In North Macedonia, significant legal changes, a proposed amnesty law, judiciary appointments, and other legal decisions are drawing criticism for a lack of comprehensive consultation with legal experts, according to specialists in the field.<\/p>\n
Vlado Kambovski, a constitutional law professor, asserts that amendments to the Penal Code, which have sparked controversy due to reduced penalties for state officials in cases of abuse of power, were greenlit during discussions about drafting a new Penal Code by a group of experts.<\/p>\n
He contends that the decline in the judiciary\u2019s reputation, subsequently leading to increased crime and corruption in North Macedonia, is a result of political interference in judicial affairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are part of a working group that, for the past three and a half years, has been collaborating with the OSCE on a new penal code, which has already been finalized. While we were expecting it to be submitted for approval in November, changes were made, perhaps as per others\u2019 desires. This is the nature of governance; although you can work towards the best possible solution, in the end, politics prevails. In our case, this has been happening for 30 years. Everything is decided through political agreements, sidelining others, which poses risks for the country\u2019s future,\u201d professor Vlado Kambovski explained.<\/p>\n
Likewise, a draft law on amnesty, which proposes the release of prisoners serving sentences of up to six months and a 30% reduction in sentences for many other categories of convicts, has generated substantial controversy.<\/p>\n
This legislation, drafted by the Ministry of Justice under the leadership of Krenar Lloga from the Albanian Alliance party, has also caused divisions among ruling parties.<\/p>\n
The Minister of Internal Affairs, Oliver Spasovski, from the Social Democratic Union, opposed the proposal, arguing that it would not help in reducing prison populations.<\/p>\n
However, the disagreements extend to other political matters, including the treatment of other categories of prisoners and concerns about \u201cfabricated imprisonments\u201d.<\/p>\n
State Prosecutor Lubomir Joveski has stated that neither judicial authorities nor other experts were consulted regarding the changes to the Penal Code.<\/p>\n
According to him, the amendments were rushed through, primarily based on the assessments of politicians, without the necessary inclusive debate.<\/p>\n
\u201cThroughout the process of amending the Penal Code, the Government and later the Assembly did not seek input from competent judicial institutions. It\u2019s highly likely that they didn\u2019t do so due to the urgency of passing the law. It was approved in a fast-tracked procedure, with a European stamp of approval. Consequently, a political decision was made to approve it in this manner, and that\u2019s how it transpired. We have no alternative but to implement what has been approved,\u201d Prosecutor Joveski declared.<\/p>\n
Legal experts argue that their exclusion from these processes naturally raises \u201cquestions about political interests in specific matters\u201d.<\/p>\n
Professor Vlado Kambovski believes that political intervention in the judiciary and the high prevalence of corruption and organized crime highlight the need for external expertise in comprehensive reform.<\/p>\n
\u201cA turnaround cannot happen without an acceleration of the integration process. Only with EU support and rigorous monitoring in the negotiation process can we begin to cleanse the institutions deeply entangled in crime and corruption. The source of corruption lies within political parties. Without a stringent reform, we cannot establish the rule of law, uphold legal standards, and effect changes across all sectors,\u201d Kambovski stressed.<\/p>\n
Trust in the justice system in North Macedonia has been continually eroding. According to research conducted by both local and international organizations, such as IRI, just one percent of citizens (three fewer than a year ago) have full confidence in the judiciary.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In North Macedonia, significant legal changes, a proposed amnesty law, judiciary appointments, and other legal decisions are drawing criticism for a lack of comprehensive consultation with legal experts, according to specialists in the field. Vlado Kambovski, a constitutional law professor, asserts that amendments to the Penal Code, which have sparked controversy due to reduced penalties […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":59562,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[164],"tags":[486,4568,377,1185,243,151,298,4112,1446],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n