OUTGOING JUSTICE MINISTER ZAHARIEVA: EC REPORT SAYS REFORMS WERE DELAYED

Speaking before the members of the Supreme Judicial Council on 26th of January, outgoing Justice Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva said that the EC report under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) said that periods of political instability delayed reforms in the country.

Zaharieva said that there were many things that needed to be done on those recommendations and noted the judicial map and electronic voting as a priority.

She added that the most important thing was to have continuity and not to re-start reforms every time the justice minister, Government or Parliament changed.

It was the last time Minister Zaharieva presided over the council. She is the second person to hold the justice portfolio in the government of Borissov, which will leave office on 27th of January.

She wished success to the members of the SJC and reminded that the task ahead of them was to support the organization in the election of the next council. She expressed hope that despite the differences between the council members, they would begin implementing the recommendations from the EC report in the remaining period of their term.

In an interview for BNT on 25th of January, Ekaterina Zaharieva said that the report covered a period of 10 years and for the first time it outlined very clear 17 recommendations on all 6 benchmarks, explicitly highlighting that if implemented and there was continuity, and the reforms went on with good pace, it would be realistic to have a more positive report.

She added that EC First Vice-President Timmermans praised the significant progress made in 2016 in the judicial reform. According to Zaharieva, the reform has to be carried out by the Bulgarian citizens no matter whether there is or there is not a monitoring mechanism. She noted the country should have efficient, fast and fair justice system.

She said that according to the report, the Judicial Systems Act was up-to-date and ensured independence and impartiality, career development and performance appraisal.

Zaharieva called for responsible approach and continuity in the updated strategy for continuing the judicial reform.