04.03.2016 //
Serbian prosecutors and judicial experts say that a change within society comes only with independent Prosecutor’s Office in a democratic country.
Everyone is hoping that Serbia will in its EU accession process open the chapter 23 on justice before summer. Independent judiciary will thus come to the forefront.
The rule of law is one of the cornerstones of modern democracies and Norwegian embassy in Belgrade has been supporting strengthening of the rule of law in Serbia through different projects. One of the latest is a conference entitled “The constitutional position and role of the State Prosecutorial Council,” which was held in Belgrade on March 4.
Opening the conference, Mr Goran Ilic, president of the Association of Public Prosecutors and Deputy Public Prosecutors in Serbia, said that the independence of the Prosecutor’s Office is closely related to the democratisation of society. “Everyone, regardless of his/her political, social position and personal wealth should be subjected to criminal prosecution,” Ilic said. “This must change, and I hope we will all witness it soon,” he added referring to interference in their work.
Norwegian Ambassador to Serbia, Mr Arne Bjornstad said that justice must be impartial in order to be called justice, but it must also independent to be perceived as impartial, or no one would believe in it.
He believes it is very important to have prosecutors who are sufficiently independent to have the integrity to say that the investigation is not good enough or that the government has not interpreted the law well and send the case back. “In order for justice to work, there must be confidence in the legal system and individual prosecutors must be accountable to a higher independent authority to make sure that all prosecutors apply in the same way and react in case of wrongdoings.” the Ambassador said.
In addition to this, the rule of law is very important for further economic development of the country.
