Q:
A:
New Serbian constitution in 2006
Belgrade,
15 December 2005
Serbian Minister of Justice Zoran Stojkovic expressed expectation that Serbia will get a new constitution next year.
Author:
Fonet
At the conference themed "Independence and accountability of judges and prosecutors in the new constitution," Stojkovic said that more than 80 articles in the draft constitution have been agreed upon and added that basic norms which guarantee independence of judiciary must be incorporated in it.
He recalled that a new constitution is the key act Serbia needs to pass if it is to be a well-ordered and valid legal state and added that judicial incumbents, as representatives of the third branch of government, must act independently, but that it is also necessary for them to assume responsibility.
The minister pointed out that according to the Venetian Commission it is crucial that judges be both responsible and independent, as well as to maintain good connections with the other two branches of government, the executive and legislative, so as to avoid turning the judiciary into a state within a state.
Stojkovic said that the most interesting model for controlling the accountability of judges is the one that envisages the formation of an independent body with such an authority, but that the issue of the accountability of such a body still remains.
Speaking about the position of the prosecution, Stojkovic said that prosecutors are functionally independent in their work and that the Venetian Commission was quite precise on this, but that 70 percent of world countries consider the prosecution to be purely a part of the executive government.
US Ambassador to Serbia-Montenegro Michael Polt said that without strong and accountable judiciary there is no rule of law, democracy and economic prosperity.
Foreign investment in a country depends on its reputation and legal security. Ineffective protection of property and property rights by a weak judiciary will not encourage the investment in the country's economic prosperity and while that issue remains unresolved, foreign investors will not be able to invest in the country and create new jobs, said Polt.
The conference was organised by the Serbian Judges' Association and the Serbian Public Prosecutors and Deputy Prosecutors' Association in cooperation with the US Embassy in Belgrade, the American Bar Association, the US Department of Justice – the Office of Legal Counsel and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
He recalled that a new constitution is the key act Serbia needs to pass if it is to be a well-ordered and valid legal state and added that judicial incumbents, as representatives of the third branch of government, must act independently, but that it is also necessary for them to assume responsibility.
The minister pointed out that according to the Venetian Commission it is crucial that judges be both responsible and independent, as well as to maintain good connections with the other two branches of government, the executive and legislative, so as to avoid turning the judiciary into a state within a state.
Stojkovic said that the most interesting model for controlling the accountability of judges is the one that envisages the formation of an independent body with such an authority, but that the issue of the accountability of such a body still remains.
Speaking about the position of the prosecution, Stojkovic said that prosecutors are functionally independent in their work and that the Venetian Commission was quite precise on this, but that 70 percent of world countries consider the prosecution to be purely a part of the executive government.
US Ambassador to Serbia-Montenegro Michael Polt said that without strong and accountable judiciary there is no rule of law, democracy and economic prosperity.
Foreign investment in a country depends on its reputation and legal security. Ineffective protection of property and property rights by a weak judiciary will not encourage the investment in the country's economic prosperity and while that issue remains unresolved, foreign investors will not be able to invest in the country and create new jobs, said Polt.
The conference was organised by the Serbian Judges' Association and the Serbian Public Prosecutors and Deputy Prosecutors' Association in cooperation with the US Embassy in Belgrade, the American Bar Association, the US Department of Justice – the Office of Legal Counsel and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
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