The political instability of the past few years, in combination with corruption and the shortage of human and financial resources, negatively affected the implementation of reforms to build the rule of law and the justice sector reform, shows a study carried out by the Public Association “INVENTO” that was presented in a news conference at IPN.
“In almost ten years of the start of the reform process, the assumed strategic plans produced relatively uncertain results or “only an empty shell” according to the 2019 report of the International Commission of Jurists. Endemic corruption, political control, selective justice, lack of judicial integrity and improper application of the law became part of this rather gloomy picture. Public confidence in the justice system continued to decline. According to the Public Opinion Barometer, approximately 70% of the Moldovan population does not trust the judiciary, while about 60% consider the judiciary is not independent,” said lawyer Irina Buzu, author of the study.
A high-level delegation of the Council of Europe visited the Republic of Moldova in 2020 and recommended implementing clear strategic plans agreed by mutual consent for ensuring the independence of the judicial system and the capacities of the anticorruption institutions to fulfill their mandate.
“The delegation asked for an open and inclusive approach by involving institutions, professional groups and members of the NGO sector. In January 2020, the Moldovan authorities worked out and proposed a draft new strategy and an action plan for ensuring the independence and integrity of the justice sector for 2021-2024. These documents were intensely discussed with the Council of Europe in the first half of 2020 and take into account the recommendations of the Venice Commotion. When it is implemented, this strategy should further align the judicial system with the European standards,” stated Irina Buzu.
The policy document focuses on three strategic and objective directions: independence, responsibility and integrity of the justice sector players.
The study “Role of civil society in advancing the rule of law and justice sector reform” was carried out in partnership with Freedom House, which implements the Mobilizing Civil Society to Support Judicial Integrity in the Republic of Moldova Project. The project is implemented with support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. The study was conducted based on the analysis and retrospective method and covered the past five years.
