Judicial associations convene a 10 -minute strike « in defense of judicial independence » | Spain
Five of the seven judicial and fiscal associations that exist in Spain have summoned a ten -minute strike on June 11 at 12 noon as a protest by the reform of the Organic Law of the Judiciary, approved last January. In a statement issued this Friday, the signatory entities consider that this reform includes « highly harmful measures » for « seriously affecting judicial independence » and weakening « the values on which our rule of law is based. » The two progressive associations of careers, judges and judges for democracy and the progressive union of prosecutors do not support it.
The entities that support unemployment are the Professional Association of the Magistracythe Francisco de Vitoria Judicial Association, Independent Judicial Forum, the Association of Prosecutors and the Professional and Independent Association of Prosecutors. Since the reform was discussed, these associations have strongly criticized some points of their content. In the statement in which they call unemployment, they ask for the withdrawal of The reform of the Organic Statute of the Fiscal Ministrysince they consider that « it is a lost opportunity to bet on real functional autonomy that brings to prosecutors of the risk of political interference. » They add that « steps back » in this sense, « by unreasonally increasing the power of the State Attorney General« , Without establishing » internal counterweights « or » true guarantees « that ensure, according to them, the independence of prosecutors.
The Minister of Justice, Félix Bolaños, after his appearance in the Senate Commission this Friday, has expressed his « respect » to all judicial associations, but has affirmed that « many of the fears they are raising are unfounded. » This, he said, « can be accredited by reading the bill. » Bolaños has said to have “the hand laid” to continue talking with the associations and “improve the law in whatever is necessary.
The reform that these associations ask to revoke leaves prosecutors the instruction of the criminal cases, increases the mandate of the State Attorney for five years and prevents the Executive You can instructions to the Head of the Public Ministry. The Minister of Justice He presented this reform at the press conference after the Council of Ministers on Tuesday of last week. There he explained that it is « a long -term reform » and that it will enter into force in 2028. In addition, he insisted that the objective of these measures is that justice « approaches the best European standards » and that meets the demands required by the group of states against corruption (Greco). This agency, created by the Council of Europe to improve the ability of countries that make it up for fighting corruption, He regretted last April that Spain had ignored his recommendations on judicial independence.
Another of the points that the judges have opposed isl Extraordinary stabilization process of substitute judges and prosecutors and substitute magistrates. The department headed by Bolaños has presented a contest-opposition system to end the interim in which more than 1,200 justice professionals work. In the statement, the five signatory associations are committed « to judicially challenge said process, assuming the costs jointly. »
This stabilization process has faced justice with the titular judges. On the one hand, the European Commission He has twice to the government about the problem of interim in justice. On the other, the judicial associations issued another statement a week ago in which they stated that the proposed model for the opposition « does not ensure the rigorous accreditation of the legal knowledge necessary to exercise jurisdictional or fiscal functions. »
With this act, judicial associations materialize the rumors of a strike in protest of the reform. This week, The Spanish He advanced the existence of a group with more than a thousand participants, regardless of associations, where there was already talk of « stops » and « strikes. »
