The Special Public Prosecution “should be integrated, and to be assimilated in the public prosecution system” with the new Draft Public Prosecution’s Law that was lodged at the Parliament, states the Blueprint Group that consists of non-government organizations that monitor the reforms in the judiciary.
This is one of the main principle objections regarding the new legal decision that was proposed by the Government and which should solve SPO’s status within the country’s judiciary system, said Natali Petrovska, Director of the “All for a Just Trial” NGO.
-Even previously we stood firmly behind our stance that SPO as an institution which goal is to fight high corruption should be integrated in the public prosecution’s system, at least as a Department within the Prosecution for Organized Crime and Corruption – said Uranija Pirovska, an Executive Director of the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, which is also a part of the Blueprint Group.
During the press conference that was centered on the process of preparation of the draft law, SPO’s status and the investigation behind the Ransom case, the representatives of the Blueprint Group repeated their opinion that was stated previously in the past that SPO as an institution must keep a degree of autonomy during this process of integration within the Public Prosecution.
Pirovska expressed her disapproval when representatives of the Blueprint Group were not invited to state their opinion about the new draft law even though some of their observations that were provided at other times were integrated within this text.
.-It is inadmissible that this law should be adopted in a quick procedure, without a wider public debate and with negotiations among the political parties – said Pirovska.
The representatives of the Blueprint Group expressed their dissatisfaction about the ways the investigation in the ransom case is being led especially by revealing acts from the investigation which are not in accordance with the Law on Criminal Procedure. They also said they want to see whether the investigation will be completed and announced that they will be monitoring the process when the case will be taken to trial.
Apart from the Helsinki Committee, ALl for a Fair trial, the Blueprint Group also consists of Institute of Human Rights, the Institute of European Policies, Macedonian Association of Youn Attorneys, The Center of Legal Research, and analyses and the Open Society Foundation – Macedonia.
