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The citizens of Serbia have accepted the proposal to amend the Constitution in the field of justice, according to the preliminary results of the referendum held on January 16.
As announced by the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vuëi., Based on 97.02 percent of the counted polling stations, 60.40 percent voted for, while 39.52 percent voted against.
According to data from the Republican Election Commission (CEC), by 18:00, 25.25 percent of eligible voters went to the referendum, reports Radio Free Europe.
Polling stations closed at 20:00. According to the Republican Election Commission (CEC), over 6 million 510 thousand voters had the right to vote in the referendum.
The changes concern the way judges and prosecutors are elected in order to reduce political influence in the process, the Serbian government has said.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told reporters earlier Sunday that changes to the constitution are important for foreign investors, for whom the rule of law is one of the key factors when deciding to invest in Serbia.
Vuçiç condemned the decision of the Kosovo authorities not to allow voting in the territory of Kosovo.
“There will be far-reaching consequences, but they do not have to know everything and listen to everything“Vucic told reporters.
Recall that the deputies of the Assembly of Kosovo on Saturday (January 15) have approved a resolution expressing opposition to holding elections in Kosovo for the above-mentioned referendum of the state of Serbia for constitutional changes.
The Assembly adopted the resolution during an extraordinary session convened by the Prime Minister, Albin Kurti.
According to the resolution, holding a referendum of Serbia in the Republic of Kosovo, “violates the sovereignty and constitutional order of the Republic of Kosovo, is contrary to the Constitution, laws of the Republic of Kosovo, as well as international norms and practices“.
This decision provoked protests among local Serbs in Kosovo who traveled to Serbian cities to be able to vote in this referendum.
What is changed in the Constitution?
The referendum question was: “Are you in favor of confirming the Law on Amending the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia?”.
It has been proposed that the Constitution be amended in the sections Courts and Public Prosecution, as well as in several other articles governing the judiciary.
“The basic argument for changing the Constitution in the field of justice is the fact that the current Constitution leaves a lot of room for the influence of the legislative and executive power in the election of the heads of judicial functions.“, It is said in the explanation within the proposal approved by the government of Serbia.
Within this approved proposal, it is estimated that this influence “could lead to unwanted politicization of the judiciary.”
On November 30, 2021, the Minister of Justice of the Government of Serbia, Maja Popovi., Clarified that politics is excluded from the election of judges and prosecutors.
According to the amendments to the Constitution, this will be decided by two independent bodies, which must be constituted after the referendum. Judges will be elected by the High Judicial Council, while prosecutors will be elected by the High Council of Prosecutors.
The High Judicial Council is an independent, autonomous body, which already exists, but with the amendments to the Constitution, its members will be re-elected according to a new procedure.
According to Minister Popovic, the High Judicial Council will consist of six judges elected by their colleagues, four members from the ranks of prominent jurists elected by a two-thirds majority of the members of the Assembly, as well as the President of the Court. High, according to position.
Under the current Constitution, adopted in 2006, judges are elected by members of the Serbian Parliament for the so-called three-year probationary period, which is then elected by the High Judicial Council for a permanent term.
When it comes to electing prosecutors, they will be elected by the High Council of Prosecutors, as an independent body that ensures and guarantees the independence of that branch of justice. The High Council of Prosecutors will replace the existing Council of State Prosecutors.
As Minister Popovi para warned, if the changes are approved, five members of the High Council of Prosecutors will be elected by prosecutors, four will be elected by the Assembly on the proposal of the competent committee and by a two-thirds majority, while the High Public Prosecutor and the minister of Justice, are members by position.
Prosecutors have so far been proposed to the Assembly by the Government, which is part of the executive branch. The procedure for electing deputy prosecutors was such that they were elected to Parliament for a first term (for three years), after which the Council of State Prosecutors elected them for a permanent term.
This, in practice, means that the deputies of the Assembly, who are also members of political parties, directly or indirectly elected the members of the two judicial bodies, although the Constitution of Serbia, in Article 4, provides for the separation of powers in legislative, executive and judicial, when consequently “the judiciary is independent”.
Minister Popovi. Has stated several times that the amendment of the Constitution in the field of justice will be a condition for further reform of the legal system, as well as the most important reform in the field of rule of law.
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