The judges of the Anticorruption Court will benefit from security guarantees as the examination of cases of grand corruption involves potential security risks to them and their families, PAS deputy chairwoman Olesea Stamate stated during the talk show “Resumé” on RliveTV channel. The MP of the Party of Action and Solidarity said that it is not yet known whether the judges of the Anticorruption Court will benefit from state guard, but this is not excluded, IPN reports.
On November 18, Prime Minister Dorin Recean announced that judges examining cases of grand corruption will benefit from financial guarantees and security guarantees. Olesea Stamate said that the Premier's statements can target two categories of people: judges of the Anticorruption Court (which is to be created) and judges of the specialized panels of the court of first instance and the court of appeals.
"The establishment of the Anticorruption Court has been discussed for some time. If the Anticorruption Court is created, the judges of this Court can benefit from particular guarantees, both financial, i.e. a pay raise or bonus, and security ones. If they examine cases of grand corruption, obviously, there are potential risks to their security and the security of their family. This practice does not differ from that in other countries, where there are such courts. This is one aspect. But there could also be support for judges who are already examining cases of grand corruption, such as the specialized panels in the court of first instance and the court of appeals. The Government is to come up with such proposals and we will decide as regards bodyguarding as well," said PAS deputy chairwoman Olesea Stamate.
She noted that offering financial guarantees does not imply granting an exorbitant salary for the judges of the Anticorruption Court. According to the Venice Commission's opinion, the salaries of judges of the Anticorruption Court cannot be much higher than the salaries of judges of the ordinary courts.
"The Venice Commission said that the salary of the judge of the Anticorruption Court can be slightly higher than the salary of judges of ordinary courts, but it must not be disproportionately higher. This means that you cannot offer the judge of the Anticorruption Court a double salary compared to the pay of the judge of the ordinary court. That is, financial guarantee would mean only a particular raise," explained Olesea Stamate.
On November 30, 2023, Parliament gave a first reading to the draft law on the creation of the Anticorruption Court, submitted by President Maia Sandu. The document provides for the establishment of a specialized court that will examine all criminal cases of corruption or related cases.
