20 judges balk from criticism of EU, US concern over appointment of high-level judiciary members
Judges hail the support of the foreign dignitaries in helping Georgia become a member of the European and Euro-Atlantic family. Photo: RFERL
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Over twenty judges have distanced themselves from criticism of EU and US concern over the appointment of two judge members of the High Council of Justice.
Calling on the Georgian authorities to uphold their reform commitments, including in the justice sector, the United States Embassy and Head of the European Union delegation Carl Hartzell have called the appointments ‘hasty, non-transparent and non-competitive’.
In response, the Administrative Committee of the Conference of Judges, a self-governing body strengthening the independence of the judiciary, said diplomatic missions ‘are obligated to respect the laws and ordinances of the receiving state and not to interfere in its internal affairs’.
Devi Devidze, judge of Bolnisi district court in Georgia’s Kvemo Kartli region, says the foreign partners who have been financially supporting Georgia for over 30 years including the judiciary, want to see ‘strong Georgia with its strong institutions' in the European and Euro-Atlantic family.
Judge of Tbilisi Court of Appeals Tea Sokhashvili-Nikolaishvili also joins in her colleagues in hailing the ‘immense role’ of the foreign partners in helping Georgia aspire to have democratic institutions.
Following the assessments of the EU and US dignitaries, President Salome Zurabishvili has also stated that the election of two new members to the High Council of Justice ‘in this form and at this time is an incomprehensible step’.
However, the Administrative Committee of the Conference of Judges disagrees, calling the attacks ‘unfounded’.
The Administrative Committee of the Conference of Judges, a self-governing body strengthening the independence of the judiciary, has responded to the recent criticism of the appointment of two new judge members to the High Council of Justice by saying they were 'not hasty’.
Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili, who spoke of a wide range of issues at a news briefing earlier today, said that polarisation in Georgia can be overcome only if the parties, both the ruling party and the opposition, ‘return to solve real problems and real challenges’.
The United States Embassy to Georgia has stated that the selection of two new members to the High Council of Justice on October 31 was ‘neither competitive nor transparent’. It further noted that the US ‘has long sought to build the capacity of qualified and dedicated judges while calling for reforms that would allow for accountability for judges who undermine the legitimacy of the judicial system’.
Head of the European Union delegation to Georgia Carl Hartzell said the recent appointments of two new judge members to the High Council of Justice, was ‘hasty, non-transparent and non-competitive’. Ambassador Hartzell said that these appointments took place on the day after local elections they were therefore ‘at odds with Georgia’s commitments aimed at increasing the independence, accountability, quality and trust in the judiciary’, in line with the EU-Georgia Association Agreement
The United States Embassy to Georgia has expressed its disappointment that the Georgian parliament is ‘moving forward with Supreme Court appointments’ before the completion of an independent assessment of the judicial reform.
The Georgian parliament has appointed four judges to the country’s Supreme Court earlier today despite calls from local NGOs and the international community to suspend the process before the implementation of fundamental judicial reforms.