site.btaVenice Commission Hails Separation of Judicial Council into Two Colleges

Venice Commission Hails Separation of Judicial Council into Two Colleges

Sofia, September 16 (BTA) - The Venice Commission of the Council of Europe hails the proposed change in the Constitution, which envisages the separation of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) into two colleges, the Commission members said during their Wednesday talks at the National Assembly, Parliament's press centre said.

A delegation of the Venice Commission visits Bulgaria to hold discussions on draft constitutional amendments in the field of the judiciary, in the framework of a request for opinion submitted by the Bulgarian authorities.

At its meeting with the guests, National Assembly Chairperson Tsetska Tsacheva underscored that the Bill amending the Constitution, which is currently being discussed, is complied with the decisions of the Constitutional Court of 2005 and 2008 and the recommendation of the Venice Commission. These are the changes that can possibly be adopted by an ordinary National Assembly, she added.

Tsacheva said further that the SJC quotas cannot be changed without convening a Grand National Assembly. The parliamentary groups have differences regarding the distribution of magistrates within the two colleges, she noted. Tsacheva said that the direct suffrage of the SJC members by the general assemblies of judges and prosecutors and investigators is the most serious change.

The Venice Commission hails the split of SJC into two colleges, said the Commission's Guido Neppi Modona. However, the issue of whether to elect them by a qualified or ordinary majority remains open, he noted adding that the Venice Commission recommends a qualified majority, so as to avoid the risk of politicizing the SJC.

Tsacheva took a commitment to discuss the possibility for election of the SJC members of the parliamentary quota by a qualified or a "50+1" majority prior to the second-reading discussions of the Bill.