Prosecutors and judges, on the one hand, and citizens, on the other hand, explain their low trust in the judiciary and the vetting process as part of the reform of the system differently. If professionals in the field say that low trust is caused by politicians' attacks on the judiciary, then citizens accuse corruption and cronyism, Tatiana Cojocari, PhD in sociology, permanent expert, said at the public debate "Citizens' trust in the judiciary, developments and measurements", organized by IPN news agency.
Public trust in the justice system, according to the Barometer of Public Opinion, in 2023 was 18-20%. Two years ago, public trust in the justice system was almost at the same low level as in 2011, when discussions about the need for justice reform began more intensively. The public opinion proportionally states that there are some changes, but not so significant and they do not respond to their needs so much as to increase trust, the PhD in sociology communicated.
Tatiana Cojocari mentioned, in particular, the low trust in the Superior Council of Magistracy and the Superior Council of Prosecutor's Office. The majority of prosecutors and judges believe that the SJC and PSC often do not act independently or that their work is not sufficiently transparent. The PhD in sociology said that almost half of the professionals support the work of these institutions, which shows a big problem of coordination and collaboration.
More than half of citizens do not trust vetting, while 40% of prosecutors and judges have positive opinions about the external evaluation announced by the authorities. A proportion of prosecutors and judges have a neutral attitude, but it is mostly supported by lawyers. Asked whether they would accept to be subject to this external evaluation, about 60% of judges and prosecutors said yes. 10% of judges and 11% of prosecutors said they would resign if they were subject to external evaluation, but 23% did not know how they would proceed in such a case, said Tatiana Cojocari.
The permanent expert at the debate also referred to problems in the field of justice. Prosecutors, judges and lawyers report that the most acute difficulty the low salaries of clerks and judges' assistants. "Basically there is a consensus among prosecutors, judges and lawyers that it is not enough and there is even a very deep cadre shortage. These responses once again confirm the acute need to significantly increase the remuneration of court clerks, as well as to attract young specialists in the field," said the PhD in sociology. Public opinion says it would have more confidence in young judges and prosecutors, Tatiana Cojocari added.
The public debate on "Citizens' trust in justice, developments and measurements" is organized within the project "IPN News Agency for social cohesion and pro-European Moldova", funded by IMS.
