the general public aim to create a climate of distrust towards the judiciary and can be further used as a pretext for taking erosive measures against the latter.
The Association reiterates that the separation and balance of powers is one of the fundamental principles of democracy, therefore the independence of the judiciary, the final arbiter for the resolution of all disputes, constitutes a cornerstone for the construction of a state based on the rule of law. This independence is put at risk not only by concrete actions aimed at limiting the scope of competences of this power, but also by any act or statement that is perceived as a threat or political pressure on judicial activity or that lowers the reputation of the judicial bodies in the eyes of the public and, in this way, undermines its trust in these bodies. The European Commission in its reports on Albania has addressed as a concern the continued attempts to intervene and pressure the judicial system by senior public officials and politicians.
Judges are independent and subject only to the Constitution and the laws, and as such, the purpose of their mission is not to gain the consent of the majority of the public or a part of it, but to fanatically implement the will of the sovereign expressed in these acts. Judicial decisions may be unpopular with some subjects, but this does not make them illegitimate, since the democratic system of government operates within the limits set by the standards of the rule of law, and the final enforcers of these standards are the judges.
In this context, the National Association of Judges of the Republic of Albania invites and requests every high official of the other two branches of government to respect the independence of judges in their decision-making and to distance themselves from any behavior that violates it. Interference in the activity of judges during the development of judicial procedures constitutes the most dangerous form of violation of the principle of separation of powers, as it aims to distort decision-making through various forms of pressure.
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