site.btaPrime Minister Optimistic about Parliament Supporting a Two-College SJC

Prime Minister Optimistic about Parliament Supporting a Two-College SJC

Sofia, July 22 (BTA) - Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is optimistic that a proposal to divide the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) into a college of judges and a college of prosecutors and investigators will be supported by the required number of votes in the National Assembly.

Borissov spoke to the media after an hour-long extraordinary meeting of the Presiding Body of the National Assembly which discussed a constitutional amendment bill moved by the incumbents. The Presiding Body includes the floor leaders of the parliamentary groups and the speaker and deputy speakers of the National Assembly.

PRESIDING BODY MEETING

Borissov said that if the constitutional amendments are approved provisionally at first reading on Friday, the Constitutional Court will be notified about all provisionally approved changes before the second-reading procedure.

The Prime Minister said that he and his GERB party will not give up on the idea to divide SJC into two colleges, which means that judges will only be elected and promoted by judges, and prosecutors by prosecutors. "On this matter, I think we will get the number of votes necessary to amend the Constitution," he said. He also hopes for consensus about strengthening the role of judicial inspectors and about career development in the judicial system.

According to Borissov, the Reformist Bloc has reservations regarding the way the SJC college leaders will be elected, but he hopes that the Bloc will come to terms with that.

The parties differ about the ratios for nominating the members of the two SJC colleges, Borissov said. The bill proposes that 8 members of the judges' college should be nominated by judges and 5 members should be nominated by the National Assembly, and in the prosecutors' and investigators' college 6 members should be nominated by professionals and 6 by the National Assembly. But the parties which are inclined to support this particular decision with their votes have proposed slightly different ratios: 8 to 6 for the judges' college and 6 to 5 for the prosecutors-and-investigators' college, Borissov explained. According to him, these proposals are aimed to uphold the principle of judicial independence, and they represent a big step forward in ensuring that judges, prosecutors and investigators operate autonomously.

The Prime Minister said it is possible that GERB and the Reformist Bloc will reach consensus on Thursday. If, however, the Reformist Bloc members fail to take a unanimous stance, the Prime Minister will accept a defeat in Friday's parliamentary vote rather than trying to exploit differences inside the Reformist Bloc.

Borissov said he stands behind Justice Minister Hristo Ivanov, who is also of the opinion that the two SJC colleges should elect and approve their own members independently. "How else can I defend him [the Justice Minister]? I have been speaking on his behalf for days, he cannot cope on his own - it is clear that if he acts on his own, he will be crushed," Borissov said, explaining his activity over the last week regarding the judicial reform.

Noting that the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) presented their arguments against the constitutional amendments during the Presiding Body meeting, Borissov nevertheless thanked BSP for their ideas and for coming to all meetings.

BORISSOV-MIKOV MEETING

Earlier in the day, Borissov met separately with BSP Chairman Mihail Mikov. Mikov told Borissov that the parliamentary group of BSP-Left Bulgaria will not support the proposed constitutional amendments. Emerging from the meeting, Mikov told journalists that BSP's support for the Judicial Reform Strategy does not imply that the Constitution should be amended without a serious analysis of the problems in the judiciary, a position which was first expressed back in January. Mikov believes that the drive to amend the Constitution is motivated by political interests which create tension.

When the individual parties rise above their narrow interests, it will be possible to consider legislative amendments, which could mean changing the Constitution if necessary, Mikov said.

For his part, Borissov complained he had been misled into thinking that, after months of talks, BSP was finally inclined to support the constitutional amendments. Borissov tried to tell Mikov that the questions which the constitutional amendments fail to address will be regulated by other laws, to which Mikov responded that only after these issues are regulated will they be willing to talk.

On Thursday, the ruling majority will do everything within its powers to make sure that the constitutional amendments become a fact, Borissov said.

He went on to say that his view that judges should be elected by judges and prosecutors should be elected by prosecutors has been misrepresented in some media which are run by "gas intermediaries who lost hundreds of millions a year as a result of my actions." Borissov said these media manipulate the public opinion.

TALKS BETWEEN REFORMIST BLOC AND MRF

Reformist Bloc Co-Floor Leaders Radan Kanev and Naiden Zelenogorski met with Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) Chairman Lyutvi Mestan and other members of the MRF parliamentary group.

Kanev told journalists that the Reformist Bloc is trying to iron out its differences with the other parties regarding the proposed constitutional amendments. He said this is possible, but it involves very difficult talks inside the Bloc itself and in the Presiding Body of the National Assembly. This will obviously be followed by another round of talks with MRF, he added.

Kanev said that the talks with MRF have been centred on a new proposal by that party, but he declined to disclose the proposal, saying that publicity can severely limit the chance for concord.

The parties are not considering a withdrawal of the constitutional amendment bill which is due to be discussed on first reading in the National Assembly on Friday, Kanev went on to say. "The question is not about whether this bill should be replaced by another bill, but how deeply the proposed reform goes," he argued. Until the sides reach consensus, anything is possible, including terminating the tenure of the current SJC, but this will only happen if no compromise can be found, he said. "We will not give up on the deep structural reform at SJC, because this is where all problems lie right now," Kanev said.

Asked why the parties are negotiating at the last minute, Kanev said that the time until Friday's debate in the National Assembly is equivalent to several years of political time.

OTHER POLITICIANS' REMARKS

Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov said the constitutional amendments concerning the judicial system should be made as quickly as possible - they are awaited both by Bulgarian citizens and by the European Commission. This is necessary for Bulgaria's planned accession to the Schengen border-free area, Mitov said. "Public confidence in the judicial system is tragically low," the Foreign Minister said.

Justice Minister Hristo Ivanov declined to comment on Prime Minister Boyko Borissov's criticism that he has not tried hard enough to push the judicial reform package through the National Assembly.

Education and Science Minister Todor Tanev said it is extremely important to amend the Constitution. "I am all for it," Tanev said.