BRUSSELS – European Union Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath called yesterday, at a meeting in Brussels with Serbia’s Minister of Justice Nenad Vujić, for the suspension of the adopted amendments to judicial laws and their urgent revision, N1 portal reports.
“The Commissioner clearly expressed our serious concerns and expectations regarding the next steps. We are calling on the competent authorities to find legal ways to suspend the implementation of those amendments and to urgently proceed with their revision, in order to address our objections,” European Commission spokesperson Guillaume Mercier told N1.
According to him, the revisions must respect a transparent and inclusive consultation process with all relevant stakeholders, including the European Commission and the Venice Commission.
He added that the European Commission will convey this message to other levels of government as well, and reiterated that the European Commission regrets the signing of the amendments to key judicial laws.
“Already last week, we clearly stated our position that the amendments to the laws represent a serious step backwards on Serbia’s path toward accession to the European Union and undermine previously undertaken commitments and achieved progress,” Mercier reiterated.
Mercier once again recalled that, within the framework of the EU accession process, Serbia committed to strengthening the independence of the judiciary and the autonomy of the prosecution, including taking into account the recommendations of the European Commission.
As stated by Serbia’s Ministry of Justice, Vujić said at yesterday’s meeting with McGrath that the amendments to the set of judicial laws represent a significant contribution to more efficient functioning of the judiciary, better protection of citizens’ rights, and the advancement of the rule of law.
Vujić emphasized the need for continued monitoring of the reforms and informed the Commissioner that a procedure is underway to request an urgent opinion from the Venice Commission on the amendments to the judicial laws.
