Head of EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport attended the ceremony of traditional Annual Counselling of Judges in Vrnjacka Banja, participated in by judges, prosecutors, attorneys and lawyers from Serbia and the region.
Ambassador Davenport said that impartiality and independence of justice held the key to rule of law, thus responsibility and privilege of ensuring rule of law lied in the hands of judges.
“Rule of law is not merely a system of law enforcement, but the spirit of fundamental rights observance. It is a system of not only enforcing justice, but also making it visible,” Davenport said.
Noting that legislation foreseeing independence of justice is not enough to ensure its independence, he said that practice should ensure upholding of rule of law.
Davenport said that the forthcoming EU negotiations would be an excellent monitoring mechanism of the reform process and results comparison in the area of justice.
He also said the he was optimistic regarding the forthcoming Serbia-EU negotiations because he believed that there was a progress in the implementation of Action Plans for chapters 23 and 24.
“I expect Serbian Government to adopt those Action Plans, which will serve as a basis for recommendations European Commission will provide to Member States,” Davenport said.
According to him, European Commission has already made recommendations to Member States that, apart from Chapter 35, they should open Chapter 32 as well, the one dealing with financial policy.
“It is now up to Member States to make the decision about the next step,” Davenport said.
Minister of Justice Nikola Selakovic said that Serbia paid a high price of uneven case law and announced changes that would lead to creation of a single Appellate Public Prosecutor’s Office.
