site.btaJustice Minister Reaffirms Commitment to Complete Reform of Judiciary's Legal Framework

Justice Minister Reaffirms Commitment to Complete Reform of Judiciary's Legal Framework

Sofia, April 3 (BTA) - Commenting on GERB's proposal for
amendments to the Judicial Power Act, Justice Minister Hristo
Ivanov reaffirmed his commitment to see to completion the
drafting, discussion and defence in Parliament of a project for
reform of the legal framework of the judiciary.

"The bills tabled so far by the ABV parliamentary group [on
Tuesday] and by MPs of GERB [on Thursday] reflect the awareness
of a need to reorganize the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC).
While the idea of dividing the Council into two colleges [of
judges and prosecutors] was viewed as an oddity until last
autumn, now the MPs are competing to promote it," the Justice
Ministry's press office quoted Ivanov as saying.

Both bills feature positions upheld by the SJC's present
composition and the leadership of the prosecuting magistracy.
The third bill, which is about to be completed by the Justice
Ministry, aims to ensure a much wider scope of the judicial
reform so as to implement most of the tasks set in the strategy
for continuing the judicial reform.

Ivanov said further in his media release: "The forthcoming
amendments to the Judicial Power Act are just the beginning of
the real modernization of Bulgarian justice. The political
forces are increasingly being faced by the need of
constitutional changes in the entire model of the judiciary's
governance. On the day when the new Chief Judicial Inspector was
elected by an overwhelming majority and the MPs are competing
to reorganize the judiciary, a serious judicial reform seems
possible. The Justice Ministry will redouble its efforts to this
end."

On Thursday, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov wrote on Facebook: "I
stand foursquare behind the Justice Minister. We have worked
hard together with Hristo on the amendments to the Judicial
Power Act for several days." The Justice Ministry is to complete
them by the Easter holidays, which begin next Friday.