Ukraine – Yes, the judges
One area that is always a challenge when trying to address corruption is whether the judges are corrupt. The Global Press Journal highlights the ongoing challenges, even when there is a complex system to avoid seemingly corrupt judges. Since 2013-2014, when there was a systemic approach to choosing judges, which has been the High Qualification Commission of Judges of Ukraine. Judicial appointments are a tiered procession, including the Public Integrity Council, which assists the commission in determining whether a judge is ethically compromised. “Under the law, if the council issues a negative assessment of a judge, the commission can override it only with a qualified majority — at least 11 of its 16 members. In theory, this sets a high bar. But in practice, it hasn’t stopped the commission from advancing judges deemed by the council to have questionable ethics.” This should be of great concern to anyone watching Ukraine’s anti-corruption actions towards greater transparency and honesty. Since these bodies were created in the heyday of the Maidan period, they were scrutinized but even then, there were many concerns regarding judicial appointments. Even during this short period, the judiciary has not come out looking like the leader in anti-corruption that it should be. The fact that there is an Anti-Corruption Court underlines the ongoing issues. As one of the people who worked on the creation of the anti-corruption court, I thought that it was important that there should be an end date for the Anti-Corruption Court, as the other judicial bodies need to show that they are honest and transparent, as they will need to prosecute war crimes, help attract foreign investment, and satisfy European Union accession requirements. The European Union has emphasized the need for genuine judicial reform.
Why should we care? This is a very important part of the anti-corruption chain, as judges need to be reliable, and not a mechanism to legitimize unsavory or illegal transactions. The Commission over its history has not inspired confidence, nor has the judiciary. To make changes to the Commission and the judiciary the government must prioritize the judiciary, and work on several fronts. One is to work on the Commission, through government oversight, as well as create more stringent enforcement of breaches. There have been some very tough examples of what is needed to overhaul judicial systems in other countries, and if Ukraine is serious, they must accept that much more is needed. In this instance, the European Union has the authority and strength to support future changes.
Link:
https://globalpressjournal.com/eastern_europe/ukraine/corrupt-judges-slip-cracks-ukraine/