WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
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AUTHOR: M.J.
PES MPs Vasilije Čarapić and Darko Dragović proposed an amendment to the Law on Pension and Disability Insurance[] on the basis of which an exception to the conditions for retirement would be prescribed in favor of judges of the Constitutional Court. In this way, the mandates of the current President of the Constitutional Court, Milorad Gogić, and Judge Budimir Šćepanović, whose mandates will expire in May according to the current law, and Judges Dragana Đuranović and Desanka Lopičić, whose functions should also end by the end of this year, would be extended.
Milorad Gogić and Desanka Lopičić have been judges of the Constitutional Court since 2005, Budimir Šćepanović since 2013, and Dragana Đuranović since February 2023.
The undersigned non-governmental organizations strongly oppose the proposed amendment to the law, considering it an inappropriate influence of the executive power on the Constitutional Court.
We believe that the adoption of the proposed legal amendment and the extension of the mandate of the current judges would unnecessarily call into question the integrity of the Constitutional Court, which must protect the rule of law and not the interests of the executive power - stated in the protest expressed by 16 NGOs.
If the government's real goal was to consider the optimal limit for retirement in principle, this issue would not be considered only in relation to judges of the Constitutional Court, but in relation to all judges, who are in the same legal situation due to the Constitutional Resolution, and would not have been that question was raised hastily, by the deputies and without a public discussion, with the obvious aim of preventing the mandates of the current judges of the Constitutional Court from ending soon, according to the signatories of the protest.
We believe that the issue of the termination of the judges' functions should be open to everyone in principle and resolved for the future, in a way that does not call into question the integrity of the Constitutional Court - they state in the announcement.
They also gave detailed reasons for opposing the proposal of the PES MP.
1) Hasty amendment of the law with the aim of extending the mandate of the current judges of the Constitutional Court would only confirm the suspicions about political influence on as many as four judges of that court who meet the conditions for retirement this year according to the current law on PiO. By amending the law, the general interest in impartial and the objective Constitutional Court subordinated the subjective interests of four judges without justifiable reason.
2) The procedure for electing a judge of the Constitutional Court to replace the outgoing president of the Constitutional Court has been regularly started, six people applied for that position and there are no obstacles to filling that position in a timely manner. However, it is also true that the competent Constitutional Committee, under the leadership of Simonida Kordić (NSD), failed in the last month to determine whether the registered candidates meet the requirements and to invite them to an interview, probably because of the aforementioned plan to amend the law to extend the term of office of the current president mandate.
Also, the competition for a judge who would replace Judge Šćepanović, who turns 65 on May 31, and meets the conditions for retirement or termination of office, has not yet been announced. This is another indicator that there is at least an expectation of the Constitutional Court, if not an agreement, that the executive power will meet them and provide everyone with an extension of their mandate. However, if this competition were to be announced immediately, it would be possible to provide for the filling of those judge positions in a timely manner.
3) The proposal is discriminatory towards judges of regular courts, whose office must also end at the age of 65, i.e. 40 years of service, and towards other judges of the Constitutional Court whose office has recently ceased for the same reason, and who for many years simultaneously held office with the current President of the Constitutional Court, Milorad Gogić, that is, Judge Lopičić and Judge Šćepanović.
They also explain that according to the recent amendments to the Law on Law on Law (which followed the decision of the Constitutional Court), Judge Gogić has already met the conditions for termination of office, because the age limit is equal for men and women at 65, and he turned 65 last year. years. Although he remained in office according to the old conditions, now the executive power is still proposing new changes to the law, according to which his mandate would be further extended. How can you believe that such services will not be returned later?!
Judge Đuranović, judging by her biography, also met the conditions for termination of office, as she completed 40 years of service during the past year, provided that her service was continuous. She will certainly turn 65 in December of this year, thus fulfilling that condition. Judging by her biography, Judge Lopičić also completes 40 years of service during this year, if her work experience has been uninterrupted, thus fulfilling the requirement for retirement, i.e. for termination of office on that basis.
4) The constitutionality of this amendment to the law would be decided by the same judges of the Constitutional Court (as many as four out of a total of seven) whose mandates are extended by the amendment to the law, who would have to be considered biased and exempted from decision-making. However, since there is no one to replace them, and how would on the contrary, the quorum for making such a decision was also missing, thus again the work of the Constitutional Court would be de facto impossible and, therefore, the rule of law would be endangered. It is certainly too high a price for extending the mandate of individuals.
5) The tendency to enact ad hominem laws by which political parties in power resolve individual cases is worrying, sometimes shortening mandates, sometimes appointing suitable personnel, and now trying to extend the mandate of judges who should decide on their legal solutions.
6) The executive power seems to forget that the essence of the negotiations with the European Union is for Montenegro to prove that it has institutions capable of ensuring the rule of law, and not the interests of the parties in power. The Constitutional Court, as the last barrier to the rule of law, should be beyond doubt . The fact that the executive power is ready to compromise its integrity in this way, at any cost, damages the European path of our country.
The signatories of the protest are:
Human Rights Action (HRA)
Spectrum Association
Center for Democratic Transition (CDT)
Center for Civic Education (CGO)
Center for Civil Liberties (CEGAS)
Center for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro (CIN-CG)
Center for Monitoring and Research (CEMI)
Center for NGO Development (CRNVO)
Center for Women's Rights (CŽP)
ERA - Alliance for equal rights of LGBTI persons in the Western Balkans and Turkey
Alternative Institute
Media Institute of Montenegro
Juventus
Network for Affirmation of the Non-Governmental Sector MANS
Women's safe house
Association of Disabled Youth of Montenegro (UMHCG)
