site.btaBulgarian Judges Association Wants Original Version of Constitutional Revisions Adopted

Bulgarian Judges Association Wants Original Version of  Constitutional Revisions Adopted

Sofia, December 7 (BTA) - The Bulgarian Judges Association (BJA) wants the Bill Amending and Supplementing the Constitution to be adopted in its original version on Wednesday, Sofia City Court Judge Atanas Atanassov, who chairs the BJA Managing Board, told a news conference on Monday.

The Association holds that the version of the bill adopted on first reading differs considerably from the original one, which lays down the minimum needed to launch a new judicial reform.

The BJA says the later version of the bill deviates from the Judicial Reform Strategy in that it scraps the Prosecutor General's accountability to the National Assembly in a report other than the mandatory annual report; preserves the five-year term of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) members; keeps voting by secret ballot on SJC decisions on personnel selection; and leaves courts without the option of referring matters to the Constitutional Court.

Atanassov said that adopting the amendments in their present form on Wednesday would be a departure from the agreement reached by the parliamentary forces and from the Venice Commission's recommendations. The judge said there was a risk that the prosecuting magistracy might become uncontrollable if the bill was adopted on second reading in its present version.

The current model of the judiciary allows for political interference in its management because the SJC parliamentary quota is too large, said Atanassov.

The BJA's opinion, which is backed by several NGOs, has been sent to Parliament.